In  February 1914 Father Abraham Emerick, S. J. wrote to Cardinal James Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore informing him of a new mission in the Fairfield area of St. Mary’s County. Father John La Farge, S. J. soon joined Father Emerick in serving this church, named St. James.

 In 1963, Father La Farge was asked to contribute to two publications recording the favorite Christmas memories of some well-known people of that year (college presidents, movie stars).
 
 We have a copy of Father La Farge’s draft, but we do not yet know if his contribution was published.

From Father La Farge’s draft:
At the first Christmas midnight Mass at St James, “the rural place might be remote and poor, but the forest around was rich in material for Christmas decorations”.
“We greeted the Infant Lord with melodies sung in far-off Hungary, and a few good old Maryland hymns besides.”
“As the homespun choir chanted the Gloria and the Creed that peaceful winter night, with just a touch of sea-breeze from the Chesapeake Bay at the foot of the hill, we could not forget pioneers as in a sense we were celebrating the Christmas Mass that real pioneers, the first Maryland colonists, had celebrated three centuries before at St. Mary’s City, only a few miles away through the forest. White and Negro, American –born and Slovak, all were joined in that ancient homage.”
“Today’s restless generation thanks the U.S.Navy for the splendid road that leads to, from and past the little church at the wayside.”.
“And the Guest we entertained that night is still there.”

In 1634, on the feast of St. Cecilia, November 22, two ships departed from England to estab- lish a new colony. Led by Lord Baltimore, a Catholic, the mission was to create a place where Catholics could worship freely. The first English colony in America, founded on the promise of religious freedom, was established here in St. Mary’s City.

In 1916, at the site known as Fairfield, at the intersection of Three Notch Road, Mattapany Road, and a small road now called St. James Church Road, local Catholics, along with some newly arrived members of the National Slavonic Society, constructed a modest wooden building, which would soon be named St. James.

Then, in 1974, a new brick church was dedicated on a donated parcel of land along Mattapany Road. The parishioners from St. James moved to this new parish building, which was renamed St. Cecilia. Today, in 2024, the parish of St. Cecilia joyfully celebrates its 50th anniversary! 

 When a new church building was needed for St. James Parish, the decision was made to name the new structure St. Cecilia. The furnishings from the original St. James were carefully removed, including the wooden altar, which was resized, and several pews, which were repurposed in the new “St. James Chapel,” located in what is now the sacristy. Daily Mass was held in this chapel for several years. The original altar from St. James is now displayed in the alcove of the church. Many families also acquired church furnishings through an auction. The old building was later burned as part of a fire department training exercise.