French Catholic émigrés established the first church after they fled Haiti in 1799, following the outbreak of slave rebellions that began on the Caribbean island in 1791.

The congregation constructed its first church on Liberty Square in 1779 and in 1811, chose a site on Drayton and Perry Streets for a larger building.

Most Reverend James Roosevelt Bayley, Archbishop of Baltimore, presided at the dedication of the Neo-Gothic sanctuary April 30, 1876.

On February 6, 1898, a fire swept the building and left only the walls and spires, but the congregation quickly rebuilt and was able to celebrate Christmas Mass in the new facility in 1899.

[8] The parish undertook subsequent renovation projects in 1959–1965, which addressed heating, cooling and lighting systems and decoration; 1984–1985, to reinforce structural foundations and implement changes suggested by the Second Vatican Council and 1998–2000 to install new roofing, and restore the original interior color palette and decorations.