Construction began on the Chapel in 1880 under the direction of Father Suitbert G. Mollinger, son of a wealthy Belgian family, and the first pastor of Most Holy Name of Jesus Church. Father Mollinger personally financed the building of the tiny devotional chapel to house his large collection of relics. Dedication of the Chapel took place on the Feast of Saint Anthony, June 13, 1883. Thousands of people made their way to visit the Shrine, and to be blessed by Father Mollinger and the relic of Saint Anthony, the most venerated relic in the chapel. The first class relic is now located in a small reliquary within a repository on the Saint Anthony Altar.
 
An inscription written in Latin on the central arch of the Chapel reads, “Here Lie the Saints in Peace.” Over five thousand relics of the saints have reposed peacefully in the Chapel for over a hundred years. The impressive collection is displayed in beautifully wrought reliquaries, arranged in altars and side cases constructed of hand-carved solid walnut. Many of the reliquaries contain multiple relics. For many centuries these relics were venerated in Europe. Documents to verify their authenticity accompanied the acquisition of the relics and are retained with security.
 
Father Mollinger never counted cost when building his repository for the acquired relics. This applied to the reliquary chapel as well as to the later addition. He spent $300,000 from personal funds to provide a stately ecclesiastical edifice on Troy Hill in Allegheny City – now Pittsburgh’s North Side. The Chapel’s stained glass windows, all imported from Europe, attest to his wishes for exquisite workmanship. The fourteen stained glass windows above the Stations of the Cross portray the apostles, along with Saints Paul, Stephen, and Lawrence. The center window above the entrance depicts the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God and Queen of Heaven, and also Saint Joseph. To the left and right are windows honoring Saint Anthony and Saint Catherine of Siena.
 
Sadly, on the day of the dedication of the addition to the Chapel, Father Mollinger collapsed. He died two days later. The absence of a will prompted Bishop Richard Phelan, then bishop of the diocese of Pittsburgh, to make a settlement with Father Mollinger’s heirs and acquired title to the Chapel for $30,000 – a pittance compared to its actual value. The chapel thus became church property deeded to Bishop Phelan as trustee for Most Holy Name of Jesus Parish. The struggling German families of the parish eventually raised the $30,000 to repay the Bishop.
 
Over the years the Chapel fell into a sad state of disrepair. Bishop Vincent M. Leonard, of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, gave permission for its restoration. In the summer of 1972, a Saint Anthony’s Chapel Restoration fund Committee was formed and fund raising began. The restoration was done in three stages as money became available, and was completed in November, 1977.
 
In the 1980’s, following the restoration in the 1970’s, the Chapel was opened on a more regular basis. More and more pilgrims came to admire its beauty, adding their prayers to those who had come over the previous one hundred years. Pilgrims continue to acclaim the exemplary lives of the saints as models of the church and to marvel at the splendor of the array of relics gathered by a servant of the church – Father Suitbert G. Mollinger.
 
In order to help secure the future of Saint Anthony’s Chapel a religious articles gift shop was opened in June, 1983. A museum to house artifacts and memorabilia of the Father Mollinger era was dedicated June 10, 1986.
 
Contributions to support and preserve Saint Anthony’s Chapel are needed and gratefully accepted.