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Photographer John Barna captured this dramatic sequence of photos Sunday as the last steeple of the former Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church was toppled under the watchful eyes of city firefighters.

Little now remains of the former sanctuary on Seventh Avenue, Downtown. The former St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church at the corner of Seventh and Market also has an imminent date with the wrecking crew. Workers have already begun removing the slates from the roof of St. Peter's for possible reuse.

With a declining number of worshipers and a dwindling availability of priests in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, both St. Peter's and Holy Trinity were merged into St. Martin de Porres Parish in 2007, then merged again in 2010 with St. Pius V and St. Mary Czestochowa parishes to form Corpus Christi.

The new parish uses only the former St. Mary Czestochowa church on Versailles Avenue.

According to a 1976 history of McKeesport, Holy Trinity was the city's third Roman Catholic church. Formed in 1892 by Slovak immigrants and their lodge, the Holy Trinity Protective Association, parishioners first worshiped in a former synagogue on Seventh Avenue. The church just demolished was constructed in 1911.

The city's first Roman Catholic church --- and the eighth in Allegheny County --- was St. Peter's, which was founded in 1846. The present church was built in 1875 and survived a 1957 lightning strike that destroyed its original steeple.

Last August, Michael DiVittorio of the Daily News reported that the Holy Trinity building needed nearly $318,000 in repairs, though more than $277,000 of that total was earmarked for "stained glass refurbishment."

Although both parcels are presumably for sale, it's unclear whether any buyers have emerged. The land under Holy Trinity is assessed at $15,100, according to county tax records, while the land under St. Peter's is assessed at $27,700.

A diocesan spokesman did not return an email or a phone call from the Almanac seeking comment before presstime.* In May, Carol Waterloo Frazier of the Daily News reported that the parish decided to demolish the empty buildings to prevent them from becoming eyesores.

City officials last week told the Almanac they have heard of no development plans for either lot, though one buyer is reportedly interested in the former St. Pius V Church and School on Fremont Street.

Stained glass and other venerated objects from the parishes were removed before demolition. The pipe organs from Holy Trinity and St. Peter's have been dismantled and are being re-assembled into one, larger organ at St. Teresa of Avila Church in Ross Township, north of Pittsburgh.

Other items made the move to the new Corpus Christi Church, according to a story in the diocesan newspaper, the Pittsburgh Catholic, including statues of Mary and Joseph from Holy Trinity and the Stations of the Cross from St. Peter's. About 2,000 people are members of the new church, the newspaper reported.

* --- Edited June 22 to add that a diocese official contacted Tube City Almanac today and will have comment shortly.

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