Named for the 13th century Franciscan monk - Anthony of Padua, the church was designed by famed church architect Patrick C. Keeley, and its cornerstone was laid down in 1873.

A high Victorian Gothic  structure found on Manhattan Avenue’s intersection with Milton Street, the church has a 240 foot spire and maintains both a convent and rectory for its clerical workers, nuns, and priests. St. Anthony once ran a parochial school, but that was closed in 2006. St. Anthony’s merged with the nearby St. Alphonsus parish in 1976.

In 2011 St. Anthony’s three 8,000 pound Westminster bells stopped ringing, after having been in continuous use since their installation in 1895. It would cost $20,000 to fix the bells, though there has been some talk of installing a digital recoding of the bell for a mere $10,000. As of 2012, despite some valiant local efforts, the church has not raised enough money to do either.