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→The Beginnings of the Church 1878-1907
== The Beginnings of the Church 1878-1907 ==
The earliest beginnings of our the cathedral date back to the 1878 to the early 1880s with the arrival of Carpatho-Russian immigrants from the western part of Galicia known as Lemkovstchina. These early settlers possessed a deep religious feelings and desired to worship in their own church. As a result, they began holding services in the Stec home, located directly behind the present church. Shortly thereafter, they rented an inactive Baptist church and immediately converted the interior to resemble an Orthodox Church.
In 1888, the Brotherhood of Saint John the Baptist was organized. With an inordinate amount of support and encouragement from the growing congregation, plans were implemented to build a new church. This initial building was a wooden frame structure and was constructed in 1891. This church was located on the corner of Hill and Maple Streets in the geographic center of town at the cost of $6,500. The original name given was the Russian Greek Catholic Church of Saint John the Baptist.
On January 7th, 1907, Saint John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Church was officially chartered in the Lackawanna County Court. Soon thereafter, St. John's was honored by being chosen as the site of the first Orthodox All-American Sobor (council). This historic event was held from February 20-23 of 1907 and was presided over by Archbishop Tikhon.
== The Early Years 1908-1950 ==
