Our Lady of Hungary Parish

Hungarian community begun as a mission of St. Stephen’s, 1916 — parish erected 1921 — present church dedicated 1949

Two beginnings in the record: The parish’s own older history tells of a little church built in 1910 on South Catalpa Street, on land later taken by the Studebaker Corporation for its foundry, as a mission from St. Stephen’s built to counteract the Hungarian schism of those years, served for most of the following years by the Rev. Paul Miller, C.S.C., from Notre Dame. Bishop Rhoades’s centennial homily of 2016 dates the community instead from 1916, when it began as a mission church of St. Stephen’s parish, and Today’s Catholic’s centennial account follows the 1916 date. Both accounts agree that the mission was St. Stephen’s daughter and that it served Hungarians on South Bend’s south side, in the Rum Village neighborhood.

Erection as a parish: In December 1921 the Rev. Geza Gyorffy, newly come from Hungary by way of Toledo, arrived at Bishop Alerding’s invitation to organize the parish. Bishop Rhoades’s homily dates the parish from that year, 1921, with Gyorffy as first pastor. Gyorffy purchased the property on West Calvert Street, had the little mission church moved to the new site, and built the rectory, school and convent. A separate parish history of the Hungarian schism dates the official founding to 1922, when the Calvert Street land was bought; the sacramental records filmed from the diocesan archives begin in 1912.

Church and school: The parish built a church on the Calvert Street site in 1923 and a school in 1927, staffed by the Daughters of Divine Charity. Under the Rev. John Sabo, who served the parish from 1930 until his retirement in 1980 — 45 of those years as pastor — the present church was built and dedicated in 1949. The school, founded in the late 1920s, continues in operation.

Present state: Our Lady of Hungary, at 829 West Calvert Street, remains an active parish and school. Founded by Hungarian immigrants, it is now served largely by a later immigration: Today’s Catholic reported in September 2025, at Bishop Rhoades’s pastoral visit, that the parish is still populated by immigrants, now mainly Hispanic in origin, and that its school continues the founding mission of educating the children of first-generation immigrants.

Sources:

1. Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades, homily for the 100th anniversary of Our Lady of Hungary, Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend, 26 June 2016 — the 1916 mission beginning, the 1921 parish erection and Gyorffy appointment, the 1923 church, 1927 school and 1949 church, and Sabo’s 1930–1980 ministry.
2. Today’s Catholic, “A century-old parish and committed community,” 11 August 2017 — the parish founded in 1916, begun as a mission, originally named in the paper’s account in connection with St. Stephen’s, and the present church dedicated in 1949.
3. Parish history of Our Lady of Hungary, as transcribed for the St. Joseph County genealogical pages — the 1910 Catalpa Street mission church, Father Miller’s service, and Gyorffy’s December 1921 arrival and building program.
4. Today’s Catholic, “At Our Lady of Hungary, ‘There’s So Much Hope,’” 9 September 2025 — the parish’s present, mainly Hispanic immigrant congregation and school.
5. Our Lady of Hungary School handbook, 2026–27 — the school established in 1927 and founded by the Daughters of Divine Charity.