St. Charles Borromeo Church ca. 1980

New York Catholics ranked parishes in terms of status. The Church of St. Charles Borromeo founded in Brooklyn Heights in 1849 was the Sixth Catholic Parish in Brooklyn. While it wasn't the first, it was regarded as "select," according to the anonymous inscription on the reverse of a stereoscopic view card depicting the church. The note continues: "The church is also frequented by the most wealthy Catholics, showing however nothing remarkable inside or out. Even the organ is of small capacity." The present church was dedicated in 1869, in the red Philadelphia brick edifice trimmed with Belleville stone, and in the English Gothic style, designed by Patrick C. Kelley, a premiere Catholic architect of the day.