About St. Agnes Mission · Afton, New York
St. Agnes Mission was a Roman Catholic mission church at 14 Spring Street in Afton, New York, in the Diocese of Syracuse. Founded in 1946 and dedicated in 1949, it served the small farming community of Afton in Chenango County for nearly 80 years, paired as a mission with St. John the Evangelist Church in nearby Bainbridge under a shared Deacon Administrator. The parish closed on July 6 (after the 2025 school year in which it co-hosted the Afton Central School District baccalaureate), and the brick colonial-style building at the corner of Spring and Academy Streets is now offered for sale. Its parish history, art, and ties to the village — including the gift of a Rembrandt etching and carved Stations of the Cross — remain a distinctive chapter in Afton history.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- St. Agnes of Rome
- Diocese
- Diocese of Syracuse
Why belong here
St. Agnes Mission was the Catholic home for the small farming community of Afton, gathered under the patron saint whose lamb emblem fits an agricultural parish. Worshippers valued its intimate 160-seat colonial brick interior, its heirloom art (a Rembrandt etching and hand-carved Stations), and its close partnership with St. John the Evangelist in Bainbridge — a single faith community sharing Sunday Masses between the two village churches. Even after the mission's formal closure on July 6, the parish's legacy of faithful small-town Catholicism, dating to 1946 and supported by the St. Agnes Guild, continues to shape the Catholic identity of Afton.
Mass times at St. Agnes Mission
Weekly Mass schedule
Parish History
For many years before St. Agnes existed, Catholics in the Afton area traveled to Mass in Bainbridge, Deposit, Greene, or Sanitaria Springs. The first Mass for St. Agnes Parish was celebrated on June 9, 1946 in a house on North Main Street (then owned by the Afton Grange) under founding pastor Father Charles Dee, with 86 people in attendance. By July of that year, services had moved to the Village Hall, with the Afton Home Bureau providing a second-floor room for vestments and supplies. In June 1948, Father Edward A. Goulet succeeded Father Dee and quickly set about planning a permanent church. Ground was broken on Good Friday, April 15, 1949, on a donated lot at Spring and Academy Streets. The first Mass in the new brick church was held October 1, 1949, and Bishop Walter A. Foery of Syracuse dedicated the building on October 2, 1949, confirming a class of six boys, twelve girls, and nine adults. The parish celebrated its 70th anniversary in October 2019 with Bishop Douglas J. Lucia visiting.
- First Mass: June 9, 1946 — house on North Main Street, 86 attendees, Father Charles Dee
- St. Agnes Guild founded: June 14, 1946
- Ground broken: April 15, 1949 (Good Friday) — Spring and Academy Streets
- First Mass in new church: October 1, 1949
- Church dedicated: October 2, 1949 by Bishop Walter A. Foery
- 70th anniversary: October 2019 with Bishop Douglas J. Lucia
- Mission closure: July 6
The Building and Its Art
The church is a small brick colonial-design building — plans drawn by Arthur Lacy and Sons, contract awarded to F. & K. Lewis Inc. of Afton at a cost of $45,000, with seating for about 160. It is far more than a simple country church: its interior is enriched by a remarkable Rembrandt etching and hand-carved woodwork that visitors and parishioners long admired.
- Style: brick colonial
- Architect: Arthur Lacy and Sons
- Builder: F. & K. Lewis Inc. of Afton
- Cost (1949): $45,000
- Seating: ~160
- Rembrandt etching, 'Descent from the Cross' — gift of Dr. and Mrs. George Bennett, above the door
- Wood carvings by sculptor Harry E. Donohue of Ossining, NY: large crucifix above the altar, Agnus Dei on the altar front, statues of Christ the King, the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Agnes, and St. Joseph, and the Stations of the Cross
St. Agnes Guild
Formed on June 14, 1946, just a week after the parish's first Mass, the St. Agnes Guild was the women's organization that has been a source of spiritual inspiration, information, and fundraising ever since. Guild members arranged the altar, cared for altar linens and equipment, and sewed some of the first linens from fine Irish household linens donated by women of the parish.
Bainbridge–Afton Catholic Cluster
St. Agnes Mission was paired with St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church at 34 South Main Street, Bainbridge, NY 13733, together forming 'The Catholic Community of Bainbridge & Afton' under a single Deacon Administrator and a shared rectory/business line at (607) 967-4481. Worshippers alternated between the two village churches for Sunday Mass, with St. John also hosting a Tuesday 9:00 AM liturgy.
- St. John the Evangelist — 34 So. Main Street, Bainbridge, NY 13733
- St. Agnes Mission — 14 Spring Street, Afton, NY 13730
- Rectory / Business Office: (607) 967-4481
- Rectory open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday
Clergy and Leadership
From its founding through its closing, St. Agnes was shepherded by a small succession of priests and deacons. The most recent administration was under a Deacon Administrator appointed by Bishop Lucia, with the administrator named on third-party directories as Rev. Darr Schoenhofen following Deacon Picciano's tenure.
- Father Charles Dee — founding pastor, 1946 – June 1948
- Father Edward A. Goulet — June 1948 onward; oversaw construction and the 1949 dedication
- Deacon Timothy O. McNerney — Deacon Administrator through ~May 2020
- Dc. Thomas N. Picciano — Deacon Administrator from June 1, 2020 (also Pastoral Care Associate, St. Vincent de Paul Blessed Sacrament)
- Rev. Darr Schoenhofen — Administrator (listed on joinmychurch.com)
Mass and Service Schedule (as last published)
St. Agnes Mission's most recently published schedule (via Catholic Church Directory and the parish cluster site) lists Sunday and Wednesday morning Masses in English, with a Christmas Eve Mass at 4:00 PM. Times were unchanged for years and parishioners are encouraged to confirm with the rectory.
- Sunday — 8:30 AM (English)
- Wednesday — 8:30 AM (English)
- Christmas Eve — 4:00 PM
- Cluster site: https://sites.google.com/saintjohn-saintagnes.org/stjohnstagneschurches/home
Visiting and Directions
St. Agnes sits in the heart of the village of Afton in Chenango County, on the corner of Spring and Academy Streets. Travelers from Interstate 88 take Exit 7 to NY 7, turn left onto NY 7, then quickly right onto Spring Street; the church is one block down on the right.
- From I-88: take Exit 7
- Continue straight to NY 7; turn left onto NY 7
- Quick right onto Spring Street; church is one block on the right
- Across the street is the Spring Street firehouse
- Diocese of Syracuse
Closure and the Building's Next Chapter
After nearly 80 years of Catholic worship in Afton, St. Agnes Mission closed on July 6 (most recently confirmed by Deacon Thomas Picciano in his blog). The former church building — total approximately 4,500 SF with about 2,393 +/- SF available — was listed for sale by Cushman & Wakefield / Pyramid Brokerage at $125,000 as a redevelopment opportunity, with residential and professional uses cited as possibilities. The property is described as 'in very good condition' on a corner lot with room for additional parking or accessory buildings.
- Closed: July 6
- Listed for sale: Cushman & Wakefield / Pyramid Brokerage (Property ID G7031)
- Total area: ~4,500 SF
- Available: 2,393 +/- SF
- List price: $125,000
- Status: 'St. Agnes Church - Former'
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Charles Dee1946–June 1948
Founding pastor; celebrated the first St. Agnes Mass on June 9, 1946 in the former Afton Grange house on North Main Street.
- Father Edward A. GouletJune 1948–
Succeeded Father Dee; planned and oversaw the construction of the brick church; celebrated the first Mass in the new building on October 1, 1949 and the dedication Mass the next day with Bishop Walter A. Foery.
- Deacon Timothy O. McNerney
Deacon Administrator of St. John the Evangelist / St. Agnes cluster through ~May 2020; supplied the parish history at the 70th anniversary in October 2019.
- Dc. Thomas N. PiccianoJune 1, 2020–
Appointed Deacon Administrator by Bishop Lucia; also serves as Pastoral Care Associate at St. Vincent de Paul Blessed Sacrament; oversaw transition after St. Agnes Mission closed July 6.