About Our Lady of Victory Chapel · Gary, West Virginia
Our Lady of Victory Chapel is a small Roman Catholic mission chapel in the coal-mining town of Gary, McDowell County, in the southern West Virginia coalfields. Originally established in 1903 as Our Lady of Victory Parish and entrusted to its first pastor, Rev. Patrick H. Gilsenan, the church served generations of Catholic coal-country families in the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston (now Beckley Vicariate). On November 26, 2017, the parish was merged into St. Peter Parish in Welch, and the Gary church was reclassified as a chapel within the territory of St. Peter, continuing as a place of worship and gathering for the local faithful. The chapel, located on Church Street in Gary, is administered by the pastor of St. Peter Parish and continues to celebrate a weekly Saturday vigil Mass.
- Established
- 1903
- Patron
- Our Lady of Victory
- Rector
- Rev. Rey D. Landicho (Administrator of St. Peter Parish, Welch, under whom the chapel is administered)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston (Beckley Vicariate)
Why belong here
Our Lady of Victory Chapel is one of the oldest Catholic congregations in the southern West Virginia coalfields and remains a quiet, steady place of worship for Catholics in McDowell County. For more than a century it has kept the liturgical life of the Church alive in Gary, and today it offers a weekly Saturday vigil Mass under the pastoral care of St. Peter Parish in Welch. Visitors and Catholics in the area find here a small, faithful community rooted in the region's deep mining heritage and continuing the parish's 1903 mission.
Mass times at Our Lady of Victory Chapel
Weekly Mass schedule
History of Our Lady of Victory
Our Lady of Victory Parish in Gary was founded in 1903 with Rev. Patrick H. Gilsenan as its first pastor, according to the official historical register of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. It served the Catholic families of the McDowell County coal-mining community for more than a century.
- Established: 1903
- First pastor: Rev. Patrick H. Gilsenan
- Merged into St. Peter Parish, Welch, November 26, 2017
- Reclassified as a Chapel within the territory of St. Peter Parish
Parish Cluster and Administration
Since the 2017 merger, Our Lady of Victory Chapel is administered through St. Peter Parish, Welch (Parish ID 1331, McDowell County), which itself incorporates several historic southern-coalfield churches. The Administrator is Rev. Rey D. Landicho. Parish operations are run through the Welch parish office at 111 Virginia Ave., Welch, WV 24801, phone (304) 436-2014, email [email protected]. The chapel's listed phone is (304) 448-2749.
- Parent parish: St. Peter, Welch (est. 1923)
- Vicariate: Beckley Vicariate, Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
- St. Peter Parish office: 111 Virginia Ave., Welch, WV 24801 — (304) 436-2014
- St. Peter email: [email protected]
- Office staff: Ms. Jan Williams (Secretary/Bookkeeper)
Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston (Beckley Vicariate)
Our Lady of Victory Chapel sits within the Beckley Vicariate of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, the Catholic diocese covering the State of West Virginia. The diocese maintains a public directory listing for the chapel and publishes Mass times and clergy information at dwc.org.
- Diocese: Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
- Vicariate: Beckley Vicariate
- Diocesan directory entry: dwc.org/directory-listing/gary-our-lady-of-victory-chapel/2155/
Location and Contact
The chapel sits on Church Street in the small community of Gary, McDowell County, in the heart of the southern West Virginia coalfields. The GCatholic database lists the address as 38 Church St., Gary, WV 24836.
- Street address: 38 Church St., Gary, WV 24836
- County: McDowell County, West Virginia
- Phone: (304) 448-2749
GCatholic Church Record
GCatholic's official record for the church lists it under the Diocese of Wheeling–Charleston with the founding year 1903.
- GCatholic Church ID: 25702
- Type: Church (now Chapel)
- History: 1903
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Patrick H. Gilsenan1903–
First pastor of Our Lady of Victory Parish, Gary, per the diocesan history record.