Founded on June 25, 1922 on the Feast of Saint Peter and Saint Paul with a parish community of 100 families, the original church building was built and dedicated (in what is now our parking lot) at a time when the city was expanding. In 1931, despite harsh financial difficulties due to the Great Depression, the priests and people of Saint Paul's established a mission church in Colonie, New York. In 1940, this became a separate parish dedicated to Saint Clare. By 1947, following the Second World War, St. Paul’s had grown to 290 families. Originally, a parish center had been built where the school now stands, but by 1952 the parish now serving 650 families recognized the need for a parochial school and that parish center building was replaced with the present school which opened in 1955.
Experiencing continued growth St. Paul’s outgrew its original church and the present church was opened in 1959. A house on the grounds served as a convent and eventually became the Parish Center, then a Youth Center. (NOTE: This house was razed in 2015, to make room for a handicapped parking lot, closer to the new Parish Center.)
In 1962, the parish community numbered 810 families and in 1966 grew to 1,250. The rectory was built in 1970 and provided some limited facilities for meetings. In October of 1977, Fr. George Brucker was named its pastor for over 25 years has shepherded its growth, as shown by the additions of a Charismatic Liturgy (in 1978), the Life Teen Youth Ministry in 2000 and a new Parish Center in 2002. Our parish now serves approximately 1,700 families with a wide variety of facilities, resources, ministries and parish activities and continues to grow in faith and love for our Lord.