4. The CHURCH OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, 

SE. corner Central Ave. and Hunter St., is the oldest church building in Atlanta, a landmark of the formerly handsome residential section around Capitol Square. Constructed of painted red brick, the building is of Gothic design with a square tower and a three-arched main entrance topped by a balustrade. The vaulted interior gives an effect of restful beauty because of its excellent proportions and because of the soft light filtered from outside through stained-glass windows. The dominant feature is a white marble altar, installed by the women of the parish in 1879.

The first members of the congregation, Irish laborers who were brought here to construct the railroads, received mass from missionary priests from the Savannah diocese. The earliest entry in the records of the parish is that of a baptism administered on August 9, 1846, probably in a member's home, for the first Catholic church was not erected until 1848. When General Sherman's Federal troops destroyed Atlanta in 1864, they were about to burn this building; but the priest, Father O'Reilly, walked boldly to the head of the line and announced that if his church was fired every Roman Catholic in Sherman's army must leave the ranks. Since the regiment was composed largely of Catholics, the church was spared. The small frame structure on this site, though damaged by shells that had exploded about it during the siege, continued in use until 1869, when the present building was erected.

Each year on April 28 the Church of the Immaculate Conception is crowded by the Irish Horse Traders and their families, who come to Atlanta on that date to hold funeral services for those of their number who have died during the year. The first of these families, mistakenly believed by some to be of gypsy origin, came to America in the 1850's and set up a livery stable in Washington, D.C. The first traders prospered, and others followed until eight families were established in America: the Rileys, McNamaras, Carrolls, Sherlocks, Garmons, Costellos, Dartys, and O'Haras. As time passed, some of them became itinerant traders, ranging over the country in covered wagons with their horses and mules on leads.

One such band, led by Pat O'Hara, first halted to establish headquarters at Nashville, Tennessee, but these restless Irishmen soon changed their minds and pushed southward. Settling for a time in the new, bustling city of Atlanta, they purchased large tracts of land and sometimes made fortunes as property values expanded with the rapidly growing municipality. Later most of them moved on, but the burial of John McNamara, a leader of the clan, in Oakland Cemetery in 1881, had established a strong tie that resulted in the custom of bringing their dead here each year for burial. When Oakland Cemetery became overcrowded, lots were purchased in the newer and more spacious West View. The memorials to their dead are usually massive and ornate, bearing decorations that range from stately guardian angels in marble to the inset photographs of a deceased trader and his still surviving widow.

The descendants of the eight original families, numbering about 10,000, now travel by automobile with household goods in trailers and horses in large vans. But, despite such modern appurtenances, many old customs prevail. Encampment is made in tents, as in the early days. In order to preserve their cherished tribal entity, the traders have made strict rules to keep marriage within the bounds of the original families, and only rarely have these rules been disobeyed. Nevertheless, they justly pride themselves on being good American citizens and have proved their loyalty by always enlisting readily in time of war.

Except for Nashville, Atlanta is the only city to which the clans come for their annual reunions, which are held for business conferences and betrothals as well as funerals. On the morning of April 28 the Church of the Immaculate Conception is a scene of unforgettable contrast. The dim gray background of the old church, the solemnity of the Roman Catholic service, the reverence of the worshippers, and the black veils of the widows throw into high relief the cries of restless children and the vigorous beauty of black-haired, blue-eyed Irish girls in the finery of bright dresses and costume jewelry.

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