Monsignor Kett Playground

W. 204 St. bet.ween 10 Ave. and Nagle Ave.

Manhattan, 10034

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

Located on West 204th Street between Tenth and Nagle Avenues, this playground honors Monsignor Francis J. Kett (1895-1969), the beloved pastor of nearby Saint Jude’s Roman Catholic Church. Born July 31, 1895, Kett attended Cathedral College and St. Joseph’s Seminary in Dunwoodie, New York. A staunch patriot, he took a year leave of absence from seminary to serve in the U.S. military as infantry lieutenant in World War I. Following his ordination on May 26, 1923, Kett spent a summer at St. Peter’s Parish in Liberty, New York, before he was transferred to St. Andrew’s near City Hall, where he served as a priest for nineteen and a half years. Kett spent another five years as an administrator of Old St. Mary’s on Grand Street before moving to Inwood in 1949.