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	.	. Parish Mission Statement . Holy Family Catholic Church of Latrobe is a sacramental community gathered to worship God and share the teachings and presence of Christ through Word and Action in the life and power of the Holy Spirit. .
		. Chronological History of Holy Family Parish . Holy Family began its long and venerable history when on June 13, 1856, the Most Rev. Michael O'Connor, first Bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese, authorized the establishment of a Parish at Latrobe Pennsylvania, to care for the Catholics in that area. Prior to this, Catholics attended services at St. Vincent's, which was run by the monks of St. Benedict. As the Pennsylvania railroad stretched westward,a station was established at Beatty in the year 1852. The area surrounding was incorporated and streets were mapped by Oliver Barnes, who named the newly formed town "Latrobe"~ after a friend, Benjamin Latrobe of Baltimore, Maryland. When property lots went on sale, David Williams, a Catholic and a contractor for the railroad, secured the block between Chestnut and Walnut, fronted by Ligonier Street, for a price of $250, which he donated for the construction of a Catholic Church. Four years later, in 1856, building began of a church 60 x 40 feet, facing Chestnut Street. It was completed and dedicated in 1857 under the title of Holy Family. Six years later, in February of 1863, a violent wind storm lashed the area, destroying the Church. Little was left standing, except the two side walls. By spring, reconstruction was underway and, on September 6, 1863, the Church was rededicated. A rectory house was built in 1864 at the corner of Ligonier and Chestnut Streets to be a residence for pastors. The Catholic population of Latrobe increased rapidly and the cornerstone for a new and larger church was laid in 1905. It was completed in 1907 and the original church, which seated only 300, was abandoned and parishioners moved into the present edifice which faces Ligonier Street. A tall church steeple originally topped the bell tower, but it had to be removed after being struck by lightning several times, giving the church its present definition. When the Church was completed, it was pronounced one of the finest in Western Pennsylvania. The architectural style of the Church is modern English Gothic. The entire exterior of the building is constructed of Holmsburg granite trimmed with Indian limestone. The roof is green slate. The Church tower is twenty feet square and was originally one hundred sixty-four feet high. The overall length of the Church is one hundred and fifty feet high. The width through the body of the Church is sixty-two feet and through the Transept it is seventy-three feet wide. The vestibule is lined in dressed stone from the floor to the ceiling, which is paneled in wood. The columns are dressed in Indiana limestone. A five foot wainscot of fine chestnut lines the interior walls of the Church and the floors are marble. Altars of the best Carrara marble were brought from Italy and installed in 1919. The windows were designed and executed by the late Harry E. Goodhue, Cambridge, Massachusetts. The magnificent window back of the Main Altar depicts the Crucifixion"-. The theme of the Family of God was carried out in other windows. .

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