About St. Edmund by the Sea · Dauphin Island, Alabama
St. Edmund by the Sea is a small Roman Catholic parish on the barrier island of Dauphin Island, Alabama, in the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mobile. The parish sits at the corner of Cadillac Avenue and Key Street and serves the year-round island community as well as visitors along the Gulf Coast. Weekend worship centers on a Saturday Vigil Mass and a Sunday morning Mass, with a Friday weekday Mass, and the sacrament of Confession is offered before each. The parish is named for St. Edmund the Martyr, the 9th-century king of East Anglia, with his feast day observed on November 20.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- St. Edmund the Martyr (King of East Anglia)
- Rector
- Rev. Monsignor Leonardo C. Guadalquiver
- Diocese
- Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mobile
Why belong here
St. Edmund by the Sea offers a welcoming, walkable Catholic presence on a quiet Gulf Coast barrier island. Whether you live on Dauphin Island year-round or are visiting the Alabama coast, the parish keeps the Eucharistic heart of Catholic life close at hand with Saturday Vigil, Sunday, and Friday weekday Masses, regular Confession before each liturgy, and First Friday Adoration. It is a small but tight-knit faith community under the pastoral care of the Archdiocese of Mobile.
Mass times at St. Edmund by the Sea
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Friday: 4:30 PM – 4:50 PM
- Saturday: 3:00 PM – 3:20 PM
Adoration times
- First Fridays: 4:00 PM – 4:50 PM
Parish Identity & Diocese
St. Edmund by the Sea is a parish of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mobile, which lists the church on its Parish Finder at mobarch.org/parishfinder. The parish sits in the far southwestern corner of the Archdiocese, on the barrier island community of Dauphin Island in Mobile County, Alabama. It operates under the Roman (Latin) Rite and currently falls under the pastoral care of Rev. Monsignor Leonardo C. Guadalquiver.
- Jurisdiction: Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mobile
- Rite: Roman-Latin
- Type: Parish (Church)
- Pastoral listing: mobarch.org/parishfinder
History & Founding Heritage
The parish's origins lie in the Edmundite Southern Missions, an outreach of the Society of Saint Edmund. In 1937 Fathers Frank Casey and John 'Barney' Paro — sent by the Edmundites at the urging of Pope Pius XI — arrived in Alabama and, at Bishop Thomas J. Toolen's invitation, established missions across the state. Between 1939 and 1942 the Edmundites accepted invitations to serve six missions and parishes along Mobile Bay, stretching from Mobile down to Dauphin Island; St. Edmund by the Sea is the spiritual descendant of that island outreach. Catholic records for the parish begin at the FamilySearch Library in 1943, and the parish is recorded as incorporated in 1946 under the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops group exemption.
- Founded 1946 (per IRS / Cause IQ / Charity Navigator records)
- Catholic parish records preserved 1943–1995 at the FamilySearch Library
- Descendant community of the Edmundite Southern Missions (Society of Saint Edmund)
- Patron: St. Edmund the Martyr, King of East Anglia (d. 20 November 869)
Patron Saint — St. Edmund the Martyr
The parish takes its name from St. Edmund the Martyr, an Anglo-Saxon king of East Anglia who was killed by Danish invaders in 869. He was venerated as the patron saint of England until he was replaced by St. George in the Middle Ages, and is today the patron of kings, torture victims, those suffering from pandemics, and the Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia. His feast day in the Catholic Church is 20 November, which the parish observes.
- Feast day: November 20
- Patron of kings, pandemics, torture victims, and the Diocese of East Anglia
Pastoral Leadership
The current pastor of St. Edmund by the Sea is Rev. Monsignor Leonardo C. Guadalquiver, as listed on the Archdiocese of Mobile parish finder and on Dauphin Island community church directories. He shepherds this small island parish under the Archdiocese of Mobile.
- Rev. Monsignor Leonardo C. Guadalquiver — Pastor
Visit, Location & Contact
The church is located at 823 Cadillac Avenue on Dauphin Island, at the corner of Cadillac Avenue and Key Street. Driving directions: take Hwy. 188 onto Dauphin Island, turn left at Cadillac Avenue, and continue one block. The parish office can be reached at (251) 895-5454, and email is [email protected]. The Archdiocese of Mobile maintains a listing for the parish on its Parish Finder (mobarch.org/parishfinder), and the parish also has a Facebook page under the name 'St. Edmund by the Sea Catholic Church.'
- Address: 823 Cadillac Avenue, Dauphin Island, AL 36528
- Phone: (251) 895-5454
- Email: [email protected]
- Archdiocesan listing: mobarch.org/parishfinder
- Facebook: facebook.com/pages/St-Edmund-by-The-Sea-Catholic-Church/111580518882923
- Directions: Hwy. 188 → left on Cadillac Ave. → one block, corner of Cadillac Ave. and Key Street