The parish of St. Mary Magdalen and the town of Abbeville were founded by Pere Antoine Megret, a French priest who, on July 25, 1843, purchased 160 arpents (about 135 acres) of property on the Vermilion River from Joseph LeBlanc and his wife Isabelle Broussard LeBlanc.
There have been four different churches on the present site. The initial chapel was destroyed by the Hurricane Isle Deniere in 1856. The second church served until 1884 when a larger church was needed. Built in 1885, the third church was gutted in 1907.

The present church was put into service in 1911 and completed in 1920.
The Romanesque style church, designed by George Harold, is cruciform in shape. It features three arches, stained glass windows, gothic spires, and eighteen Ionic and Corinthian columns. The church sanctuary is housed in a semicircular apse, canopied by an oak ciborium which features figures of Christ and the twelve apostles. Statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph are found on the Carrera marble side altars.

The church’s stained glass windows designed by Ford Brothers Glass Studio were executed by European artists.
There are 18 windows along the nave of the church which depict saints of the church and scenes from the life of Christ.  They have unifying features such as the burning braziers that symbolize the Divine Presence in the church and the double pillars which signify time and eternity. 

RESTORATION 2004-2009
The most recent restoration began in 2004 with work on the Church steeple damaged during a hurricane.  The inside renovations began the day after Easter, in April of 2009, and were completed in time for Christmas Eve Mass in December, 2009.

The slate roof was replaced, the exterior waterproofed and a complete interior renovation was done.  Many of the features added i.e. marbled side altars; pulpit and baptistery were purchased from St. Rose of Lima, a New Orleans church closed after Hurricane Katrina. 

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