Over a century ago, the Viatorian priests who served at St. Viator Church, then at Belmont and Pulaski, recognized the need to establish a mission parish in the suburban town of Montrose in the Township of Jefferson. The town of Montrose, later renamed Mayfair, had been established at the crossing of two railroads: the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul and the Chicago & North Western. This 80-acre tract was subdivided in 1874 following the exodus of settlers toward Jefferson Township after the Chicago Fire. In 1869, the Chicago & North Western Railroad agreed to stop at the Mayfair Station. The Township of Jefferson and surrounding communities were annexed to the city of Chicago in 1889.