 Church of St Francis Xavier
Jalan Penang, George Town
The Church of St Francis Xavier or Gereja St Francis Xavier, at 52K Penang Road, was built for the Tamil-speaking Catholics in Penang. It was named after the Catholic saint who propagated the religion in the Far East. The church was founded in 1852, by Father Francis Xavier Hob.
The original church building was completed in 1867, along with the presbytery and a school. It is located at the end of a driveway leading from the Catholic Information Centre at Penang Road. Within the same complex is the St Joseph's Orphanage and a school. The present church building was completed in 1952. The Grummit Family from England offered financial support including purchasing the land for the church building.
In 1988, the Church of St Francis Xavier was amalgamated with the Church of Our Lady of Sorrows and the Church of St John Britto, to form the City Parish of Penang. In 2007, the Church of St Francis Xavier celebrated its 150th anniversary of the original structure.
A short distance behind the church is the Catholic cemetery, which is adjacent to the Protestant cemetery along Northam Road. Buried at the Catholic cemetery are the nuns of the Holy Infant Jesus who founded the girls school of Convent Light Street.
Church of St Francis Xavier, Penang Road.
© Timothy Tyeusing this photo
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