St. Mary of the Assumption

The genesis of St. Mary of the Assumption Church is found in the desire of the Irish immigrants, who settled in Wheatland and southeastern Chili in the 1830s, to establish a Catholic church in their community. The first step in the process occurred in the winter of 1841, when the Reverend Bernard O'Reilly, pastor of St. Patrick's Church in Rochester, took ill while returning home from a sick call in Caledonia. Father O'Reilly stopped in Scottsville at the home of Patrick Rafferty, a thirty-one year old Irish immigrant who had settled in the village in 1837. A few weeks after his initial visit, Father O'Reilly returned to Scottsville and celebrated the Eucharist. At that time, Rafferty and other Catholics met and decided to have Mass said in their village whenever it was possible for a priest to visit them. On May 10, 1843, Patrick Rafferty, Michael Sheridan, and James Early, acting for the local Catholics, bought the land upon which the present church and rectory stand. The three men gave their joint note for $300 and took a mortgage on the property to cover the $800 purchase price. In 1848, a permanent pastor was assigned to the Scottsville mission by Bishop John Timon of Buffalo, whose diocese included most of Western New York. On August 15, 1853, the feast of the Assumption, Bishop Timon laid the cornerstone of the church building. In May, 1855, the first mass was said in the new, not quite completed, church. Within five years, the parishioners had finished the interior, and on Sunday, November 4, 1860, Bishop Timon formally dedicated the building.

This building across the driveway from the church building is an excellent venue for meetings, receptions and small group activities. It also has a confessional area. It is available for rent to the public, with a well-appointed kitchen and restrooms. The church history indicates Father Hartmann began the construction of this multi-purpose building in the late 1950s "to accommodate the growing number of children attending released-time catechism classes that were meeting in the church .... On Thanksgiving Day, 1961, the cornerstone was laid and on March 4, 1962, Auxiliary Bishop Casey blessed the completed building."