Description
The history of Holy Trinity Hungarian Church is closely intertwined with the history of Hungarian immigration to northwestern Indiana. By the 1890s, the steel mills and factories in East Chicago and the nearby industrial towns—Hammond, Whiting, and Indiana Harbor—were attracting an increasing number of Hungarian workers. The rapidly growing community soon realized that an independent Hungarian Catholic parish was necessary to preserve its identity and religious life.
The first steps toward organizing the parish were taken on July 4, 1904, when local Hungarians gathered at Stephen Farkas’s home to decide on the establishment of their own church. The organizational efforts yielded quick results: in 1906, the Holy Trinity Hungarian Roman Catholic Parish was officially established, and on November 11 of that same year, the cornerstone of its first church was ceremonially laid. The church was consecrated the following year, on Trinity Sunday, 1907. Its first permanent pastor was Oszkár Szilágyi, a Benedictine monk, who arrived in East Chicago on Christmas Eve 1907 to organize the pastoral life of the rapidly growing Hungarian community.
The first church, however, did not prove to be long-lasting. The parish suffered severe setbacks in its early years, as their church fell victim to fire on two separate occasions. The parishioners, however, demonstrated extraordinary solidarity. Using their donations and their own labor, they began building a new church. The cornerstone of the church that stands today was laid on May 30, 1920, and its consecration took place on May 22, 1921. This building became one of the most significant spiritual and cultural centers of the Hungarian Catholic community in northwestern Indiana.
The parish’s growth is well illustrated by the fact that in 1922 it opened its own elementary school, which quickly became the primary educational institution for Hungarian families in the area. By the end of the 1920s, the parish had about 480 families, and the school enrolled nearly 350 students. Religious life was enriched by numerous associations, including the Rosary Society, the Altar Society, the Holy Name Society, and the Children of Mary community. The church became a spiritual home not only for the Hungarian Catholics of East Chicago but also for those in Hammond, Whiting, and Indiana Harbor.
In the second half of the 20th century, as a result of the gradual decline in Hungarian immigration and assimilation, the parish’s membership slowly dwindled; nevertheless, it continued to preserve its Hungarian character. Father Alfonz Skerl became a defining figure in the parish’s history, serving the faithful for nearly half a century beginning in 1971. During his pastoral ministry, the church remained one of the last significant bastions of Hungarian Catholic life in America. Several prominent church figures visited the community: Bishop Attila Miklósházi, S.J., visited in 1991 and 1996, and in 2004, Péter Erdő also celebrated Mass at the church. The parish celebrated its centennial in 2006, an occasion on which the Hungarian community’s century-long service was also honored by the United States Congress.
This history, spanning more than a century, finally came to an end in 2016. Due to a significant decline in the number of parishioners and financial difficulties, the Diocese of Gary dissolved the parish, and the final solemn Mass was celebrated on October 23, 2016. At the same time, after 46 years of service, Father Alfonz Skerl also retired. The parish was dissolved, and its parish registers and documents were transferred to the archives of the Diocese of Gary, where they remain available for research today.
