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 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924008069738 
 
Archbishop Purcell 
 
 AND 
 
 The Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 ■>. 
 
 A STUDY 
 
 -BASED ON ORIGINAL SOURCES 
 BY 
 
 Sister MARY AGNES McCAXN, M.A. 
 
 OF 
 THE SISTERS OF CHARITY OF CINCINNATI OHIO 
 
 A DISSERTATION 
 
 Submitted to the Catholic Sisters College of the Catholic University of 
 
 America in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements 
 
 for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy 
 
 :''o. 
 
 WASHINGTON, D. C. 
 June, 1918 
 
^1705 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 Page. 
 Introduction 3 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 Birth. Arrival In America. Early Days at Emmitsburg 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Bishop Fenwick, First Ordinary ot Cincinnati. Arrival of His 
 Successor, Bishop Purcell 11 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 Cincinnati as Bishop Purcell Found It 19 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 The Purcell-Campbell Debate. Charity Sermons and Anniversary 
 Orations. The Leopoldine Association. The Roman Catholic 
 Society for the Diffusion of Knowledge. The Roman Catholic 
 Total Abstinence Association 24 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 European Communities. Diocesan Activities. Consecration of 
 Bishops. Division of Diocese 35 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 Diocesan Visitations. Pounding of St. Francis Xavier College. 
 Mount St. Mary's of the West, Cincinnati. A Metropolitan See. 
 Pallium at the Hands of Pope Pius IX 50 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, Ohio. Provincial Councils. 
 , Mrs. Peter. Father Hecker 60 
 
 ^ ^ ' ' • t CHAPTER VIII 
 
 The Catholic Institute. The Immaculata. The Civil War. The 
 Vatican Council 75 
 
 I' CHAPTER IX 
 Correspondence. Golden Jubilee. Financial Crisis. Death 96 
 
 ■. ::\-: 
 
 •'inui 
 
 l^ 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 The history of the Church in the United States and of the 
 American Hierarchy cannot be complete without an adequate 
 account of the Hfe and labors of the Most Reverend John Baptist 
 Purcell, D.D., Bishop of the Cincinnati Diocese from 1833 
 until 1850, and its Metropolitan from 1850 until 1883. So far, 
 written records have not given to him his proper meed of praise. 
 He was a central figure in a group of renowned prelates and 
 wielded great power, not only in Ohio and the Northwest 
 Territory, but also in the Plenary Councils of the Church in 
 the United States. In the colonizing and extension movements of 
 the country, in the founding of educational and charitable estab- 
 lishments, in the introduction of European Religious Orders into 
 America, in the building of churches, in the creating of Episcopal 
 Sees, and in becoming almost the Founder of a religious com- 
 munity when he adopted the Daughters of Mother Seton as The 
 Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, Ohio, he exercised a wide in- 
 fluence. These works he accomplished by his zeal and activity 
 at home and by his personal attractiveness and influence abroad, 
 especially in Rome, Paris, Lyons, Vienna and Belgium. 
 
 Untiring in his endeavors, unselfish in the use of means, burning 
 with intellectual ardor for the enlightenment of the people and 
 with zeal for their religious advancement, he considered no journey 
 too hazardous, no self-denial too great, no pleading too humiliat- 
 ing, if, in the end, the betterment of his neighbors and God's glory 
 would result. 
 
 A half century of episcopal life, with so many prominent events 
 and such a background of zealous labor, should have been written, 
 long ago, to honor him who performed the deeds and for the up- 
 building of mankind by a study of his example. 
 
 That the story of his life is not forgotten, unwritten history will 
 testify. That it has impressed itself on the generations following 
 him and that it grows more attractive as the years pass on, is, 
 perhaps, a mystery — but assuredly, a tribute to a life lived not for 
 earthly fame. 
 
 There were able writers, loyal sons of Archbishop Purcell, who 
 would gladly have given to the world, some decades ago, an 
 aceount of his inspiring life and works, but just as a fitting occasion 
 
 3 
 
4 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 presented itself, on the horizon of his day of triumph, a cloud 
 appeared — a financial crisis, which obscured for a short time his 
 episcopal life; and death came in the wake of the disaster. 
 
 That the monetary failure was no fault of his, but a result of 
 the imperfect banking system of earlier days, the world neither 
 knew nor cared, until it was forced to acknowledge that the hand 
 of the law had made, of a little rift, a very wide breach. There were 
 indeed material losses; perhaps, too, there was a retarding of the 
 external expansion of the Diocese, but the direst calamity result- 
 ing from the failure was the death of the Venerable Archbishop 
 and that of his Very Reverend Brother, Father Edward Purcell. 
 Both were victims of the catastrophe, and both had given to the 
 Cincinnati Diocese all that was good and noble within them and 
 had asked only the simplest things in return. Time has shown 
 the error of wild conclusions arrived at in unreasoning moments 
 and has restored to quiet judgment decisions overwhelmingly 
 favorable to him who was in very deed the Venerable Patriarch of 
 the West. 
 
 In sending forth this brief study, it is the hope of the writer 
 that, in a short time, a worthy account of the life and labors of 
 Archbishop Purcell may be incorporated into the history of the 
 Catholic Church in the United States. 
 
 The writer wishes to express her grateful acknowledgments 
 for assistance in her work to the Reverend Nicholas A. Weber, 
 S.M., S.T.D., to the Very Reverend Thomas E. Shields, Ph.D., 
 to the Reverend Patrick J. McCormick, Ph.D., to the Reverend 
 William Turner, S.T.D.; for the use of the Archdiocesan Archives ; 
 to the Most Reverend Henry Moeller, D.D.; for generous en- 
 couragement and suggestions to the Faculty of Mount St. Mary's 
 of the West and other kind friends. 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 BIRTH. ARRIVAL IN AMERICA. EARLY DAYS AT 
 EMMITSBIRG 
 
 John Baptist, son of Edward and Joanna Purcell, was born 
 at Mallow, County Cork, Ireland, on February 26, 1800. He had 
 one brother, Edward, and two sisters, Katherine and Margaret. 
 Their ancestral possessions had passed in time of persecution 
 from strong adherents of the Old Faith to others willing to sacrifice 
 the eternal for earthly profit. Although their rightful temporali- 
 ties had not descended to them, his parents succeeded in giving to 
 their sons and daughters an education of a remarkably high order. ^ 
 
 John Baptist's talents had been recognized by a relati\-e in 
 affluent circumstances and a promise had been made to send him 
 to Maynooth College, but the promise never became a realitj'. 
 Just a century ago, in the spring of 1818, when John Baptist was 
 eighteen years of age, he left parents and home, crossed the ocean, 
 and came to Baltimore, actuated by a desire to study for the 
 sacred priesthood. With the ministry of the Altar for an end, he 
 began his search for the means and hoped as private tutor in some 
 family of Maryland to earn sufficient to pay for his courses in 
 Philosophy and Theology. 
 
 As an introduction to such position, he felt that a testimonial 
 from some College in the United States would be necessary and, 
 therefore, he presented himself before the Faculty of the Asbury 
 College,^ Baltimore, and applied for an examination towards a 
 teacher's certificate. A rigid examination, in Latin, Greek and 
 Hebrew, was creditably passed, and the desired credentials 
 were obtained. These secured him a position of tutor in some of 
 the first families of Baltimore, where he remained for about two 
 
 ' Archives Mount St. Mary s of the West, Bishop Purcell's Journal, Archives 
 Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio, Marianne Reilly's Journal. Archives Mount 
 St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio, Community Records. 
 
 -"Asbury College (Methodist) was established in Baltimore in 1816 and 
 named in honor of Bishop Asbury, fifty years a preacher, who died that year. 
 Its first President was Rev. Samuel K. Jennings. It was located at the corner 
 of Park Avenue and Franklin Streets, was chartered February 10, 1818, for 
 the benefit of youth of every religious denomination with literary honors 
 according to merit. It conferred degrees in 1818." 
 
 Letter of John Parker, Librarian of Peabody Institute, Baltimore, November 
 26, 1917. 
 
 Circular of Information, No. 2, 1894. Bureau of Education. History of 
 Education in Maryland. Herbert B. Adams, pp. 247-25-t. 
 
6 ArcKbishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 years, when the president of Mount St. Mary's College, Emmits- 
 burg, heard of him and his holy aspirations and, without delay, 
 prepared a way for his entrance to the Mountain. Here, on May 
 20, 1820,^ as student and professor, he became the associate of men 
 intellectually and spiritually great, men whose names are still re- 
 vered throughout this vast country and whose power for good is 
 felt, even yet, by reason of the strong foundations which they laid. 
 That the Church in the United States would have a steady growth, 
 they foresaw, hence they looked to its careful development. 
 They felt with the ardor of missionary zeal, "Omnium divinorum 
 divinissimum est cooperari Deo in salutem animarum."^ 
 
 John Baptist Purcell was eminently fitted to sit at this round 
 table of scholars. Brilliant of mind, he was likewise tender of 
 heart. Mind and heart were admirably balanced, and his 
 generous outlook upon life aided both by lending breadth to all his 
 actions and wisdom to his plans. 
 
 To his Alma Mater he gave the freshness of his young life and 
 talents, and the same Alma Mater held the grateful love of his 
 declining years, to fourscore and three. 
 
 The President of the College was the Very Reverend John 
 Dubois, afterward Bishop of New York; the spiritual director of 
 the young students was the Reverend Doctor Brute, the Guardian 
 Angel of the Mountain and in later times, the first Bishop of Vin- 
 cennes, Indiana.^ 
 
 There was a galaxy of brilliant young men at Mount St. Mary's 
 in those days, and John Baptist Purcell was soon recognized as 
 one of the brightest in the assemblage.^ 
 
 The Sisters of Charity were in charge of the domestic arrange- 
 ments of the College, having undertaken the work out of gratitude 
 for the fatherly care shown to them by the Reverend Doctor 
 Dubois, as their ecclesiastical superior.' Down in St. Joseph's 
 Valley, only a mile distant, Mother Seton was moulding her 
 pioneer community and by degrees placing sisters in the larger 
 cities to teach the children and care for the needy little ones. The 
 
 ' McSweeny, The Story of the Mountain, Emmitsburg. 1911, Vol. I, p. O-t. 
 Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, p. 570. 
 
 * St. Denis, the Areopagite. 
 
 ' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Bayley, Memoirs of the Ul. 
 Rev. Simon Wm. Gabriel Brute, D.D., New York, 1865, pp. 33 et seq. 
 
 ' McSweeny, oj>. cit. Vol. I, p. 94. 
 
 ' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio, Community Records. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 7 
 
 history of this rehgious society was being learned at its source by 
 the students of Mount St. Mary's both from their own observa- 
 tions and from the lips of the Reverend Doctor Brute, the spiritual 
 guide of the Sisters, but the map of their own futures as ecclesias- 
 tics was not unfolded before them, showing themselves as the heads 
 of dioceses and the Sisters their willing helpmates in spreading the 
 religion of Christ. 
 
 Less than a year after Father Purcell's arrival at Emmitsburg, 
 on January 4, 1821,* they walked in the simple funeral cortege of 
 the Foundress of the American Daughters of Charity and knelt at 
 the little mound of earth in St. Joseph's "Woods," — her last 
 resting place. 
 
 John Baptist Purcell was then beginning his life's work, though 
 unconsciously, for he was imbibing the spirit of the pioneer bishops 
 and he was learning the ideals of Mother Seton's foundations, works 
 ever dearest to his heart. 
 
 He remained at the College for three years, studying and 
 teaching, and received minor orders from Archbishop Marechal 
 in December, 1823.^ 
 
 On March 1, 1824, he accompanied the Reverend Simon Gabriel 
 Brute to France where he continued his course of theology in the 
 Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris. ^^ They sailed on the ship Mar- 
 mion and had a pleasant voyage of which Mr. Purcell wrote to his 
 friend Reverend Michael Egan, afterward President of the College. 
 In this letter, too, he shows a dual affection which marked his 
 whole life: a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin and a love for 
 his brother Edward. He wrote "Love my Edward for me and 
 tell the Children of Mary that to be a worthy member of their 
 Blessed Society is the highest ambition of their true friend until 
 death, for a whole eternity."'^ 
 
 On May 21, 1826, he was ordained priest in the historic church 
 of Notre Dame by the Most Reverend Hyacinthe Louis de 
 Quelen, the Archbishop of Paris.'- Many other young men 
 received on that day the same divine power, one of whom was the 
 
 » Ibid. 
 
 ' McSweeny, op. cil. Vol. I, p. 65. Archives Mount St. Mary's of the 
 West. Shea, History of the Catholic Church in the United Stales. Vol. Ill, p. 
 74. 
 
 ^° Archives Mount St. Mary's of the West; Archives Mount St. Joseph-on- 
 the-Ohio. 
 
 " McSweeny, op. eit.. Vol. I, p. 115. 
 
 '^ Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
8 Archbishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 future Archbishop of Rheims, Reverend Louis Eugene Reynault. 
 These two, the future first Archbishop of a distant city in the New 
 World and the future Metropohtan of the ancient city of Rheims, 
 formed a pact of friendship on learning that their birthdays oc- 
 curred in the same year 1800 and in the same month, February, 
 the only difference being that of the five days between the 21st 
 and the 26th. When Archbishop Reynault celebrated his golden 
 jubilee he did not forget his twin friend, but invited him to 
 Rheims for the celebration. ^^ 
 
 After his ordination. Father Purcell remained in Paris for 
 eighteen months longer, pursuing the higher paths of philosophy 
 and theology. He returned to the United States in 1827, accom- 
 panied by the Reverend Samuel Eccleston, in after years the 
 fifth Archbishop of Baltimore.'^ Father John Purcell hastened 
 to his Alma Mater with all the gifts of learning and piety which he 
 had received, eager to bestow them on those committed to his 
 teaching. He found that the College had made great advances, 
 although its founder and revered President had been transferred 
 to a larger field of action, the Diocese of New York, and in his place 
 was one of his own training, the brilliant young Doctor Egan, who, 
 the following year, M'ent to France on account of ill health and 
 died there May 29, 1829'^ The Reverend Doctor McGerry had 
 succeeded Doctor Egan in October, 1828. He held the ofiice just 
 one year until October, 1829.1" The year 1828-1829 was one in 
 which the need of priests was felt throughout the archdiocese and 
 Archbishop Whitfield acting on this situation withdrew the 
 Reverend John Hickey from his work in the College and from his 
 spiritual ministrations to the Sisters of Charity, suggesting, at the 
 same time, that Doctor Purcell be appointed confessor for the 
 Sisters at St. Joseph's Valley. 
 
 The President, Doctor McGerry, wrote the Archbishop : "Doctor 
 Purcell teaches moral philosophy, Hebrew, and Greek; is confessor 
 and spiritual prefect over a hundred boys as well as several semi- 
 narians; confessor of the Sisters and domestics here, and is Prefect 
 of Studies. If I lose him, I lose my right arm."^' 
 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-tlie-Ohio. 
 
 " Centennial History of Baltimore Cathedral. Archives Mount St. Joseph- 
 on-the-Ohio. 
 
 " Ibid. McSweeny, op. cit.. Vol. I, pp. 159, 199. 
 
 « Ibid. 
 
 "Ibid. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Catholic Umannr 
 1835, p. 79. 
 
ArchMshop PurccU and the Archdiocese of Gincumati 9 
 
 In October, 1829, President McGerry left Emmitsburg and 
 the Presidency of the College was given to Doctor Purcell, the 
 November follpwing. 
 
 A month earlier, the First Provincial Council of the Church in 
 the United States was held in Baltimore. ^^ Messrs. Roger B. 
 Taney, John Scott, and William G. Read attended some of the 
 meetings, their opinions in certain matters having been solicited 
 by the Fathers of the Council, Archbishop Marechal, Bishops 
 Flaget, England, Rosati, Fenwick of Boston, Fenwick of Cin- 
 cinnati, and Father Matthews, Vicar-General of Philadelphia. 
 Bishops Dubois and Portier were in Europe. Some of the visiting 
 prelates had the pleasure of returning to their old College home and 
 to St. Joseph's ^'alley. Several of them had missions of the Sisters 
 in their dioceses and others were soliciting foundations. 
 
 Bishop Edward Fenwick of Cincinnati, who had asked in 1825'^ 
 for Sisters to teach his Cathedral School, was unable, on account 
 of limited means, to carry out his wishes at that time. He heard 
 now with thanksgiving that the Sisters had arrived in Cincin- 
 nati on October 27, 1829, and had opened a school and orphan- 
 age.^" This was the eighth mission established from Emmitsburg. 
 Bishop Rosati had secured a colony, the year previous, 1828, 
 for St. Louis. ^' 
 
 Doctor John Purcell was President of Mount St. Mary's College 
 during four years — from November, 1829, until October, 1833, 
 when he was consecrated second Bishop of Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 In February, 1830, he had succeeded in having the College incor- 
 porated by the Maryland Legislature. The Reverend John 
 Hughes, then in Philadelphia, wrote him on June 8, 1830: "I am 
 of course rejoiced at the facility with which your Charter was 
 obtained at Annapolis. I hope it will be an advantage. "^^ 
 
 " Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Centennial History of the Baltimore 
 Cathedral. Truth Teller, Vol. V, pp. 343, 350. The Metropolitan, Balti- 
 more, 1830, p. 34. Shea, -op. cit. Vol. Ill, pp. 408-419. Hammer, Der 
 Apostel von Ohio, pp. 52-92. 
 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Archives Notre Dame Uni- 
 versity, Bishop Dubois' letter. 
 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio- Journals. 
 
 '' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Records. 
 
 ^ McSweeny, op. cit.. Vol. I, p. 232. Archives Mount St. Mary's of the 
 West. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Loiters, Catholic Ency- 
 clopedia, Vol. X, p. 605. 
 
10 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 During the four years of his incumbency, as in all the years of 
 his episcopal life. Doctor Purcell was untiring in his efforts for the 
 greater good of his charge and it was in the midst of his classical 
 labors in the East, with no thought of the Middle West, that he was 
 called to take up the burden so suddenly laid down by the Right 
 Eeverend Edward Dominick Fcnwick. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 BISHOP FENWICK, FIRST ORDINARY OF CINCINNATI. ARRIVAL OF 
 HIS SUCCESSOR, BI'HOP PURCELI. 
 
 The Right Reverend Edward D. Fenwick, O.P., first Bishop of 
 Cincinnati, was stricken by cholera whilst discharging his episcopal 
 duties and died a martj r to duty at Wooster, near Canton, Ohio, on 
 September 26, 1832.^^ His long and arduous labors, were brought 
 suddenly to a close by the dreadful disease which carried away many 
 of his flock. He had presided over the Cincinnati diocese for eleven 
 years, having been consecrated on January 13, 1822, by Bishop 
 Flaget at St. Rose Convent, Kentucky. ^^ His entrance into 
 Cincinnati as its Ordinary was not his first introduction to the 
 beautiful little city; for as early as December 11, 1811, a meeting 
 had been called and steps taken to organize a congregation, the 
 result of Father Fenwick's visits. Previous to 1810, probably in 
 1808,^* he had crossed the Ohio from his convent in Kentucky to 
 discover the number of Catholics living on the opposite bank. The 
 city then contained four thousand people, few of whom were 
 Catholics, but these were subsequently visited by Father Fenwick, 
 twice a year. Cincinnati was then under the spiritual jurisdiction 
 of Bishop Flaget of Bardstown, Kentucky. Mass was offered in a 
 private dwelling on Walnut Street until 1818, when a small 
 structure, Christ Church, was built in the "Northern Liberties," 
 so called because within the city limits, it was not lawful to build 
 a place of worship. ^^ Toward the end of March, 1822, the Right 
 Reverend Edward D. Fenwick was installed in his Episcopal See 
 with "humble ceremony and silent panegyric" in the poor little 
 chapel, two miles beyond the city boundary. He lived on the 
 corner of Ludlow and Lawrence Streets in a house which he had to 
 rent for himself after his arrival, as no provision had been made for 
 his maintenance.^' Later he bought a lot on Sycamore Street 
 
 ^Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Journals. Catholic Telegraph. 
 Letter of Eliza Rose Powell, Vol. I, p. 40G. The Truth Teller, Vol. VIII, p. 
 340. Hammer, Der Apostel von Ohio, p. 142. 
 
 ^ Hammer, Der Apostel von Ohio, p. 44. United States Catholic Magazine, 
 Baltimore, Vol. VI, pp. 26-29. Shea, op. cit. Vol. Ill, p. 339. 
 
 ^ The year 1814 is given by the Catholic Magazine, 1847, p. 29, and by De 
 Courcy, History of the Catholic Church. New York, 1896, p. 547. This date 
 refers probably to Bishop Flaget's first visit to Cincinnati. 
 
 ^ Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Farnsworth, Cincinnati Directory, 1819, 
 pp. 35-42. Catholic Magazine, op. cit., pp. 24-30. Shea, op. cit., p. 337. 
 
 " Catholic Telegraph, Vol. II. p. 85. Shea, op. cit., p. 339. 
 
 11 
 
12 Archbishop Purcell and the A rchdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 above Sixth, and had the Httle chapel, the pro-Cathedral, drawn 
 by oxen to its new site. On this lot in 1825, he built the first 
 Cathedral of Cincinnati, St. Peter in Vinculis.^^ In this Cathedral, 
 on February 2, 1829, the Reverend Martin John Henni, after- 
 ward Bishop and later Archbishop of Milwaukee, and the Reverend 
 Martin Kundig were raised to the holy priesthood, the first clergy- 
 men ordained in Cincinnati. On the eleventh of the following 
 May, the Bishop opened his Seminary adjoining the Cathedral,^' 
 and on October 27 he found his schools and charitable institutions 
 assured of support by the arrival of four Sisters of Charity from 
 Emmitsburg, Maryland.^" The Athenaeum, the Seminary, was 
 completed a few months later and was considered, in 1830, one of 
 the important public buildings.^' The Catholic Telegraph, 
 the oldest Catholic paper in the United States, issued its first 
 number on October 22, 1831. '^ It was founded by Bishop Fenwick 
 and his nephew. Father Young, for the purpose of answering 
 attacks on religion. The press used was a gift to Bishop Fenwick 
 when he went to Europe to ask help for his needy diocese. Mrs. 
 TroUope, writing of the religious factions of this time in Cincinnati, 
 says, "The Catholics alone appear exempt from the fury of divi- 
 sion and subdivision that has seized every other persuasion. 
 Having the Pope for their common head, he regulates, I presume, 
 their movements, and prevents the outrageous display of individual 
 whim which every other sect is permitted."^' She remarks 
 further, "I had the pleasure of being introduced to the Catholic 
 Bishop of Cincinnati, Bishop Fenwick, and have never known, in 
 any country, a priest of a character and bearing more truly apos- 
 tolic. He was an European, but I should never have discovered it 
 from his pronunciation and manner. He received his education 
 partly in England, partly in France. His manners were highly 
 polished; his piety, active and sincere, and infinitely more mild and 
 
 28 Mansfield's Personal Memories, p. 151. Drake and Mansfield, Cincinnati 
 in 1826, pp. 35, 36. Shea, op. cit., p. 350. De Courcy and Shea, op. cit., n. 
 548. 
 
 2» Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Cincinnati Directory, 18i9. Shea. 
 op. cit., p. 353. 
 
 =» Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Journals. Cincinnati Direc- 
 tory, 1829. J. F. Foote, Schools of Cincinnati. Cincinnati, 1855, p. 123. 
 
 " Cincinnati Directory, 1831. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 =2 1831-1918. The Catholic Miscellany of Charleston, 18'2-2-1861; The 
 Jesuit of Boston, 1829-1834; The Truth Teller, 1825-1833; The Catholic Maga- 
 zine, 1833-1836. Cf. Cnlho'ic Historical Review. Vol. I, pp. 258-270. 
 
 '' TroUope, Domestic Manners of the Americans. London, 1832, p. 99. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Arclidiocese of Chiciiinali 13 
 
 tolerant than that of the factious sectarians who form the great 
 
 majority of the American priesthood. "^^ Such, according to Mrs. 
 
 Trollope, was Cincinnati's first Bishop, but far more than this did 
 
 the Sisters of Charity who worked with him discover in his nobility 
 
 of character, and highest of all was the estimate formed of his 
 
 greatness by his successor, the Right Reverend John Baptist 
 
 Purcell, D.D. The appointment of this prelate to Cincinnati 
 
 was first learned in his episcopal city through the following letter 
 
 from Bishop England to the Reverend J. J. Mullon, then editor 
 
 of the Catholic Telegraph: 
 
 "Rome, Maij 14, 1833. 
 "Reverend and Dear Sir: 
 
 "Probably the same packet which takes this will also convey 
 to Doctor Purcell his appointment for the See of Cincinnati 
 comprising the State of Ohio. It was at length finally arranged 
 on Sunday evening after a variety of delays. This is now defini- 
 tive, and I congratulate you and the diocese upon it, as I know 
 Purcell well, and feel that amongst you he will be exceedingly 
 useful. I would suggest to you, to write to him immediately to 
 secure his acceptance, as it is by no means unlikely that efforts will 
 be made to urge his resignation, and such a step at this moment 
 would probably produce results which would do an injury not to 
 be repaired for a century. I am at this moment too close upon 
 the hour of post to permit my entering upon the particulars, but 
 I do strenuously urge you to this step or any other correct one 
 which will ensure his acceptance. Hughes and he with Kenny 
 were in the first list. Another was sent out with the names of 
 Dubuisson (marked as the very last choice), and McSherry. The 
 General of the Jesuits objected to his three members, and the 
 Cardinals chose Purcell, believing him to be the one most likely 
 to serve you, and not wishing just now to take Hughes from 
 Philadelphia. Rese had already and at once been named for 
 Detroit upon Bishop Fenwick's letter and the Pope's own knowl- 
 edge of him. As far as you think prudent, but without stating 
 your knowledge of the fact which I add, you may urge the pro- 
 priety of Provincial Councils. (The Pope has directed the Pro- 
 paganda to write to the Archbishop that it is his wish that they 
 should be held.) You may be assured that our administration 
 will be greatly improved by Rome. 
 
 "In haste . . . 
 
 "Yours very sincerely, 
 "Bishop of Charleston. 
 
 "You can show this to Doctor Rese with ifty best respects. 
 
 "Nothing done yet about Vincennes."^^ 
 
 " Trollope, op. cit., p. 100. 
 
 '^ Archives Mount St. Joseph-ou-the-Ohio. Bishop England's Letter. 
 
14 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 The Reverend J. J. MuUon wrote to Doctor Purcell on July 28, 
 1833, the day on which he received Bishop England's letter. This 
 letter he enclosed in his own urgent request that Doctor Purcell 
 would accept the charge mentioning especially the College with 
 "its fair and even flattering prospects."^^ 
 
 The "variety of delays" mentioned in the letter was probably 
 the hesitation of the Sacred College in deciding between Fathers 
 Purcell and Hughes. A tradition, traced to Bishop England, says 
 that one of the Cardinals asked Bishop England to mention some 
 circumstance that would lead the minds of the electors toward a 
 choice between the two candidates and that the Bishop replied 
 that he could think of nothing unless the fact that Father Hughes 
 was a self-made man might make him more acceptable to the 
 Western people than Doctor Purcell, a College President. The 
 Cardinal, it seems, exchanged the names by accident and told 
 Bishop England, later, that "Their Eminences were pleased with 
 his suggestion that Father Purcell, a self-made man, would be 
 agreeable to the people of Ohio and that the document had been 
 sent to the Holy Father for his signature." Bishop England did 
 not correct the mistake, feeling that the Holy Spirit was taking care 
 of Its own work. Early in August, the Apostolic Brief reached 
 Baltimore and the Reverend Arthur Wainwright, of the Cathedral, 
 immediately took it to Doctor Purcell at Emmitsburg.^' Doctor 
 Brute was opening a retreat for the Seminarists, at the time, and 
 the Bishop-Elect joined the young men in these holy exercises. 
 Reverend Thomas Hayden, who five years later refused the 
 Bishopric of Natchez, was offered the Presidency of Mount St. 
 Mary's College, but he declined it. Doctor Purcell then proposed 
 as his successor the Reverend Francis Jamison and the choice was 
 approved.'' The month of September was spent by Doctor 
 Purcell in setthng his affairs at the College. Early in October he 
 repaired to Conewago, Pa., to the hospitable roof of Fathers 
 Matthew Lekeu and Paul Kohlman, where he made a retreat in 
 preparation for the solemnity awaiting him. The Reverend 
 John Hickey went thither to hear his confession and remained 
 with him until the day of his consecration. '' This took place on 
 
 Sunday, October 13, 1833, in the Baltimore Cathedral. Most 
 
 • 
 
 '" Ibid. Father J. J. Mutton's Letter. 
 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Bishop England's Letter 
 
 " Ibid. 
 
 »» Ibid. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 15 
 
 Reverend James Whitfield was the Consecrator, Bishops Dubois 
 and Kenrick assisting him. The sermon for the occasion was 
 preached by Bishop Eccleston, and Bishop Rese, lately conse- 
 crated for the See of Detroit, Michigan, was present in the sanc- 
 tuary. The second Provincial Council of Baltimore was opened 
 on this day and lasted until the 20th inst. The newly conse- 
 crated Bishop of Cincinnati, the Right Reverend John Baptist 
 Purcell, D.D., attended all the sessions of the Council, and while 
 in Baltimore was the guest of Mr. Francis Elder, brother of the 
 future Archbishop, William Henry Elder, successor to Archbishop 
 Purcell a half -century later.'"" 
 
 Bishop Purcell returned to the Mountain, Emmitsburg, on 
 November 2, and on the following day, Sunday, sang Pontifical 
 Mass and preached. He visited the Sisters at St. Joseph Valley 
 on Monday. The pupils of the Academy, at their farewell enter- 
 tainment, expressed the sentiments of the Sisters and their own 
 regret that duty was calling him so far from the home of his heart's 
 affection.*^ He left Emmitsburg on Thursday, having borrowed 
 two hundred dollars from Father John Hickey for the expenses of 
 the journey. ^^ He paid one hundred dollars for stage from 
 Frederick to Wheeling, which was reached on Sunday morning, 
 November 10, at five o'clock. Sisters Alphonsa and Cephas, 
 Miss Ann Marr, and a little boy, William Ryan, were of the epis- 
 copal party. They remained, while in Wheeling, with Mrs. 
 Magruder, formerly of Frederick, Maryland. The Bishop heard 
 confessions, preached, said Mass, and by special request, preached 
 again in the evening. The following day, Monday, November 11, 
 at 2.00 p.m., the party left Wheeling in the steamboat Emigrant, 
 the Bishop paying eight dollars for each one's passage. The 
 boat reached the public landing in Cincinnati at 10.00 a. m., 
 Thursday, November 14.^^ A delegation met and escorted the 
 Bishop and his party to the house of Mr. Santiago, on Sycamore 
 Street, opposite the Cathedral, where the Bishop dressed in 
 pontificals and was led by a procession of the clergy and laity to 
 
 " Ihid. Shea, op. cit., p. 432. 
 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 *' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, 
 p. «70. 
 
 " Archives Mount St. Mary's of the West. Journal. Archives Mount 
 St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Journal. 
 
16 Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 the main Altar of the Cathedral. He remained kneeling at the 
 foot of the Altar until the moment of installation arrived, when he 
 was conducted to his Episcopal Throne by Bishop David. The 
 venerable Bishop Flaget then addressed him, reminding him that 
 he had imparted episcopal consecration to his predecessor whose 
 body now lay within the limits of the sanctuary.^'' He expressed 
 pleasure at being present when the widowed Church of Cincinnati 
 cast off her mourning garb and joyfully entoned notes of thanks- 
 giving to God because a father's voice was heard once more in 
 the midst of his children. He pictured the awful responsibility 
 of the Shepherd of the Flock and warned him that thorns and 
 thistles would beset his path, that the cup of bitterness would be 
 presented to his lips and he would be forced to drink thereof, but 
 that a crown of unfading glory would be his reward for faithful 
 perseverance.^^ 
 
 The day of ceremony and congratulation over. Bishop Purcell 
 turned his attention to his new charge. The College and Semi- 
 nary claimed his first care, and he began the great work of education 
 by filling the office of President of the Athenaeum and by inviting 
 efficient professors to assist him. Among these were two clergy- 
 men from Emmitsburg, the Reverend Edward T. Collins, who 
 later was Vicar General of the diocese until his death in 1865, and 
 the Reverend J. J. Mullon, the editor of the Catholic Telegraph. 
 Both priests were men of scholarly attainments. The library of 
 Father Collins at Mount St. Mary's of the West testifies to his 
 classical taste and interest in antiquities. Father Mullon, an 
 orator and deep student, during the months which elapsed between 
 the death of Bishop Fenwick and the coming of Bishop Purcell, 
 had conducted the College and exercised an inspiring influence 
 over the schools of the Sisters of Charity." The Bishop now 
 saw in his own Western diocese the educational ideals of Mother 
 Seton in practice, for he found there awaiting him her threefold 
 alliance for the training and care of the young: the orphanage, 
 the free-school, and the pay-school. The fatherly prelate was 
 quick to show the tenderness of his heart for the orphans given to 
 him by Holy Church as a sacred trust. 
 
 " Catholic Telegraph, Vol. II, p. 127. 
 
 * Archives Mount St. Mary's of the West. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. Ill 
 p. 5. 
 
 " Cathohc Telegraph, Vol. III., p. 293. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. 
 
^Archbishop Purccll ami the Archdiocese of Ciiici'iiiiaii 17 
 
 Very shortly after his arrival in the diocese, he published a 
 Pastoral to the clergy and laity of his flock. In it he extolled the 
 life and labors of his saintly predecessor, Bishop Fenwick, showed 
 his own zeal for the furtherance of Christian education, and urged 
 the people to depend in future on their own exertions rather than 
 upon European aid in building churches. ^^ 
 
 His next announcement was a charity sermon for the benefit 
 of the Asylum which led to a permanent good, the foundation of 
 the St. Peter's Benevolent Association*^ for the maintenance of 
 the orphans at St. Peter's Asylum. This Association, together 
 with the St. Joseph Society formed about twenty years later, has 
 taken care of the homeless little ones of the Cincinnati Archdiocese 
 from the time of its institution until the present day. The 
 support of the Orphanage from 1829 until New Year, 1834, had 
 depended on casual charity and the exertions of the Sisters. The 
 chief benefactors had been Mr. Cassilly, Major Dugan, Mr. 
 Kilgour, Mr. Mullanphy of St. Louis, Mr. Patrick Reilly, Michael 
 Scott, John White, Edward Lynch, Patrick Geohegan, J. Mc- 
 Mahon and P. Walsh. 
 
 The new Society awakened a general interest, the effect of which 
 was soon seen in better accommodations for Sisters and children. 
 
 After seeing this project fairly launched, the Bishop began a 
 visitation of his extensive diocese.*^ To realize the meaning of 
 such a trip all the improvements of eighty-five years must be 
 forgotten and the extent of country measured rather by the 
 primitive means of transportation than by the number of miles 
 traversed. It M'as the day of stage-coaches, railroads being in their 
 very early infancy. Nothing daunted, the Bishop set forth with 
 the banner of Truth and marked with his footprints the land 
 which was to know him intimately for a half a century of well- 
 filled days. In Portsmouth he found twenty families visited at 
 stated times by a priest from Cincinnati. In Franklin. County 
 he counted 200 communicants; in Columbus, eighty families. 
 There was a wooden chapel in Lancaster where the Dominican 
 Fathers, from Somerset, said Mass and instructed the people. 
 These Fathers had worked very hard from the days of Bishop 
 Fenwick and Father Young and most of the churches in the 
 
 "Ibid. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. Ill, p. II. 
 
 " Ibid. Vol. Ill, p. 55. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 " Ibid. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, p. 571; Vol. II, pp. 773-776. 
 
18 Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 diocese were due to their zeal and labors. The Bishop found that 
 the Reverend Joseph O'Leary's work equalled any performed by 
 the early missionaries. He had built two churches within two 
 years. Zanesville had church and pastor who ministered to 600 
 people in town and country.^" 
 
 ^° Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Shea, op. cil., p. 620. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 CINCINNATI AS BISHOP PURCELL FOUND IT 
 
 In 1833, when Bishop Purcell entered Cincinnati, he found it a 
 city of 30,000 inhabitants, many of whom had emigrated from 
 the eastern states, especially New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and 
 were people of education, so that schools were very numerous at 
 an early date.*' The Commonwealth of Ohio had more than two 
 hundred Academies, and before the State was a third of a century 
 old at least eight Colleges had been established. John Reilly's 
 school at Columbia is mentioned as the first school-house in 
 Cincinnati and in the Northwest Territory.*^ When Washington 
 subscribed the grant of 6 miles square for educational purposes 
 to the Ohio Territory in 1792, he said, referring to the educational 
 advantages of the early settlers, "No colony ever began under 
 more favorable auspices."*' The Legislature of Ohio, February 18, 
 1809, enacted that within the Miami Purchase of 1787 by John 
 Cleves Symmes, the Miami University should be established with 
 all rights and literary honors granted to similar institutions and to 
 be open to all citizens within the state. It was located at Oxford 
 in 1803. Cincinnati was incorporated as a city in 1819. The 
 Cincinnati College, then called the Lancastrian Academy, was 
 opened in 1815 and chartered on January 22, 1819, witli full 
 university powers and no religious teaching.*^ The Ohio Medical 
 College was opened in 1824, the Ohio Mechanics Institute in 
 1828 and the public schools in 1830, one year after Bishop Fen- 
 wick had placed his Cathedral School in charge of the Sisters of 
 Charity.^* The Ohio University at Columbus was opened on 
 February 18, 1804. The general course in these Colleges was 
 essentially the same as Yale, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Princeton. 
 
 The College of Teachers was inaugurated in 1831. Lane Semi- 
 nary was chartered in 1833, the Western Academy of Natural 
 
 " Venable, Beginning of Literary Culture in the Ohio Valley. Cincinnati, 
 1891, p. 271. 
 
 " Ibid., p. 272. 
 
 " Ibid. Cist, Cincinnati in 1841, p. 256. 
 
 " Atwater, A History of Ohio: Natural and Cioil, 1838, p. 286. Stevens, 
 City of Cincinnati in 1869, pp. 93-99. 
 
 " Flint, History and Geography of the Mississippi Valley, 1832, p. 403. Archives 
 Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 19 
 
20 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Sciences in 1835 (incorporated in 1838) and Woodward High School 
 in 1839.56 
 
 The publication of books began in the early days of Cincinnati. 
 The first book from the press was of Law, the second, of Divinity. 
 In four months of the year 1831, 86,000 volumes were published; 
 20,300 of them being original." The first Academic degree given 
 in Ohio was conferred on Mr. Thomas Ewing in 1815 by the Ohio 
 University at Athens. ^^ In 1813, Ohio's fame had gone abroad, 
 as we see by an extract from Lord Byron's Diary: "Dallas' 
 nephew — son to the American Attorney General — is arrived in the 
 country and tells Dallas that my rhymes are very popular in the 
 United States. These are the first tidings that have ever sounded 
 like fame to my ears — to be redde on the banks of the Ohio.""' 
 
 Caleb Atwater, the first historian of Ohio and one of the early 
 writers on American antiquities, says of Cincinnati in May, 1829, 
 "that the morality of the city was of a high order,^" and Mrs. 
 Trollope admits this fact and tells further "that during her two 
 years' stay in Cincinnati she had never met a beggar, nor did she 
 ever meet any one who felt it unnecessary to add to his posses- 
 sions."" 
 
 The arrival of the Sisters of Charity at this time, 1829, was 
 providential. They found new fields for their religious teachings 
 and had the honor and pleasure of opening the first free schools in 
 Ohio, the public schools of Cincinnati having been /organized the 
 following year, 1830, in which year also the Nuns of St. Dominic 
 opened a free school in Somerset, Ohio." ^ Bishop Purcell arrived 
 three years later and found intellectual activity to which he gave 
 generous and enthusiastic support and for which he was eminently 
 fitted both by nature and education. He was recognized by the 
 literary people of his new home as one who could speak ^-ith 
 authority not only on matters of doctrine but also on scientific. 
 
 ™Foote, op. cii., p. 3 et seq. Flint, Geography, pp. 406, 408, Cincinnati, 
 1832. Cist, Cincinnatiin 1841, pp. 111-14-2. Trollope, op. cit., pp. 8G-S9. 
 Venable, Footprints, p. 47; Literary Culture, pp. 173 et seq. 
 
 " Venable, Literary Culture, pp. 194,-195. 
 
 '* Howe, Historical Collections, p. 219. 
 
 " Venable, Literary Culture, p. 271. 
 
 »» Atwater, op. cit., pp. 285-286, 350-351. 
 
 °' Trollope, op. cit., p. 54. 
 
 "' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. I, p. 
 248. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. Ill, p. 615. Burns, Catholic School Si/stem. New 
 York, 1906, p. 244. 
 
Arclibisllop Purccll and thr Archdiocese of Cincinnati 21 
 
 classical, or literary subjects as well. He was a gifted orator, and 
 therefore often had the opportunity of overcoming prejudice by his 
 persuasive words and, in order to keep in touch with the educational 
 system around him and be able to remove barriers of ignorance 
 on Catholic belief, he accepted membership in the College of 
 Teachers.*' 
 
 Shortly after his arrival in Cincinnati, the tide of immigration 
 turned to Ohio on account of the system of canals recently intro- 
 duced and the building of railroads. Many Irish and German 
 Catholics found homes near the banks of the Ohio, and since his 
 Episcopal City had but one Catholic church, the Cathedral, the 
 Bishop felt the weighty responsibility of their spiritual care." 
 In order to accommodate the faithful, he decided to build Holy 
 Trinity Church, to be devoted to the use of the German -speaking 
 Catholics. The corner-stone was laid on April 15, 1834, on west 
 Fifth Street, almost on the spot occupied by the "Old Mound" 
 which marked the principal place in the plan of the Mound 
 Builders. It was dedicated on October 5, 1834, the first German 
 parish of the diocese and the first west of the Alleghanies. Reverend 
 Martin Kundig was appointed Pastor.*' Eleven months had not 
 yet elapsed since Bishop Purcell's arrival in Cincinnati, and yet he 
 foresaw the spread of the city westwardly and made timely pro- 
 vision for his flock. Across the river in Covington, Kentucky, 
 through the munificence of Mr. C. R. Springer, of New Orleans, an 
 Orphanage was built and the Church of the Mother of God 
 erected. This church had been dedicated on September 21 by 
 Bishop Purcell, at the request of Bishop Flaget. Father Henni 
 preached in German and the Reverend S. R. Montgomery, O.P., 
 in English.** Priests from the Cincinnati Cathedral attended 
 the congregation twice a month. Although Bishop Purcell's 
 diocese was growing rapidly and many of the towns were becoming 
 cities, thereby bringing him added responsibilities and labors, he 
 ever heeded the call of his brother Bishops and hastened to take 
 part in the spread of their work. On Oclober 26, he preached at 
 the consecration of the Cathedral of St. Louis, using for his text 
 
 *' Archives Mount St. Mary's of the West. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on- 
 the-Ohio. 
 
 «^ Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, p. 570. 
 
 " Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Almanac, 1834. Howe, His- 
 torical Collections, Cincinnati, 1848, p. 9, 
 
 ^5 Ibid;. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. Ill, p. 349. 
 
22 Archbishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 "The Stream of the River maketh the City of God joyful; the 
 Most High hath sanctified His Own Tabernacle." On the 29th 
 of the same month, he assisted at the Consecration of the Right 
 Reverend Simon Gabriel Brute as Bishop of Vincennes, and 
 preached on "Simon, lovest thou Me more than these?" After 
 this date. The Catholic Telegraph published frequently a Vin- 
 cennes letter from Bishop Brute, the "French-English" of which 
 Bishop Purcell "amended" as Mother Seton had done in earlier 
 days. ^^ Not long after Bishop Brute's appointment to Vincennes — 
 he found it necessary to seek help in Europe for his very poor 
 diocese. He stopped in Cincinnati on his way to New York and 
 was escorted as far as Steubenville, Ohio, by Bishop Purcell, who 
 went thither to dedicate the Church of St. Pius. He visited on 
 his return trip the small church in Urbana built by the Piatt 
 family.^* 
 
 It is not easy to form a correct idea of the journeys and con- 
 sequent hardships entailed by the pioneer Bishops in the per- 
 formance of their duties. Traveling around on horseback or in 
 stage-coach, they located groups of Catholics and immediately 
 began to seek means to furnish them with religious service. Day- 
 ton, Ohio, like Toledo, Cleveland, Hamilton and Columbus, had 
 suddenly emerged from a village into a thriving little city and 
 the Bishop regarded it as a desirable pleice for a church. The 
 liberality of Mrs. Prudence Purson made it possible for him to 
 carry out his wishes. She presented him with the deed of a lot 
 96 by 166 feet. The building of the first church in Dayton 
 was entrusted to the Reverend E. Thienpoint, who received sub- 
 scriptions from Protestants and Catholics alike. Another gift 
 was received at this time from Mrs. Juliana De Witt, for- 
 merly a Miss Williamson, of Baltimore. It was a bequest 
 of her former husband, Mr. David Kilgour. He had left $5,000 
 for charitable purposes subject to Mrs. Kilgour's approval. She 
 gave $2,600 to the St. Peter Orphan Asylum, $1,600 to the Cin- 
 cinnati Orphan Asylum, $200 to the St. Andrew Society, of which 
 Mr. Kilgour had been president, and $500 to the Treasurer of tfie 
 House of Employment for indigent women. Bishop Purcell was 
 greatly encouraged by these donations and by the proceeds of a 
 
 " Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. III. dd 406. 
 407-411. 
 " Catholic Telegraph, Vol. Ill, pp. 81, 246-365. Ibid, Vol. IV, pp. 816-375. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the A rchdioccse of Cincinnati 2'i\ 
 
 two-days fair, which brought something over $600.00. This 
 Fair for the Orphans was conducted almost wholly by non-Catholic 
 ladies. At the close of the year^' 1835, the President of the St. 
 Peter Benevolent Association announced that the society had 
 doubled its receipts and memberships during the twelve months 
 just ended. He reported also a generous donation of ten lots in 
 Louisville, given by the Reverend Vincent T. Badin, which made 
 him hopeful that during the coming spring an eligible site might 
 be procured and a commodious building erected thereon for the 
 comfort of Sisters and children, now so crowded in their small 
 abode. The desire of the president was realized when the Bishop 
 purchased the handsome property recently occupied by Major 
 Ruffner, on the corner of Third and Plum Streets, for the sum of 
 $15,905.'" A committee composed of Mr. John Rogers and other 
 members of the St. Peter Board, wrote an Address to the Public 
 asking aid and showing the good resulting from the institution. 
 The appeal stated that eighty -seven children had been cared for 
 in the Asylum, twenty of whom were Protestants, that the St. 
 Peters was the first Asylum established in Cincinnati. In the 
 school attached to it, 600 children received elementary instruc- 
 tion and many were taught the higher branches; from a city of 
 over 30,000 inhabitants, it was hoped the necessary help might be 
 obtained. The people of all denominations responded most 
 generously. '^ 
 
 "Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. IV, 
 p. 436. 
 
 " Ibid., p. 244. 
 
 " Ibid., p. 244. Archives Mouat St. Joseph-OQ-the-Ohio. Records. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE PURCELL-CAMPBELL DEBATE. CHARITY SERMONS AND ANNIVER- 
 SARY ORATIONS. THE LEOPOLDINE ASSOCIATION. THE ROMAN 
 CATHOLIC SOCIETY FOR THE DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE. 
 THE ROMAN CATHOLIC TOTAL ABSTINENCE ASSOCIATION 
 OF CINCINNATI. 
 
 During the first session of the College of Teachers in November, 
 1836, Bishop Purcell, by request addressed the meeting. ^^ At the 
 close of his lecture, a short but interesting debate arose between the 
 Bishop and the Reverend Doctor Wilson and was carried on with 
 perfect harmony and good will. The Protestants in the College 
 congratulated themselves on the friendly feeling as promising well 
 for the cause of education; but, at the following session, Mr. 
 Alexander Campbell surprised his audience by an unprovoked 
 attack on the Catholic Church. Bishop Purcell expressed his 
 disapprobation of Mr. Campbell's language, urging that such 
 disputation did not belong to the College. Mr. Campbell notified 
 the public, through the daily press, that he would preach in the 
 Baptist Church on the Monday following. Bishop Purcell at- 
 tended and, at the close of the lecture, was invited to reply. As 
 it was almost ten o'clock, the Bishop left it to the choice of the 
 audience to hear his objections at that late hour, or to wait until 
 the following evening. The people called for an adjournment, but 
 assembled in crowds, on the following night, to witness the novel 
 .sight of a Catholic Bishop in a Protestant pulpit and to be capti- 
 vated by his polished eloquence and strong reasoning, both in 
 presenting and in unfolding to them the beauties of sacred truth. 
 The lecture lasted almost three hours, closing with an enthusiastic 
 expression of approbation from the entire audience. ''' Mr. Camp- 
 bell then arose and stated that the controversy should assume a 
 more regular form. Moderators were appointed and a limited time 
 given to the speakers. The Bishop declined an oral controversy, 
 but said he would publish his views on the subject and dedicate 
 them to the College of Teachers and would invite reply. INIr. 
 IJampbell, however, insisted on his method, and accordingly, on 
 Mday, January 13, 1837, in the Sycamore Street Meeting House 
 
 " College of Teachers. Cincinnati, 1838. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. V, p. 372. 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Catholic Encyclopedia, VoL 
 ■<II, p. 572. 
 
 24 
 
.1 rchhishop Purccll and the Arvlidiocr.se of Cinelniuiti 25 
 
 (later St. Thomas Church), the Purcell and Campbell controversy 
 began and continued for seven days, not counting Sunday. Its 
 sessions were from 9.30 a.m. until 12.30 and from 3.00 p.m. until 
 5.00 o'clock, each day. The proceeds of the debate were divided 
 between the two Asylums, Protestant and Catholic. Mr. William 
 Disney was the presiding Moderator, assisted by Messrs. Samuel 
 Lewis, Thomas J. Briggs, John Rogers, and J. W. Piatt. On 
 Friday, January 20, the discussion closed. The secular press 
 announced that Alexander Campbell's defense "in nowise tortured 
 Catholicism," that "Catholicism lost nothing and Protestantism 
 had gained nothing."''* Mr. Campbell had spoken scoffingly of 
 Bishop Purcell's youth and stature, saying, before the contest, that 
 he wished as an opponent "a full-grown man." It was generally 
 conceded that the debate was a David and Goliath conflict. ^^ On 
 February 22, a committee waited oii the Bishop and in the name 
 of the Catholics of Cincinnati presented him with various articles 
 of plate, among which were two large, handsome siher pitchers 
 bearing the following inscription : 
 
 "Presented to the 
 
 Rt. Rev. Bishop Purcell, D.D. 
 
 By the Roman Catholics of Cincinnati 
 
 As a Testimonial of their Gratitude for his 
 
 Late Eloquent and Triumphant indication 
 
 Of Their Holy Rehgion." 
 
 Judge Burnet, former Governor of California, author of "The 
 Path Which Led a Protestant Lawyer to the Catholic Cliureh," 
 was one of many converts gained by the Bishop's clear exposi- 
 tion of Catholic doctrine." Shortly before Mr. Campbell's 
 attack, the Young Men's Bible Society of Cincinnati accused the 
 Catholic Church of withholding the Scriptures from the people. 
 Bishop Purcell offered to contribute the Douay Bible and Allioli's 
 German Bible if the members of the Society would circulate them. 
 
 '■• Campbell and Purcell Debate. Cincinnati, 1837, Catholic Telegraph, Vol. 
 VI, pp. 54-60. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, p. 572. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. 
 Ill, p. 624. 
 
 " Mr. Campbell learned that the Bishop could be sarcastic: for asking him 
 one day during the controversy, "What animals were in the Ark.'" the Bishop 
 replied, "Really, I never thought much about the variety, but I feel sure a 
 camel (A. Campbell) was there." 
 
 '« Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VI, p. 100. Archives Mount St. Joseph-onrthe- 
 Ohio. 
 
26 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 and even pledged himself to go from door to door with them to 
 place a copy with any Roman Catholic family, destitute of a 
 Bible. His offer was not accepted. Within this year, 1837, a 
 companion paper to the Catholic Telegraph was issued in Cincin- 
 nati, "Ders Wahrheitsfreund." It was edited by the Reverend 
 J. M. Henni and was the first German Catholic paper published 
 in the United States. '' On April 16, the Third Provincial Council 
 of the Church in the United States assembled in the Baltimore 
 Cathedral. Archbishop Eccleston presided, Bishops Purcell, 
 Rosati, Fenwick, Brute, Blanc, Kenrick, Coadjutor of Phila- 
 delphia, Chabrat, Coadjutor of Bardstown, and Clancy, Coadjutor 
 of Charleston attended. Bishop Dubois sent his views regarding 
 the matters to be discussed. Bishop Rese requested the Council 
 to forward his resignation to Rome or suggest that a coadjutor 
 be appointed for his episcopal See of Detroit. The Fathers of the 
 Council acceded to the Bishop's wish by presenting his petition 
 to the Holy Father, but the Bishop was not freed from the burden 
 of office. The Bishops asked His Holiness to create other Sees 
 and mentioned Pittsburg, Nashville, Natchez, and Dubuque for 
 Episcopal Cities.^* At the close of the Council, Archbishop 
 Eccleston and eight of the Bishops went to Frederick, Maryland, 
 to consecrate the Church of St. John, built by the Reverend John 
 McElroy, S.J." The Archbishop was consecrator and offered 
 solemn pontifical Mass. The following day, a solemn Mass was 
 offered by Bishop Rosati. The orators chosen for the grand 
 celebration were Bishops England and Purcell and Father Hughes. 
 On Bishop Purcell's return to Cincinnati from the east, he had 
 the unspeakable pleasure of conferring minor orders on his brother 
 Edward. Mr. William Murphy received tonsure, Mr. Michael 
 McGann, deaconship, and Mr. Basil Shorb, holy priest-hood. 
 The ceremonies took place in Holy Trinity Church; the 
 Cathedral was undergoing repairs. The people of Fayetteville, 
 Brown County, and those of Chillicothe rejoiced during this year 
 in the blessing of a church and resident Pastor. The corner-stone 
 of the St. Patrick Church, Fayetteville, was laid on August 24, 
 
 " Shea, Of. cii., p. 623. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. Ill, p. 774. Archives 
 Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 " Baltimore Catholic Centennial, 1906. Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 " Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Shea, op rit , p. 446. 
 
Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 27 
 
 1837 and the St. Mary Church, ChilHcothe, was opened for services 
 in September.^" 
 
 After the Priests' Retreat, from November 13, until November 
 20, a synod of the clergy was held.*^ The Bishop preached the 
 retreat and the Reverend Stephen Theodore Badin, V.G., who was 
 ordained on May 25, 1793, by Bishop Carroll, presided at the 
 conference on ecclesiastical science and discipline. Like the 
 "Charity Sermon" for the schools, "Anniversary Orations" were 
 made an important factor in securing help for orphanages and other 
 charitable institutions. The St. Peter Benevolent Association 
 invited speakers of note and with the good results intended. On 
 the fourth aniversary of the Society, January 1, 1838, Lieutenant 
 Semmes, U. S. N., enforced in strong, dignified language the claims 
 of the orphan. He reviewed the lives of Mrs. Seton and Captain 
 Cooper, expressing proud satisfaction in being able to trace the 
 naturalization of so noble a system of charity to two persons inti- 
 mately connected with his own profession: Mrs. Seton being the 
 mother of Lieutenant Seton of the navy and Mr. Cooper, the 
 donor of the first Mother House of the Sisters of Charity, having 
 been a sea-captain before he became a pilot of souls. ^^ As on 
 previous occasions, much good resulted from the meeting of the 
 members of the Association and from the discourse of the orator. 
 Not content in finding means to conduct free schools and orphan- 
 ages, the Bishop organized in St. Peter's Cathedral congrega- 
 tion "The Mary and Martha Society" for "the spiritual and tem- 
 poral relief of the sick and indigent.'' The members paid a 
 monthly contribution and a visiting committee of eight ladies 
 was appointed to seek for the distressed and give them instant 
 succor, and report their condition at the next meeting of the 
 Society. Ladies of the congregation were the officers and visitors, 
 while the Sisters of Charity superintended the work. Later, the 
 visiting of the sick and the distributing of necessaries to the needy 
 became the ofiBce of the Sisters, likewise. ^^ 
 
 •"Archives Mount St. Mary's of the West. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 
 HI., pp. 774, et. seq. Kelly and Kirwin, History of Mount St. Mary's of the 
 West. Cincinnati, 1894, p. 6. 
 
 " Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 '2 Ibid. Archives Mt. St. Joseph-on-the Ohio. 
 
 " Catholic Telegraph. Vol. VII, p. 38. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. 
 
 " Ibid. 
 
28 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 An Orphanage for Boys was opened in 1838 on the Feast of St. 
 Aloysius and under his patronage. In order to strengthen the 
 institutions of his diocese and to meet the growing need of others 
 and of churches, Bishop Purcell resolved to visit Europe and there 
 solicit help, as his predecessor had done and as the Bishops of his 
 own day found it necessary to do, although even at the time of his 
 first pastoral letter he had felt that the European help was waning 
 and urged his flock to depend on their own exertions. Still, 
 having in mind the generosity with which Bishop Dubourg's 
 appeal to the people of Lyons was met in 1815, and how it led, 
 seven years later, to the formation of the Society for the Propaga- 
 tion of the Faith which was assisting missionary work all over the 
 world, he determined to go as "a beggar and a pilgrim" for the 
 sake of his flock. ^^ Although Cincinnati had received favors from 
 the Society in France, the amounts given were small compared 
 to the contributions from the Leopoldine Association of Vienna, 
 founded for the relief of churches in the United States.^' Cincin- 
 nati had received bountifully of the Leopoldine funds, probably 
 because its originator was a priest of the Cincinnati diocese. In 
 1827, Bishop Fenwick, impelled by the crying wants of his Episcopal 
 See, sent his Vicar General, the Reverend Frederick Rese, to Europe 
 to appeal to the charity of the Catholic countries of the Old World. 
 He visited Bavaria, and later Austria, where, having explained to 
 the Bishops the difficulties and poverty of the Chruch in America, 
 he learned that a law existed in both places, prohibiting the dis- 
 tribution of charity outside their territories, unless by special 
 authorization. In Munich he was granted one contribution. In 
 the autumn of 1828 he went to Vienna and, while there, suggested 
 the formation of a society similar to the one in Lyons, but with 
 its purpose limited to the Church in the United States. For the 
 information of those interested in helping the diocese in Ohio, he 
 published a pamphlet, a short history of the work in Cincinnati, 
 and it was sent by imperial order to all the Bishops who, in turn, 
 transmitted it to the clergy of the Empire. Promptly and freely 
 the Emperor granted permission for the alms of his subjects to be 
 dispensed in America, and the Holy Father, Leo XII, issued on 
 
 *' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. Shea, op. cil.. Vol. Ill, p. 625. 
 
 "« Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. Ill nn 
 773-776. Cf. Catholic Historical Review, Vol. II, pp. 51-53. 
 
Arclihishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of CUiciniuiti 20 
 
 January 30, 1829, eleven days before his death, a Brief approving 
 of the Association and enriching it with many indulgences.^^ 
 Cardinal Capellari, Prefect of the Propaganda, wrote Father Rese 
 expressing his own pleasure and the gratification of other Roman 
 officials on the formation of a sister society to aid in furthering 
 missionary work. The Association received its name Leopoldine 
 from the favorite daughter of the Emperor. The first public meet- 
 ing was held on March 13, 1829, and before the end of the first 
 year, at least thirty dioceses had been helped by contributions 
 amounting to $22,500.'^ The object of the society met with 
 favor from all sides throughout the Empire and the treasury filled 
 rapidly. To encourage the donors, reports were published, at 
 first, half yearly; later, annually. The first donation to Cincinnati, 
 April, 1830, was about $10,000. This was followed in a few months 
 by something over $5,000, and before the close of the year by 
 $7,000. Bishop Fenwick had used these sums for the building of 
 the Athenaeum, for traveling expenses, and for work among the 
 Indians in Michigan. Between October, 1831, and July, 1833, the 
 Society sent almost $18,000 which helped to build churches 
 throughout the diocese and purchase a site for Holy Trinity 
 Church destined by Father Rese for the German-speaking Cath- 
 olics which he had organized into a congregation.^^ Nothing had 
 been sent from Vienna during the first three years of Bishop 
 Purcell's charge but in 1837 a donation of 4,000 florins came and 
 the following January, 1838, a second amount of 4,000 florins. 
 The latter was probably used for the Boys' Orphanage opened in 
 June.^" Having placed the care of his diocese in the hands of his 
 two Vicars General, the Very Reverends Edward T. Collins and 
 John M. Henni^i, Bishop Purcell left Cincinnati in May, 1838. 
 He reached Liverpool early in July and hastened to Ireland to 
 visit his rriother in their old home. In his letter from Mallow, 
 his birthplace, he tells of a public dinner given in his honor and 
 of a toast "Prosperity to the American people and to the people of 
 Cincinnati in particular." In his reply to this he took occasion 
 to correct some false impressions which had been carried abroad 
 
 " Ibid. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Rese, Abriss der 
 Geschichte, Vienna, 1829. 
 
 " Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 ^Ubid. 
 
 '" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 «' Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VII, p. 81. 
 
30 Archbishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 concerning our Republic and explained the apparent inconsistency 
 between the words of the American Charter "All men are free" 
 and the existence of slavery.'" In his letter to the Sisters he 
 called attention to The Children's Catholic Magazine,^^ recently 
 published and hoped it would receive encouraging patronage, 
 urging that in addition to the entertainment it would afford the 
 young it would correct wrong ideas given in some of the school 
 books regarding Catholic countries, the education of the people, 
 and the influence of the clergy. He wished the children to under- 
 stand the importance of Sunday Schools, that their founder was a 
 Bishop and a Saint — Charles Borromeo, who introduced them 
 into every church of his great diocese and that the classes were 
 taught not only by the clergy, but also by ladies and noblemen 
 often of the very first rank.'^ 
 
 From Ireland the Bishop went to Belgium and was received 
 there as an apostle of the New World by the Belgian clergy then 
 in retreat in Hainault to the number of 260 priests, although 200 
 more had already made the exercises at Tournay. So great an 
 assemblage of clergymen in so small a country moved the Bishop 
 to tears when he related that he could scarcely collect ten priests 
 for the most solemn occasion, although his diocese was many 
 times the size of Belgium. He told them of the great zeal and 
 labors of Father Thienpoint, one of their countrymen, who braved 
 every danger to gain souls to God, and who, recently, passed six 
 months along the public roads in northern Ohio, often sleeping on 
 the bare ground, in the discharge of his duty toward the laborers. 
 The Belgian clergy were deeply impressed with the religious bearing 
 of the Bishop and the strength and apostolic simplicity of his 
 words. They began to rehearse all that they had read in various 
 Catholic journals of his knowledge and piety and then exclaimed; 
 "Ah, we are nothing. We have seen John the Baptist. We have 
 seen Paul the Apostle of Nations — the Apostle of the New World." '^ 
 During the winter the Bishop journeyed to Munich and Vienna to 
 lay before the Leopoldine Association the needs of his struggling 
 diocese and succeeded in arousing the interest of the Society. He 
 
 »' Catholic Herald, Vol. V, pp. U, 247-317; Vol. VI, p 391 The Truth 
 Teller, Vol. XIV, p. 386. 
 
 "^Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. March, 1838 
 " Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VII, p. 383. 
 ^''Dublin Register, October 20, 1838. 
 
Arclihishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of ( 'inciiinati '.'I 
 
 was accompanied on this trip by the Reverend Hercules Brassac, 
 a sincere friend of many years, who after long service in the diocese 
 of New Orleans had returned to Prance some months previous and 
 later opened "Agence Ecclesiastique du Clerge Catholique des 
 Etats-Unis d' Amerique," for the benefit of the American Bishops. 
 He had never belonged to the Cincinnati Diocese, although his 
 letters show a desire to be numbered among Bishop Purcell's 
 clergy, but acting as an agent for Bishops Purcell and Miles he 
 often signed himself V.G. of Cincinnati and Nashville." 
 
 The appeal made by the Bishop to the Leopoldine Association 
 met with a generous response in February, 1839, when his part of 
 the annual distribution was 8,000 florins. From Vienna the 
 Bishop went to Rome where he spent much time and had frequent 
 audiences with Gregory XVI, who testified his esteem by many 
 marks of kindness. He visited often the Cardinal Prefect 
 of the Propaganda and the Prelate Secretary of the Congre- 
 gation communicating to both his knowledge of the existing state 
 of religion in America and the hopes which might be reasonably 
 entertained for its future. After his return to Paris, he ofiiciated 
 for the Archbishop, who on account of illness, could not fulfill his 
 engagements. He administered Confirmation in Paris at St. 
 Ambrose de Popincourt, at St. Gervase, at St. Etienne du Mont, 
 at St. Jacques-du-Haut-Bas, at several convents and institutions. 
 He closed the exercises of the Month of May at St. Germain-des- 
 Pres. He gave confirmation also in the parishes of St. Denis, 
 at Montmartre, at Belleville, and other places. On May 3, he 
 wrote from Lyons that he hoped August would find him in the 
 midst of his flock, that he expected to make the return trip with 
 Bishop Flaget who had just come to Lyons from Sardinia whither 
 he had gone to interest the King in the Association for the Propa- 
 gation of the Faith.'' The Society had been founded at Lyons in 
 1822 and was sustained by the munificient liberality of the Catholic 
 countries of Europe. The amount collected during the preceding 
 year, 1838, was $280,000 of which $180,000 had been given by 
 France alone.'* It was the example of this association which 
 induced Bishop Fenwick, and Father Rese in 1828, to ask the 
 
 '• Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Brassac Letter, Catholic 
 Historical Review, Vol. Ill, pp. 392-416. 
 
 »' Ami de la Religion, June 13, 1838. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VIII, p. 294. 
 »« Ibid; p. 367. 
 
32 Arclibishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Emperor of Austria for a like foundation and we have seen with 
 what splendid results. Aside from the work of the Leopoldine 
 Association, many of the nobility showed great generosity to the 
 Church in America. Among these was the Baroness de Coppens 
 who gave to Bishop Purcell an amount sufficient to pay the 
 expenses of a community willing to undertake missionary work 
 in the New World. ^' The sums given were transmitted through 
 the Reverend Hercules Brassac who also negotiated for articles 
 needed in the churches and interested himself in securing mis- 
 sionary priests and religious for the diocese of the United States, 
 Cincinnati especially. As a result of Father Brassac's influence 
 and a reward of his own incessant labor during the year abroad, 
 ""-^Bishop Purcell returned to his episcopal city with several zealous 
 clergymen. They sailed from Havre on July 8, in the ship Silvie 
 de Grasse and arrived in New York on August 22, 1839. i"" The 
 Bishop was formally welcomed home by a public reception and an 
 address from the St. Peter Benevolent Society, on September 19. 
 In his reply he stated "that the spiritual and temporal necessities 
 of his flock had compelled him to be absent from them for so long 
 a time, during which, for their sakes, despising shame, he had 
 knocked with the pilgrim and beggar at the gate of the rich and the 
 cottage door of the poor in Europe." He told his audience "that 
 the little ones who ask for bread when there is not found any one 
 to break it unto them; the destitute congregations who cannot 
 go up with their more favored brethren to the beautiful festivals 
 of Jerusalem; the sinful, who though they loathe sin, are yet, too 
 timid and too weak for virtue; the dying, whom there are none to 
 comfort in the departing of their spirit; the prejudiced against our 
 matchless Faith, whom there are none to enlighten — all were 
 heard, through their unworthy representative, in the charitable 
 associations in the Fatherland." "Their sighs," he said, "were 
 fervently breathed in the ears of the humane and theii- sorrows and 
 wants deposited in the bosom of the common Father of the Faith- 
 ful." He added further: "Constant as has been the drain on the 
 charity of Europe by the many churches of the East and West, 
 that charity is still inexhaustible. It has enabled us to liquidate a 
 large portion of the debts which we had contracted in the building 
 
 " Archive.? Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 "» Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VIII , p. 294. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 33 
 
 of churches throughout the state, in the purchase of the Orphan 
 Asylum, in the support of the Seminary, and in the maintenance of 
 the Clergy.- It has furnished vestments for the sanctuary and 
 paintings to decorate our churches. It has replenished our 
 libraries with books of science, learning, and piety. It has added 
 to the number of our missionaries, men whose piety and zeal have 
 induced them for Christ's sake to abandon the loved land of their 
 birth, the parents that doted on tlrem, and the flocks by whom they 
 were honored with otediei.ce and affection, and they are now 
 associated with the devoted priests who have thus far borne 
 unaided and alone, the burden and heat of the day in this diocese." 
 In concluding he said, "Having alluded to the result of ray exer- 
 tions, permit me to assure you how greatly I was cheered in my 
 protracted absence from my flock, by the recollection of what you 
 are doing to comfort and provide for the destitute little ones. 
 Whether walking and musing alone, while my humble carriage 
 was being slowly dragged up the snow-capped peak of the Appe- 
 nines, or on deck of a crowded steamer lapped by the wintry 
 surges of the Atlantic, I knew that the orphans under your fostering 
 care were sheltered from the piercing blasts and caressed and 
 warmed by the Sisters of Charity with a love as pure and intense 
 as ever glowed in the maternal bosom. And when I stood in the 
 august presence of the Sovereign Pontiff and was privileged to 
 relate to him all the blessed fruits of your charity, benevolence, 
 and zeal, my words are inadequate to convey to you even a feeble 
 idea of the emotion which the recital awakened in his paternal 
 bosom, of the affectionate solicitude with which, with his hands and 
 eyes raised to Heaven — he blessed you."^"^ 
 
 Shortly after this reception of the Bishop the public examination 
 of the pupils of St. Peter Schools was held before a large audience. 
 As it was always an important event and valued highly by the 
 Bishop it was delayed until his return. The distribution of 
 premiums took place two days later, at which Bishop Flaget 
 presided, with Bishop Purcell on his right and on his left the 
 Very Rev. Doctor Chazelle, President of St. Mary's College, 
 Washington County, Kentucky. Bishop Flaget addressed the 
 pupils at the opening of the exercises and Bishop Purcell at their 
 close. 1"^ 
 
 '"' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VIII , p. 351. 
 '■'^ Ibid. p. 359. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
34 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 The Catholic Telegraph, then eight years old, seemed doomed to 
 extinction, because sufficient financial support was wanting, but 
 when the Catholics of Ohio and Kentucky heard of the proposition 
 to discontinue its publication, they held a massmeeting and 
 devised means for its maintenance. This brought about not only 
 renewed life and strength to the paper but also the forming of an 
 association called "The Roman Catholic Society for the Diffusion 
 of Knowledge." The duty of the latter was to attend to the 
 publication of the Catholic Telegraph and of Catholic works 
 selected by proper authorities and the procuring of lecturers on 
 literary, scientific, and theological subjects.'"' Bishop Purcell 
 lectured weekly on " Rule of Faith and Canon of Scripivre" and 
 was heard with interest by Protestants as well as Catholics. The 
 pastoral letter of the Bishop dated February 15, 1840, announced a 
 retreat of the clergy to be held in the Cathedral, Cincinnati, for 
 eight days beginning on March 6, and to be directed by Father 
 John McElroy, S.J. of Frederick City, Maryland. In this letter 
 the Bishop expressed a hope that the time was not far off when mis- 
 sions such as were preached to people of Europe would be given 
 in this country. Thirty-eight clergymen attended the retreat. 
 The following week was devoted to Spiritual Exercises for the laity, 
 conducted likewise by Father McElroy. At the close, on March 
 29, The Roman Catholic Total Abstinence Association of Cin- 
 cinnati was organized."^ The Very Reverend Edward T. Collins 
 was made President, the Reverend Joseph O'Mealy, Vice-Presi- 
 dent, and Mr. Charles Conahan, Secretary. 
 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, Vol. VIII, pp. 380-382. 
 "* Ibid., Vol. IX, p. 53. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES. DIOCESAN ACTIVITIES. CONSECRATION 
 OF BISHOPS. DIVISION OF DIOCESE. 
 
 The Feast of the Assumption, 1840, the fiftieth anniversary of the 
 consecration of the Right Reverend John Carroll, first Bishop of 
 Baltimore and of the whole United States, was a year of Jubilee 
 and the Fourth Provincial Council was opened on May 16, in 
 the Baltimore Cathedral.^"' It was the largest ever assembled 
 in the New World, the number of Bishops being thirteen and 
 bringing to mind the early gatherings of our Lord and His 
 Apostles. Bishop Forbin-Janson of Nancy and Tours and 
 Primate of Lorraine, France, attended the meetings at the invita- 
 taion of Archbishop Eccleston and his eleven suffragans.^"'' The 
 decrees of the Council, eleven in number, received the Pope's 
 confirmation on November 22. At the close of the final session, 
 as in former years, many of the Bishops hastened to Emmitsburg 
 to meet old friends and to look upon haunts sacred to them from 
 student days. They visited, too, the Mother House of the Sisters 
 of Charity and, while there, presented plans for reinforcement of 
 Sisters in the schools and other institutions. Bishop Purcell, who 
 had asked several times for Sisters to open a boarding school in 
 Brown County on a farm of two hundred acres given to Bishop 
 Fenwick by General William Lytle for educational purposes, i"' 
 again presented his petition to the Mother and the Council but 
 with the same result. The requests for Sisters were far in advance 
 of the number and so Bishop Purcell could not be supplied. Father 
 Hickey, the ecclesiastical Superior of the Sisters at Emmitsburg 
 had written to him in 1834 that the demands for Free Schools were 
 too numerous and urgent and that the council had closed an 
 Academy in Washington to send Sisters to a needy parish. To a 
 later request for help, the Bishop received from Father Hickey 
 the following reply: "Had we the Sisters we could monopolize 
 half the high and low schools in the United States, but we have 
 
 "5 Catholic Telegraph, Vol. IX, p. 150. Shea, op. cit., p. 452. 
 
 '»* Bishop Forbin-Janson was of noble family and came to America as a 
 missionary appointed by Pope Gregory XVI, at the request of Bishop Purcell. 
 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, op. cit, p. 174. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. Kelly and Kirwin, History of Mount St. Mary's of the West, Cincinnati, 
 1894, p. 18. 
 
 35 
 
36 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnaii 
 
 passed a constitutional regulation from which we cannot depart, 
 that no novice can quit the Mother House for the missions before 
 fifteen months' stay in the novitiate at home — and, in three years 
 from this time the novitiate to be made in this house, will be two 
 years and three months. The establishments which in the mean- 
 time may want Sisters will suffer. I trust you may have success 
 in your second choice.''^"^ The Bishop's "second choice," how- 
 ever was not realized; for although Madame Barat, the Superior of 
 the Ladies of the Sacred Heart, had promised a colony of her Sisters 
 for Ohio, new regulations in the Order forced her to postpone 
 indefinitely the departure of any of her community. '"^ In the 
 meantime, Bishop Purcell had made a personal appeal to the 
 Council at Emmitsburg, but was assured that the best the Mother 
 House could do for him was to strengthen the foundations already 
 in his diocese. The Reverend Hercules Brassac, acting as his 
 agent in Paris, learning that the Sisters of the Sacred Heart would 
 not be sent to Cincinnati, solicited help from the Mother House 
 of the Sisters of Notre Dame at Namur and was successful in 
 securing eight Sisters for the Cincinnati diocese."^^" This first 
 band of Sisters of Notre Dame to come to America, arrived in 
 Cincinnati in November, 1840, but did not open a Boarding School 
 in Brown County on the Lytle Farm, according to Bishop Purcell's 
 plans. St. Martin's was 40 miles from Cincinnati and in a country 
 district where the Sisters could not observe the rule requiring them 
 to conduct a poor school in connection with their pay school. 
 They remained with the Sisters of Charity until a location was 
 secured on Sixth Street. Their school was opened on January 
 18, 1841.111 Instead of an Academy for young ladies, the Theolo- 
 gical Seminary of St. Francis Xavier was established at St. Mar- 
 tin's and the Lazarist Fathers conducted the institution for about 
 six years. Bishop Purcell, however, had always felt that the 
 Seminary should be under the immediate supervision of the 
 Bishop, therefore, in 1845 it was restored to its old place, the 
 Athenaeum. In 1840, when the Seminary was moved to Brown 
 County, the Jesuit Fathers of the Missouri Province had been 
 
 1"' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 "» Ibid. Letters. 
 
 "» American Historical Society Records, Vol. XI, p. 325 et seq. Archives 
 Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Brassac Letters. 
 "1 Catholic Telegraph, Vol. X, p. 21. 
 
Archbishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cinciiiiiall 37 
 
 invited to open a College in the Athenaeum."'^ This they did in 
 1841 and here also they conducted the Seminary for a time, after 
 its return to Cincinnati. The Bishop, ever alert to the interests of 
 religion and of education, showed likewise, at all times his devotion 
 to the land of his adoption. Even as a student at Emmitsburg he 
 wrote in his diary, "Mr. Hickey, Mr. Pise, and myself placed our 
 flag (U. S.) on the highest tree on Carrick's Knob," — a peak of the 
 Blue Ridge Mountains, a short distance from the College."^ Now, 
 at the death of President William Henry Harrison, he issued a 
 pastoral letter April 25, 1841, showing his appreciation of the 
 General and quoting from St. Paul's instructions to the bishop of 
 Ephesus, "the obligation of making supplications, prayers, inter- 
 cessions, and thanksgiving, to God for all men, for kings and all 
 that are in high station." He showed " that a national mourning 
 was due to the life and character of General Harrison, but that 
 the people of the Middle West in a greater degree, and the Cath- 
 olics of the North-west Territory especially, owed him a debt of 
 gratitude for his generosity to them and his never-changing con- 
 fidence in their loyalty.""* 
 
 The Cincinnati Cathedral, described in 1828 as "a neat and ele- 
 gant building of 100 by 50 feet, whose interior was remarkable for 
 grand simplicity and chasteness of design, finished in the Gothic 
 order,""^ had become entirely too small for St. Peter's congre- 
 gation. The Bishop had purchased a site on Eighth and Plum 
 streets, opposite the City Building, for the new Cathedral. The 
 corner-stone was laid on May 20, 1841"'^ and in the sealed box 
 were many important documents giving an account of the spread 
 of the Church and the growth of the City. His plan according to 
 a letter written to Mr. Thomas Spare, St. Joseph's, Somerset, 
 Perry Co., Ohio October 29, 1840, was "to have the Cathedral 
 front on Eighth Street with a Male Orphan Asylum or Seminary 
 on one side and a Female Orphan Asylum on the other." The 
 Cathedral was to be about 70 by 100 feet, Grecian style of archi- 
 tecture with portico and colonnade in front, vestibule, all about 
 30 or 40 feet deep and with a steeple carried up from foundation. 
 
 "- Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., pp. 18-20. 
 "3 McSweeny, The Story of the Mountain, Vol I, p. 65. 
 "^ Catholic Telegraph, op. cit., p. 142. 
 '"* United States Catholic Miscellany, April 1.5, 1828. 
 
 "'Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, op. cit., pp. 181- 
 183. 
 
.jS Arclibishop Pur cell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 The ceiling he wished flat, or slightly coved, an organ loft, no 
 galleries, the roof to be covered with zinc or copper. The base- 
 ment story chiefly above ground he destined for a place of meeting 
 and for the Sunday Schools. He stated that he was receiving 
 plans from persons who volunteered to furnish them but "that 
 he was not contracting any obligation to adopt them or to renu- 
 merate the draftsman, unless freely induced thereto by the superior 
 excellence of their plans, or the capacity which they shall have 
 evinced for the able, honest, and satisfactory execution of the 
 building." Then he adds : " If with this distinct understanding, you 
 think proper to send in a design and estimate, we shall impar- 
 tially consider both and decide accordingly." He closes the letter 
 with the following: "Wishing you every success in your important 
 undertaking at St. Joseph's and hoping that you will have it in 
 your power to avail yourself of so good an opportunity to study 
 and convince yourself of the truth of the Catholic faith, I remain 
 Dear Sir, very truly yours, 
 
 "John B. Pubcell,"^ 
 "Bishop of Cincinnati." 
 
 While inviting plans and estimates, the Bishop did not lose 
 sight of the means needed for the erection of a suitable Cathedral. 
 The Church Building Society of the Diocese of Cincinnati was 
 formed and all members of the Catholic Faith in Ohio were asked 
 to pay a monthly contribution of at least 123/^ cents. "^ In a 
 pastoral letter he urged the necessity of building for the increas- 
 ing congregations and said "that the dedication of Holy Trinity 
 Church in 1834 had no other effect than to attract a still larger 
 number of our German Catholic brethren to this city and to call 
 not only for the new German Church which they are zealously 
 erecting, but for two more. The congregation of the Cathedral 
 will not appear to have diminished when these two churches are 
 crowded to overflowing, and when St. Xavier's and St. Peter's are 
 regularly organized, it is obvious to every observing mind that the 
 places of our tents must be still further enlarged and their 
 cords lengthened on every side.""' The enthusiasm of the Bishop 
 spread to the people and he was much encouraged by the ready 
 response from all parts of his diocese. The schools of his 
 
 "' Archives Dominican College, Wiishington, D. C. 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, op. cil.. pp. 312-3]3. 
 •'" Catholic Telegraph, op. oil., p. 311. 
 
Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cifwitinati 39 
 
 episcopal city were increasing and showing the result of his inter- 
 est as well as that of the priests and seminarians who gave some 
 hours each day to the work of the class room.'^" 
 
 In July, Mr. Benjamin M. Thomas of Philadelphia addressed 
 the pupils of St. Peter Schools, after the distribution of premiums. 
 The premiums were conferred by the clergy on the children of the 
 Free and Pay Schools; on the orphans at her own request, by Mrs. 
 Woods, the mother of Mr. James F. Woods, a student at the 
 Propaganda, the future Archbishop of Philadelphia. Mr. Thomas 
 said he had visited Cincinnati anticipating much from its repu- 
 tation of being the Philadelphia of the West and had found its 
 commercial prosperity equal to his highest expectations, but he 
 discovered that its peaceful abodes of religion and instruction were 
 its greatest glory — the successful vindication of its character as 
 Queen City of the West.'-' The Bishop whose interest in the 
 children was always very paternal, showed much pleasure at 
 these words of Mr. Thomas. God was manifestly blessing his 
 works. Asylum and -school had been enlarged and more com- 
 fortable arrangements secured for Sisters and children. All dio- 
 cesan institutions were growing, the fruit of zeal and energetic 
 labor on the part of the Bishop and his clergy. There were 'now 
 fifty-five churches in the diocese and others in prospect.'^- The 
 Redemptorist Fathers Tschenhens, Hatscher, and Czakert who 
 had been laboring for some years in northern Ohio and had built 
 St. Alphonsus Church at Peru, left for Pittsburg in 1839 on account 
 of discouraging experiences with the people of St. Alphonsus 
 Congregation. Their going was a source of regret to the Bishop 
 who wished them to take charge of a large district in the northern 
 part of his diocese, the field tilled as early as 1795 by the Right 
 Rev. Edmund Burke, Vicar Apostolic of Nova Scotia, and in 
 more recent years by the Reverend Edmund Quinn who built St. 
 Mary's Church at Tiffin.'^' The Dominican Fathers were minis- 
 tering to congregations in all parts of the state, emulating the, 
 
 '^"Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the 
 Ohio. 
 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, Vol. XI, p. 25 i. 
 
 "2 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. She.i, op. cit.. Vol. IV, pp. 
 172-178. 
 
 '" .Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Shea, op. oil.. Vol. Ill, pp. 31, 330 
 621. 
 
40 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 apostolate of Bishop Fenwick, Fathers Hill, Wilson, Young, 
 Muiios, Fahy, Montgomery, O'Leary and many others. 
 
 As early as 1824, the fruitful yield of the harvest in Ohio had 
 impelled the General of the Dominican Order to erect a separate 
 province in Bishop Fenwick's diocese and the community had been 
 incorporated by an act of the Ohio Legislature as the Convent of 
 St. Louis Bertrand. Through representations of Bishop Fenwick, 
 this province was merged into the St. Joseph Province and 
 he was appointed for life Commissary General, the Dominican 
 Fathers agreeing to pay to the future Bishops of Cincinnati, not 
 of their Order, $300 a year.i^* 
 
 The Jesuit Fathers, in addition to their work in College and 
 Seminary, were now impressing Catholicity in Ohio in the same 
 manner as the pioneer Dominican and secular clergy had done, 
 and yet the Bishop found it necessary to look abroad for other 
 laborers for his vineyard. He had installed his first European 
 community for educational purposes and hoped soon to have 
 the Religious of the Precious Blood, the Ui:sulines, and others to 
 follow their special vocation in his diocese. Although he had 
 published a card of thanks to the Mother House at Emmitsburg 
 " for additional help sent to the asylum and to the pay and free 
 school attached to it," he would gladly have welcomed a larger 
 band of helpers, saying "he was happy in sticking faithfully to 
 old and tried friends and by no means fond of abandoning them 
 for new ones."^^^ St. Joseph's calls were so frequent and from so 
 many different parts of the country that Mother Xavier, anxious 
 as she was to place the Sisters wherever the clergy wished them, 
 especially with friends like Bishop Purcell, was forced sometimes 
 to say: "It is not possible." 
 
 The progress of Catholicity in Cincinnati awakened prejudice 
 and brought from the pen of Lyman Beecher his "Plea for the 
 West, " an argument against foreign immigration to the Mississippi 
 Valley. This was supposed to have unjustly influenced public 
 opinion against the Church of Rome and Judge Hall, editor of the 
 Western Monthly Magazine to which Harriet Beecher was a 
 contributor, defended the Catholic side, asserting that the "Plea 
 for the West" was a plea for Lane Seminary conducted by Mr. 
 
 «< Shea, op. cit.. Vol. Ill, pp. 352, 353. Archives Mount St. Joseph-ou-the- 
 Ohio. Dominican Letters. 
 
 "' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 41 
 
 Beecher, and against Catholics. As the accusation and defense 
 were in the hands of non-Catholics, the Bishop did not enter into 
 the controversy. The Telegraph, however, published on March 
 14, 1843, a letter from Lyman Beecher denying that his lecture 
 " Plea for the West " was responsible for the burning of the Charles- 
 town Convent, near Boston, although he acknowledged that he did 
 deliver the lecture in Boston and that the burning occurred the 
 next evening.1^5 In his efforts for the Church militant, the Bishop 
 did not forget the reverence due to the memory of those who had 
 laid down their arms, life's conflict over. The city was now grow- 
 ing beyond the limits of the valley and her crown of hills was send- 
 ing forth a call for dwellers. The west hill, with its diversified 
 view of the oft-curving river, fascinated his eye and on its summit 
 he selected ground for a new God's Acre, instead of the old Cather- 
 ine Street Burying-Ground. It was consecrated as the St. Joseph 
 Cemetery on May 7. All the Societies and members of the various 
 congregations with the orphan boys marched to the spot, about 
 3 miles from the Cathedral. Bishops Purcell and Kenrick of St. 
 Louis, Very Reverend Father Verhaegen, Superior of the Jesuits 
 and other clergymen assisted at the ceremony. Bishop Kenrick 
 gave a discourse in English, Father Henni one in German. i^' 
 Immediately after this the Bishop prepared to join his brother 
 Bishops in Baltimore for the Fifth Provincial Council which opened 
 on May 14. Bishops Odine of Texas, Blanc of New Orleans, 
 Chanche of Natchez, Loras of Dubuque, Kenrick, Coadjutor of 
 Louisville, had visited the institutions of Cincinnati, the previous 
 week and had congratulated Bishop Purcell on the progress of 
 Catholicity in his diocese. With the Archbishop of Baltimore, the 
 prelates assembled for the Council, numbered sixteen. In addition 
 to those who passed through Cincinnati, were Bishops Fenwick of 
 Boston, Portier of Mobile, Kenrick of Philadelphia, Hughes of 
 New York, de la Haillandiere of Vincennes, Whelan of Richmond, 
 Le Fevre of Detroit, and the Very Reverend Richard Baker, 
 Administrator of Charleston. The opening ceremonies were very 
 imposing. Bishop Purcell occupied the pulpit on Monday and 
 Friday evening, and on the following Sunday, at the High Mass. 
 
 >2« Venable, Literary Cullurr, p. 37.9. Catholic Telegraph. Vol. XII, p. 86. 
 
 '-' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Bishop P. R Kenrick was the 
 brother of Bishop K-nrick of Philade'phia. He succeeded Bishop Rosati in 
 1840 and governed th; St Louis diocese uatil 1833. 
 
42 Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 On Monday evening he delivered a discourse in Calvert Hall. 
 On Ascension Thursday, he confirmed sixty persons in St. John's 
 Church, Frederick, Maryland; on Friday, gave minor orders to 
 seven Jesuit Novices; on Saturday, gave confirmation in St. 
 Joseph's Chapel, "in the happy Valley of the Sisters of Charity," 
 and on Sunday, sang High Mass and administered Confirmation 
 in his old home, Mount St. Mary's, Emmitsburg.'^^' He and 
 Bishop Hughes had planned to sail from Boston on June 1, but 
 in a letter of that date, he says: "Instead of being ploughing the 
 deep in the Caledonia, today, I am sitting in my lodgings at 
 Bishop Hughes' free from the delightful apprehension of seasick- 
 ness, writing to you. . . I spent nearly a day at St. Joseph's. All 
 at the Mountain and Vale were so kind; it was a pleasure to stay 
 and a pain to go. I sang Mass at flie former place standing on the 
 spot so often hallowed by the presence of the sainted Dubois, 
 Brute, Egan, and again listening to a Mountain choir with Shcrb, 
 Brawner, Elder, Livers, Roddy, McAtee, Students, Sisters, 
 Seminarians — all familiar faces, really respected valued dear 
 friends before me — and at the Vale, what only the Vale could 
 offer before the Altar. In both places I gave Confirmation. 
 Mother X. quite recovered, as also Sister Anna Maria, but several 
 newer comers quite near their Pasch or Passover to a still higher, 
 holier, surer beatitude than what Divine Love has vouchsafed 
 even in this life. My rochet to be sure was greatly admired in 
 Baltimore — too handsome a plumage for so stupid a bird. Here I 
 found that identical box so long ago announced from Vienna and 
 stowed in a corner on the porch of the Bishop's house, though its 
 loss was often charged tQ the carelessness (5f the steamboat mana- 
 gers. The weather here is so cold we wear our overcoats even in 
 the house. The Sisters ai-e all well. We dined yesterday at 
 Rose-Hill College — seven Bishops. It is 11 miles from town, 
 which one travels in an hour by railroad. It looks beautiful there 
 — a vigorous scion of a goodly Mountain stem. I am finishing 
 without telling you half I wanted to say of Baltimore, Frederick, 
 Emmitsburg, but these you know to be exhaustless themes.'-' 
 The decrees of the Council just held in Baltimore were confirmed 
 by His Holiness Pope Gregory XVI, on September '24, 1843. The 
 
 "« CafhoHc Tehijruph. op. cil.. p. 166-174. 
 
 '*' Archives Mounl St. .losepli-on-the-Ohio. J.rUe 
 
Archbishop Purecll and the Archdioccne of Chiciiivati 4'-\ 
 
 establishment of new Sees had been recommended, at Milwaukee, 
 Chicago, Oregon Territory, Little Rock, Pittsburgh, and at Hart- 
 ford for Rhode Island and Connecticut. A Bishop for Charleston 
 and two coadjutors for other Sees were suggested. i'"' Bishop 
 Purcell spent the summer in France and wrote from Boulogne- 
 sur-Mer, on September 30, that he had received into the Church 
 several converts, one, a near relative of Kenelm H. Digby, author 
 of the "Ages of Faith.""' Receiving converts was for him a 
 very special pleasure and it was said of him that no one in the 
 hierarchy had led so many from the path of error to truth as he had 
 done and during the busiest years of his episcopate. He never 
 seemed to think that he personally had anything to do with the 
 conversion but always spoke or wrote of the person as "a trophy 
 of the grace of God.""^ Friendship, with him, meant helping 
 others to gain their highest good and he was fearless in pointing 
 out the way. All of his letters breathe this Apostolic spirit and his 
 daily life was a lesson of devotion to the temporal and spiritual 
 good of his flock. From Antwerp, August 14, 1843, he wrote: 
 
 "One of my first cares on arriving in this hospitable and eminently 
 Catholic town, was to enquire for Mr. and Mrs. Haight, whom 
 and their charming little daughter Anna, we had the satisfaction 
 of finding in excellent health. I say im, for Very Reverend 
 Brassac and a valued Reverend friend, Mr. Hofman of this place, 
 accompanied me. We were in full costume ecclesiastique as is 
 the custom here, and rode in a splendid carriage placed at my dis- 
 .posal to make this and similar other visits. Mrs. H. arrived in 
 Antwerp only three weeks ago in the Florida which is to sail on 
 Wednesday and to take this hasty note to New York. Mr. H. is 
 comfortably, not to say, splendidly lodged. He is turning more 
 and more toward the Catholic Church, and as proof of his disposi- 
 tions he referred me to a beautiful crucifix which adorns Tiis 
 drawing-room and a really magnificent Magdalen with the 
 tete de niort and cross, in the same salon. Mrs. H. had not been to 
 confession for some considerable time, and expressed her fears that 
 she could not find a priest in Antwerp that could speak English; 
 but this inconvenience I had an opportunity of speedily reducing 
 to its juste va'eur by telling her that there is a clergyman here who 
 speaks English quite well, and promising that he should call to 
 see her. I also spoke to some very respectable families whom I 
 requested to show her every attention. There is not in this world 
 
 "» Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. II, pp. 239-241. Archives Cincinnati 
 Archdiocese. 
 
 "1 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 '" Ibid. 
 
44 ArcMishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 of ours a spot where she could live more happily and religiously, 
 separated from home and friends of other days than this same 
 Antwerp. Just think of the greatest churches in the world adorned 
 with the finest paintings, marble, boisery, and frequented by the 
 most pious of the ransomed children of Adam. There is here a 
 crown of gold weighing ninety ounces — and wrought as here only 
 it could be wrought — for a statue of the Blessed Virgin; a Remon- 
 strance of solid silver, representing in large figures the three 
 Apostles, Moses, and Elias, the Eternal Father, Son and Holy 
 Spirit; an oak sculpture of the life of Christ and eight beatitudes 
 (costing 20,000 dollars) for the choir or sanctuary. Religious 
 institutions rise on every side and wealth abounding for still more 
 numerous appeals — at home — and something — not as much as it 
 might be — ^for institutions abroad. ... I feel very little 
 when I see the churches and the glory of Religion in this country 
 when our poor commencements in the United States are compared 
 with them, especially where there is so much reason to fear that at 
 this period of time and in the midst of superabounding heresy and 
 religious indifference, I can discover in the dim future no ray of 
 hope that we shall ever be able to achieve the like. How good God 
 is to be content if we only give Him the heart! That at least we 
 should give him generously. . . . Just came from saying 
 Mass and visiting the admirable establishment of the religious 
 who embroidered the Madonna that rests on the mantel at the 
 Asylum. Will be with all in spirit tomorrow, Assumption of our 
 Blessed Mother."i^' 
 
 While in France the Bishop received from the Queen a beautiful 
 painting of the Assumption for the new Church of the Sisters of 
 Charity at Emmitsburg,^'* and many useful and artistic articles, 
 for the institutions of his own diocese. 
 
 He left Havre, on the ship Vesta, in the late fall. Father 
 Hercules Brassac, who had accompanied him through Europe and 
 interested himself in obtaining help of many kinds for the Cincin- 
 nati diocese, attended to all the details of the journey. ^^^ He- 
 notified the Bishop who was detained at Havre that the Fathers 
 of the Precious Blood were ready to leave for their new home in 
 Mercer County, Ohio. Eight priests with Reverend Francis de 
 Sales Briinner landed at New Orleans on December 21, 1843, and 
 ascended the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, reaching Cincinnati on 
 New Year's Day, 1844.138 -phis was the second European com- 
 
 '?' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the Ohio. 
 
 1" Ibid. 
 
 "» Ibid. 
 
 '" Ibid. Shea, op. cil.. Vol. IV, p. 173. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdioccs-c of Cincinnati 45 
 
 munity brought to the New World by Bishop Purcell. The 
 Fathers established a Province at Maria Stein and opened a 
 Seminary at Carthagena, Ohio. The Bishop asked them to take 
 charge of the church in Peru, where the Redemptorist Fathers had 
 found the people so intractable, and of Norwalk, where some of the 
 disaffected members from Peru had caused a schism by defiantly 
 building a church after the Bishop had forbidden it. When the 
 trouble was settled in Norwalk, the Bishop found a similar one in 
 his own city. Some discontented people applied to the Legislature 
 of Ohio to incorporate them as "The German Catholic Congrega- 
 tion of Cincinnati. ^^^ A meeting of sincere Catholics under the 
 direction of Fathers Henni, Ferneding and Luers, took steps to 
 prevent this and defeated the schismatics. 
 
 St. Joseph's Day, 1844, in St. Peter's Cathedral, Cincinnati, was 
 one long to be remembered. Bishop Henni of Milwaukee and 
 Bishop Reynolds of Charleston were consecrated by Bishop 
 Purcell, assisted by Bishop Miles of Nashville and Bishop O'Connor 
 of Pittsburg. Bishop Flaget addressed the congregation but was so 
 affected he could not restrain his tears. He told his hearers "that 
 he had stood on the ground now occupied by the city when there 
 were only four houses surrounded hx a wilderness."''"* Father 
 Kundig, the pioneer priest of Milwaukee, to whose ingenuity the 
 selection of that See was due, and Bishop Henni were the first 
 priests ordained in Cincinnati. The sacrament of Holy Orders 
 was administered to them by Bishop Fenwick on February 2, 
 1829. Many priests from Kentucky and Indiana had come to 
 join the Ohio clergymen in doing honor to the two new Bishops, 
 one of whom. Bishop Henni, was very dear to the Ohio Catholics. 
 Before leaving for his new diocese, he administered Confirmation 
 to members of Holy Trinity congregation and to a converted 
 Lutheran minister named Oertels. The next day he confirmed 
 300 persons in St. Mary's Church which had been dedicated July 
 3, 1842, and built under his own directions. He had the gratifica- 
 tion also of leaving the St. Aloysius Society in possession of the 
 splendid property purchased from Joseph Bonsall for 10,800 
 dollars and he learned with pleasure that the Jesuit Fathers had 
 secured an elegant mansion surrounded by 10 acres of land on 
 Walnut Hills for educational purposes and called it "The Purcell 
 
 '''Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. IV, p. 173. 
 "' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. IV, pp. 90-251. 
 
4() Archbishop Purcell and the Archdioccnc of Cincinnol.i 
 
 Mansion.""' The consecration of the two Bishops on St. Joseph's 
 day, 1844, by Bishop Purcell in his own Cathedral began a long 
 line of similar ceremonies. On this occasion, one of the two 
 Bishops was his own Vicar-General, Bishop Henni. During 
 subsequent years, so numerous were the Bishops chosen from the 
 Cincinnati Province or at the suggestion of its Ordinary, that 
 Cincinnati \^ as humorously called "The Bishop Factory." Many 
 priests who were then, like the Bishop himself laborious mis- 
 sionaries in Ohio, or had gone thence to other fields and younger 
 men still at their theological studies were within the next decade 
 or two, to grace the hierarchy with their virtues and learning. 
 The Church in Ohio treasures the works of Fathers Alemany, 
 Henni, De Goesbriand, Juncker, Rappe, Lamy, Macheboeuf, 
 Baraga, Heiss, Quinlan, Carrell, Wood, Toebbe, Fitzgerald, 
 Borgess, Gilmour, Dwenger, Miles, and Whelan all raised to the 
 episcopal dignity, and of others, who like Fathers Montgomery and 
 Edward Purcell, refused the dignity, more than once."" On the 
 Feast of St. Joseph, 1845, in Rome, the Reverend James F. Wood, 
 future Archbishop of Philadelphia, received deaconship at the 
 hands of Cardinal Fransoni, and sacred priesthood on the Feast of 
 the Annunciation and returned to Cincinnati in September. "' 
 The year 1845 was remarkable for the number of churches begun 
 or dedicated. Canton, Tiffin, Columbus, Piqua, Chillicothe, 
 Circleville, and Cincinnati saw new temples being erected to the 
 divine worship. In April, the cornerstone of St. John the Baptist 
 Church, dedicated to the Bishop's patron, was laid with religious 
 pomp and ceremony, in presence of a large gathering of clergy, 
 theological students, the various societies, pupils of the schools, 
 and members of the congregation. In his address the Bishop 
 recalled how in the early days of Cincinnati Catholics were treated 
 to scoffing and contumely, when seeking ground whereon to build 
 a little church, being told to go beyond the corporation line, that 
 in the brickyards they might find a place good enough for them. 
 He told how as followers of the meek and lowly Saviour thev went, 
 rented a small square, raised a small frame building, and in it 
 devoutly assembled and adored the God of their fathers. Their 
 numbers increased, and by exemplary lives they removed prejudices; 
 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-OhiQ. 
 
 1" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Shea, op. oil.. Vol. IV, p. 407. 
 
Archhishop PiircrU and the Archdioccftf of Cincinnati 47 
 
 forced bigotry, heartless as it is, to acknowledge their virtues; 
 induced candor to confess freely that their religion was not the 
 horrible thing ignorance or hate would represent it, but a something 
 divine, a religion of truth that rendered men good Christians, good 
 citizens, good patriots. Soon they had no difficulty in procuring 
 a lot in the very heart of the city and in their hour of exultation, 
 they were not unmindful of the little church of their poverty but 
 had it brought into the city and placed on the capacious lot where 
 now stand St. Xavier College and St. Peter's Cathedral. Conclud- 
 ing he said "As we passed the old graveyard, site of our first reli- 
 gious place of worship, and the deeply solemn chant arose, the 
 words, ' and the bones that are humbled shall rejoice ' came to my 
 mind and I thought there was a stir among the graves. I thought 
 the moldering bones of those our Catholic ancestors in the Faith, 
 leaped with exultation.""^ In Fulton, an east-end suburb. Father 
 Olivetti purchased a Protestant church and called it Christ Church. 
 It was afterward replaced by the beautiful All Saints. On June 3, 
 the Ursuline Sisters from France with Mother Julia Chatfield as 
 Superior reached the United States and in a short time took 
 possession of the St. Martin's Convent, formerly the Seminary."' 
 The ecclesiastical students from there returned to Cincinnati and 
 were placed under the direction of Father Nota of the Society of 
 Jesus until 1848 when they were removed to the episcopal residence 
 under the care of Reverend David Whelan until Mount St. Mary's 
 of the West was ready to receive them."^ The week beginning with 
 All Saints Day was one of note to the Catholics of Cincinnati and 
 of deep gratification to their prelate. On the Feast itself, St. 
 John's Church was dedicated, during the octave, Christ's Church, 
 Fulton, and on All Souls Day, the Cathedral was consecrated. 
 This last ceremony had been announced by the Bishop in a pastoral 
 letter issued on September 29. "^^ The eight days previous to the 
 consecration were spent by the clergy in the exercises of a spiritual 
 retreat conducted by the Very Reverend Doctor Spalding of 
 Kentucky. On the day of the consecration, the English-speaking 
 Catholics of Cincinnati, with very few exceptions, received Holy 
 Communion in the old Cathedral to prepare their souls for a 
 
 1" Ibid. p. 175. 
 
 •"/6id. p. 177. 
 
 '** Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 ^"Catholic Telegraph, Vol. XIV, p. 319. 
 
48 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 joyous and worthy entrance into their new and magnificent church. 
 Archbishop Eccleston of Baltimore was the consecrating prelate. 
 Bishops Flaget of Louisville, Portier of Mobile, Chabrat, Coadjutor 
 of Louisville, Henni of Milwaukee, Haillandiere of Vincennes, 
 Miles of Nashville, McCloskey, Coadjutor of New York, and the 
 Provincials of the Dominican and Jesuit Orders came to assist 
 Bishop Pyrcell and to rejoice with him on this auspicious occasion. 
 Clergymen from Ohio and Kentucky, the Seminarists, and the 
 Scholastics of the Society of Jesus, filled the ample sanctuary. The 
 consecration services lasted about four hours. High Mass fol- 
 lowed, celebrated by Bishop Portier, and Bishop McCloskey (first 
 American Cardinal) delivered a polished discourse, his text being 
 "How lovely are Thy Tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts! My soul 
 longeth for the courts of the Lord!" In the evening a solid and 
 beautiful sermon on Faith was preached. The day following 
 crowds assembled to listen to the eloquent clergymen, Doctor 
 McGill and Doctor Spalding. More than five years had been spent 
 in building this great temple to God under the patronage of St. 
 Peter in Chains."* All Cincinnati regarded it as an ornament to 
 the city, some of the secular papers calling it "the finest building 
 in the West and the most imposing in appearance of any of the 
 Cathedrals in the United States, belonging to the Roman Catholic 
 Church, the metropolitan edifice in Baltimore not excepted."'*^ 
 The main walls were built of Dayton marble and the basement of 
 the Ohio River blue limestone. The steeple reached a height of 
 221 feet. The building was Grecian in architecture with portico 
 and colonnade. The main altar of the purest Carrara marble was 
 made by Chiappri of Genoa. The organ of forty-four stops and 
 2,700 pipes was made by Schwab of Cincinnati. The paintings 
 given to Bishop Fenwick by Cardinal Fesch, uncle of Napoleon 
 Bonaparte, and others brought from Europe by Bishop Purcell 
 occupied the various compartments in the Cathedral."^ "St. 
 Peter delivered from Chains" painted by Murillo was placed over 
 the High Altar. The two windows next the altar were of stained 
 glass. Not an accident occurred in the whole progress of the 
 building. Every man employed about it was paid off every 
 Saturday night and as the principal part of the labor was per- 
 
 1" Ibid. 
 
 '■" Cincinnati Directory, 1851. 
 
 '" Ibid. 
 
ArchMsliop 1 urccll and the Arclnliocvse of Ciiiciiiuali 49 
 
 formed at a season of the year when workmen are not employed 
 to their advantage, it proved a great benefit to the laboring class."" 
 The Catholic population of the diocese was 75,000. There were 
 seventy churches and sixty-six priests. The Dominicans, Jesuits, 
 and Fathers of the Precious Blood were laboring zealously and 
 efficiently. The Sisters of Charity, the Dominican Nuns, the 
 Sisters of Notre Dame, the Sisters of the Precious Blood, and the 
 Ursulines, were training the young people of a future great Arch- 
 diocese. Before the close of the year 1845, the corner-stone of St. 
 Philomena's Church was laid, a beautiful rainbow appearing 
 during the ceremonies, as if to give promise of great blessing to 
 come.'^" Bishop Purcell having seen "the places of his Tents 
 enlarged and their cords lengthened on every side" with his 
 episcopal See at the southern boundary of the state, felt that 
 religion would be better served by having a Bishop for the northern 
 part of Ohio, and he resolved to lay this before the prelates of the 
 Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore, in May, 1846.1^"^ Previous 
 to the meeting he made known his views and wishes to 
 the Metropolitan, Archbishop Eccleston. The Fathers of the 
 Council approved Bishop Purcell's plan and asked the Sovereign 
 Pontiff to create the new bishopric. The Holy See in creating the 
 See of Cleveland placed the line of division across the state at 
 40° 41' but later it was changed to agree with countv limits. ^'^ 
 
 "' Ibid. 
 
 "» Catholic Magazine, Vol. V, pp. 567-590. Shea, op. cit. Vol. IV, p. 178. 
 
 ^" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 1" Ibid. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 DIOCESAN VISITATIONS. FOUNDER OF ST. FKANCIS XAMER COL- 
 LEGE. MOUNT ST. MABy's OF THE WEST, CINCINNATI. A 
 METROPOLITAN SEE. PALLIUM AT THE HANDS OF POPE IIUS IX . 
 
 The year 1848 vied with its predecessors in the erection of 
 churches. Saints Joseph, Philomena and Michael, were dedi- 
 cated in Cincinnati, Holy Cross in Columbus, a church was begun 
 at Canal Dover, and the Catholics of Hamilton bought a Protes- 
 tant church at sheriff's sale.'*^ 
 
 On Monday, March 13, the removal of the body of Bishop 
 Fenwick from St. Xavier Church to the Cathedral took place. 
 The Bishop and many priests of the city dressed in ecclesias- 
 tical robes with a great procession of the laity preceded by cross- 
 bearer and acolytes, marched from St. Xavier's up Sycamore 
 Street to Eighth and over Eighth to the new Cathedral on Plum 
 Street. The casket was borne by four gentlemen who had known 
 the lamented proto-prelate of Cincinnati. They were Messrs. 
 James Moreland, Richard Slevin, John Rossiter, and Jerome 
 Hackett. The solemn tones of the "De Profundis" and chant- 
 ing of psalms by the clergy made a deep impression on all, especi- 
 ally on those who witnessed also his first interment in the old 
 Cathedral in 1832, when through the devotion of Mr. White the 
 body was brought from its lonely grave near Canton. The cere- 
 monies of the second burial in the Episcopal City were befitting 
 the occasion. Bishop Purcell sang Pontifical Mass and preached. 
 The sermon was a very touching address unfolding in most elo- 
 quent and affectionate language the life of the deceased prelate. 
 He applied the beautiful description of Simon, the High Priest 
 in EcclesiasticLis to his saintly predecessor and said: "He was 
 truly a man of meekness, piety, and humility — most paternal in 
 his intercourse with the people and devoted to the salvation of 
 souls." After the funeral service the body was deposited in one 
 of the tombs beneath the High Altar. ^^* Shortly after this, 
 the Bishop made a visitation of his diocese in Portsmouth, 
 Ponieroy, Pine (irovc Furnace, INIeigs" Creek, Monday Creek, 
 
 '•''■'' Archives Cincinnati Arclidioi'ese, Unilcil SInlc.s Cctlwlic Magazine, Vol. 
 Vill, p. 10. 
 
 1" llii:l.. Vol. Vr, pp. i> 12-545-604. 
 
 50 
 
Archbishop I'urccU and the A rchdioccnc of Cincinnati 51 
 
 Zanesville, Somerset, Logan and Gallipolis. The last named 
 place was settled by the French in 1790. A Prefecture Apostolic 
 had been established to include southern Ohio. Dom Joseph 
 Didier, a Benedictine, procurator of the Abbey of St. Denis near 
 Paris, was made Prefect, subject to Bishop Carroll. The Sover- 
 eign Pontiff as well as the people who emigrated had been de- 
 ceived by titled and wealthy speculators of France who pictured 
 a wonderful colony of French to rise in the Scioto country. Dom 
 Didier built a church at Gallipolis and labored for a few years 
 among his disheartened people, many of whom, by degrees, 
 sought their old homes and their pastor finally went to St. Louis 
 and engaged in parochial work. In 1796, Father Stephen T. 
 Badin found there about eighty men but was unable to make 
 any lasting impression on them as they seemed to lack all religi- 
 ous feeling. When Bishop Flaget reached his diocese in 1811 
 and visited Ohio the following year he found Gallipolis existing 
 only in name. Bishop Purcell now had the happiness of bring- 
 ing back to the Church a granddaughter of Mr. Vincent, M.C. 
 one of the colonists who came with Dom Didier.'^' This visita- 
 tion of the diocese had many hardships but so well did the Bishop 
 conceal them that Bishop Gilmour, once in charge of the missions 
 around Pomeroy and Iron ton could say: 
 
 "In the visitation of his diocese he seemed to assume 
 that he was the last to be looked after and the least to 
 be cared for. I have se6n him in the rude shanty sitting 
 for hours, hearing the confessions of the people wl:o came 
 from far and near; and when the day's work was done for 
 all others I have heard him in the Court House explaining 
 the doctrines of the Church. He seemed never weary, nor did 
 the gay and cheering word of the hard-worked missionary ever 
 fail. After days of toil and continuous change, preaching, con- 
 firming, lecturing, hearing confessions, I have seen him take his 
 seat in an ordinary farm wagon, with nothing but a loose chair 
 to sit upon to be tossed and jolted through the hills of South- 
 eastern Ohio for a day's ride of fifty miles that he might not fail 
 in an appointment made, and, when the e^'ening came, step down 
 to cheer the lonely priest and to be the brightest of the bright.'^" 
 
 In one of Bishop Purcell's own letters to Alotl er ]klargaret, 
 Superior of the Sisters of Charity, there is the following account: 
 
 '"Shea, op. cit., Vol. Ill, pp. SSS-SS-l. CatkoHc Historical Ri-view. 
 '" GilmouT, Rt. Rev. R. Funeral Oration on Most Rfv. J. B. Purcell, 
 D.D., pp. 13-14. New York, 1883. 
 
52 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 "Reverend Mr. Toebbe, who desires his sincere respects, and my- 
 self are here (Gallion) on our way to Marion. We are delayed 
 here only eight hours waiting for the train. Providentially there 
 is here a little Catholic Church, but no priest. The Bishop 
 (Rappe) came alone nine weeks ago to say Mass for the people 
 since which time, until today, they have had none. We found the 
 key, succeeded in buying a bottle of pure wine, got a German 
 woman to make us altar bread and, as we had left Columbus fast- 
 ing, with the hope of saying Mass at Marion, we said it here. 
 The place is fiftv-four miles from Columbus. I offered mine for 
 the repose of the soul of Sister Ignatia whose death I saw an- 
 nounced in the Telegraph. I am glad the poor priests who attend 
 the congregations I have visited, acknowledged that they have 
 never had harder times from heavy rains and deep roads than 
 during the time when I have been allowed to share their labors. 
 I never could have believed that I could endure so much wetting 
 and traveling on horseback over horrible roads and in late hours 
 without getting sore throat or pneumonia, but, thank God! I am 
 quite well. Here I am alone in the sacristy of the Church which 
 is the priest's room, with no stove, no soap, no napkin, no look- 
 ing-glass, no wash basin — very primitive, but very comfortable 
 . a fit place after the Mass of Expectation to meditate on 
 the Savior's poor and humble birth." In another letter he says, 
 "I was right or wrong sick while away. Had to run out of the 
 sanctuary to lie down on the church steps, exhausted, two or 
 three times, and once to leave the Altar here when going to com- 
 mence Mass, until I could take the relief of a horizontal position." 
 
 "I received your letter in Marietta last Saturday night at a 
 quarter before twelve, after some desperate traveling and some 
 hair-breadth escapes in the rough route from the Muskingum to 
 the Ohio, but since that time, though I had a splendid two horse 
 barouche lent me by Mr. Arthur Taggart, and with it an excel- 
 lent driver, the journey has been if possible, over rougher roads 
 to Duck Creek and Fish Creek and Crane's Nest, and little Mus- 
 kingum amidst terrific thunder and lightning such as it takes our 
 good Lord to create or give forever to Dame Nature to produce. 
 Everything in this world has an end and this rude pilgrimage 
 terminated last night by a two hours' speech, or preaching in the 
 courthouse of Woodsfield, to a large, especially lady audience. 
 For such a rendezvous I was lodged at the house of a member 
 of Congress, Mr. Morris, who was preferred by the Cath- 
 olics of this neighborhood, to Walton, who drew up the un- 
 favorable report in the legislature of this state on the subject of 
 giving or refusing a portion of the Auction funds to an Asylum. 
 Walton lives also in Woodsfield. Mr. Morris brought me a cup 
 of tea to my bedside with the greatest kindness, for it was needed 
 after a journey of twenty-five miles over guch rough roads, and 
 
Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 53 
 
 « 
 
 after two preachments in the course of the day, of some three 
 hours."'" 
 
 The death of Mrs. Elizabeth Scott on Sunday, March 25, in 
 the ninety-fourth year of her age deprived Cincinnati of a very 
 strong link between the old pioneer days and those of rapid ex- 
 pansion. The first Mass in Cincinnati was said in the home of 
 Mr. Scott, who was likewise the architect of the first Catholic 
 Church in the city. Great honor was paid to the memory of 
 Mrs. Scott by Protestants and Catholics. Her body was borne, 
 preceded by the clergy, to St. Xavier Church where Bishop 
 Purcell sang the Requiem Mass and preached. Very Reverend 
 Edward T. Collins was Assistant Priest, Fathers Van de Velde 
 and Emig, S.J. were deacon and sub-deacon, and Father Wood, 
 Master of Ceremonies. That Mrs. Scott was never forgotten by 
 the Bishop, the writer of these pages is able to testify; for when a 
 pupil at Cedar Grove Academy with Mrs. Scott's great grand- 
 daughters Archbishop Purcell visited the Academy very often 
 bringing members of the hierarchy and other noted personages 
 and never did he omit an opportunity of telling about "good old 
 grandmother Scott" and of introducing her descendants."^ 
 
 Knowing the Bishop's long memory for kindnesses. Bishop 
 Henni wished Sisters of Charity for his St. John's Infirmary in 
 Milwaukee, and asked him to intercede with Superiors at Emmits- 
 burg. The Sisters arrived in time to nurse the people during the 
 dreadful cholera scourge of a few months later."' St. Peter's 
 Academy conducted by the Sisters of Charity and the Institute 
 of the Sisters of Notre Dame were associated in their great work 
 by the Ursuline Nuns who purchased the dwelling of Major 
 Daniel Gano on Bank Street, Cincinnati, for a boarding and day 
 school."" The Bishop received at this time, from ^'ery Reverend 
 Father Van de Velde, a document from the Father General of the 
 Jesuits, in Rome, declaring "Bishop Purcell Founder of the St. 
 Francis Xavier College." By the terms of the paper, the Bishop 
 became a participant in all the prayers, good works, and suffrages 
 of all the members of the Society of Jesus, in perpetuum, during 
 life and after death."' 
 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Letters. 
 
 ^'^Ibid., Catholic Telegraph, Vol. XVII, p. 102. 
 
 1" Shea, op. cit.. Vol. IV, p. 254. 
 
 i«» Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 1" Ibid. Letters. 
 
r>4 , 1 rdihisJwp I'urccll ami the Archdiocfse of Cinciiniaii 
 
 On July 19, Feast of St. Vincent de Paul the Bishop laid the 
 cornerstone of Mount St. Mary's of the West, his Theological 
 Seminary. At the ceremony were present besides the clergy, 
 the Sisters of Charity, the Ursulines, the Slevin and Considine 
 families and others of the laity interested in the new establish- 
 ment for the education of priests. 
 
 The Seventh Provincial Council of Baltimore opened' May 6, 
 and closed on Sunday the 13th. Two Archbishops and twenty- 
 three Bishops attended. ^"^ Archbishop Kenrick made the open- 
 ing address. Bishop Purcell preached at the obsequies for de- 
 ceased prelates, and Bishop Hughes closed the Council. Arch- 
 bishop Eccleston had invited the Holy Father to the Council as 
 there was reason to believe he might go to France on account of 
 conditions in Rome, and the prelates of the United States hoped 
 they might have the privilege of receiving him in Baltimore." 
 "Nothing could be more grateful to his heart" he said, "than to 
 enjoy the presence and conversation of the ^'enerable Fathers of 
 the Council, but existing times and circumstances make it impos- 
 sible." In this Council, the erection of Cincinnati into a Metro- 
 politan See, with Louisville, Detroit, Vincennes, and Cleveland 
 as suffragans was petitioned. "' The Bishop returned from 
 Baltimore to find that Ohio was to be visited again by the ter- 
 rible scourge of cholera and it proved to be as disastrous as the 
 epidemic of 1832 and gave priests and Sisters of Charity an 
 opportunity to emulate the care and nursing of the stricken ones 
 in the earlier days. The Bishop had published a touching pas- 
 toral to his people warning them of the danger and urging all to 
 prepare for death which might come suddenly. Such prepara- 
 tion, he explained would aid the clergy, too, in their exhausting 
 and constant duties during a time of epidemic. Several clergy- 
 men were stricken, among them the Jesuit Father Angelo 
 Maessele, Father McCaffrey of Marietta, and Father Butsch of 
 Covington. Over one hundred children were admitted to the 
 Asylum, sixty-seven left orphans by the ravages of the cholera. 
 Dr, Doherty, a friend of the orphans and of the poor died of it. 
 He had been assisted in his labors of charity by Doctors Bonner, 
 O'Connell, and Taylor. The Bishop wrote "We are all very 
 
 "2 Alzof? ("Pabisch and Hvrne). History of the Church, \'oI. Ill d 7Sfi 
 CW/ioWc 7V/,77ra/>/(, Vol. XVIII, pp. 100-114-115. ' ^^ °"' 
 
 1" IhiiL, p. 1.5a. 
 
Arclihi'^hop PurccU and the ArchdioccHc of Chiciiinati 55 
 
 much exhausted by fatigue and anxiety of mind. Fourteen of 
 our little orphan girls have died and some others may follow 
 owing to the inherited weakness of their little frames." Even 
 in this time of affliction and distress, the diocese sent $1,000 as 
 Peter's Pence to the Holy Father. i^* The Bishop dedicated two 
 chiu'ches at this time, one, St. Wendelin's near Arnheim, and 
 St. Mncent's at Mount Vernon where he confirmed Doctor Porter, 
 a former minister of the German Reformed Church for twenty 
 years. The Young Men's Catholic Association was formed to- 
 wards the close of 1849, when library and reading rooms were 
 opened. The first quarterly meeting was held December 23.^^° 
 The Right Reverend Benedict Joseph Flaget, Dean of the Amer- 
 ican Hierarchy, breathed his last on January 11, 1850. Bishop 
 Purcell preached his funeral oration and Father Badin, the pro- 
 to-pniest of the American Church performed the last absolu- 
 tion over the remains of his devoted and saintly friend. ^'^ With- 
 in the next few months, a site for St. Patrick Church, on Third 
 and Mill Streets, Cincinnati, was purchased, a large and beautiful 
 tract of ground for church and school was presented to the Bishop 
 by ]\Ir. Jacob Hoffner in Cumminsville, the cornerstone of St. 
 Francis de Sales Church, Walnut Hills, was laid on May l'-2, and 
 St. Paul's Church was dedicated on Sunday, June 20, with splendid 
 ceremonies. In the Cathedral on June 2, a solemn Te Deiun 
 Service was held in thanksgiving for the restoration of Christ's 
 Vicar to His Apostolic See. An immense gathering of the faithful 
 attended, a true Catholic outpouring with the chivalrous spirit 
 of the ^Middle Ages.'*'' Arecommendationfor taxing churches was 
 introduced into the State Convention and drew forth from the 
 Bishop a strong protest.'^' He told the Catholics "to reflect 
 that their charity, their generosity in erecting noble churches, in 
 supplying the artist, the mechanic, the laborer, with emploj-ment 
 must be crushed by taxation." "Our Catholic forefathers," he 
 said, "believed and we believe that the House of God ought to 
 be the noblest House in every city and town." Non-Catholic 
 citizens joined the Catholics in preventing the obnoxious levy."^ 
 
 ^" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. 
 
 105 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 iM Webb. Centenary of Catholicity in Kentucky, pp. 371-10-2. Louisville, 1882. 
 
 1" Catholic Telegraph, June 8, 1850. 
 
 IIS' Ibid., December, 1850. 
 
 1" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
56 ArcMishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 This year 1850 was the golden year of the Bishop's life and for a 
 celebration of his patronal feast, June 24, all children attending 
 the Catholic Free Schools assembled in the Cathedral for Vespers 
 and Benediction. The spacious building was so crowded that 
 the officiating priests scarcely had room even at the Altar. 
 The whole edifice, sacristies, sanctuary, and the surrounding 
 grounds were thronged by the children. Father Wood was 
 celebrant, Father Stephan addressed the children in a tender and 
 impressive manner, and the St. Xavier students furnished the 
 music. The Bishop gave them his blessing and in most affection- 
 ate terms invited them to a feast which he had prepared for them. 
 The cornerstone of St. Patrick's Church was laid by the Bishop on 
 June 23, in presence of many of the clergy. The chanters were the 
 Reverends Ferneding, Lamy, Stephan and Laurence. Reverend 
 Joshua M. Young gave a very eloquent and impressive discouise. 
 The little orphans of St. Peter's Asylum enlivened the exercises 
 by some beautiful hymns and a little girl placed a wreath of 
 flowers on the cornerstone. When this ceremony was ended, 
 the Bishop and clergy repaired to St. Bernard to lay the corner- 
 stone of St. Clement Church, where the Tyrolese Minstrels rend- 
 ered some pleasing sacred music."" 
 
 On August 6, Cardinal Fransoni announced the forwarding of 
 Bulls making Cincinnati a Metropolitan See with Louisville,, 
 Detroit, Vincennes, and Cleveland as suffragans. Bishop Purcell 
 received the Apostolic Brief on October 8, also word that Bishop 
 Alemany, a Dominican, had been consecrated Bishop of Mon- 
 terey in the Church of San Carlo, Rome, on June 13. At the 
 Consistory held by the Holy Father, Pope Pius IX, on September 
 30, Bishop Wiseman was proclaimed Cardinal Archbishop of 
 Westminster, thus restoring the Catholic Hierarchy to England, 
 twelve Bishops were created and the Holy Father was asked 
 to send the Pallium to the Archbishops, John B. Purcell of Cin- 
 cinnati, Antoine Blanc of New Orleans and John Hughes of 
 New York. This was the fourth time an Archbishopric had been 
 created in the United States: Baltimore in 1810, Oregon Terri- 
 tory in 1846, St. Louis in 1847 and now 1850, Cincinnati, New 
 York, and New Orleans.''^ 
 
 '" CalhoHc Telegraph' June, 1850. 
 
 "' Concilia Provincialia Ballirnori habita, 1829—1849. Baltimore, 1851 
 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, October id, 185o' 
 Ibid.. October 26, 1850. 
 
ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of CinciiDiati 57 
 
 The Right Reverend John B. Lamy was consecrated in St. 
 Peter's Cathedral, Cincinnati, November 24, 1850. The Bishops 
 of Louisville, Cleveland and Vincennes, Doctors Spalding, Rappe, 
 and St. Palais, were the consecrators. Bishop Purcell preached 
 on the Apostolic Succession. Bishop Lamy blessed St. Patrick's 
 Church, in the afternoon and Bishop Spalding preached.''^ The 
 next day. Bishop Purcell left for Mobile to preach for Bishop 
 Portier at the consecration of his Cathedral on December 6.. 
 From Mobile he went to New York and sailed for Europe to re- 
 ceive the Pallium from the hands of Pope Pius IX. Before leav- 
 ing home a deputation had waited on him and presented him with 
 an address of congratulation on his elevation to the rank of Arch- 
 bishop and had given him a purse of $1,000 for his expenses to 
 the Old World. As he was about to leave New York, the Jubilee 
 was proclaimed by Pope Pius IX. On the Feast of the Epiphany,. 
 1851, on board the steamer Africa he wrote a pastoral in which 
 he promulgated to his flock the wishes of the Holy Father and 
 asked them to increase generously, their Jubilee alms to aid in 
 building his ecclesiastical Seminary which was continually in his 
 thoughts and prayers."' May 21, 1851, was the Silver Jubilee 
 of his ordination. Although at a distance from his flock he 
 was with it in spirit and the hearts and prayers of his people fol- 
 lowed him. News of his arrival at Liverpool and Ghent had been 
 received by his brother. Father Edward Purcell, and later, word 
 came that he was the guest of Dr. Kirby, the Rector of the Irish 
 College, in Rome."'' 
 
 From Rome he wrote on April 1 : 
 
 "The slowness of my progress through France was owing to my 
 desire to assist at the meetings of the Paris and Lyons Councils 
 of the Propagation of the Faith and to the kindness of the French 
 Bishops who were my former fellow students and whom I desired 
 to urge on the Directors of the Society the duty of aiding our 
 missions. Our friends in Lyons and Paris and elsewhere will 
 exert themselves for us. In the former city, I visited the 
 saintly Abp. of Turin, exiled for his attachment to duty and 
 unable to conjecture when he will return to his See, where, as 
 well as in all Piedmont and other parts of Italy, the in- 
 fluential wicked are doing all they can to demoralize, unchris- 
 
 "^ Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 •" ■" Calholic Telegraph, December 7, 1850. Ibid., December 28, 1850. Ibid., 
 February 15, 1851. , ^, . 
 
 "* Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
58 AvflihisUop Purccll and ihc Arclidioccfic of Vinc'innail 
 
 tianize, and — if this be not too much -izing — barbarize the 
 people. . . . Our trip on the Rhone was pleasant, for I 
 was in the company of the Archbishop of Keriathin, in Syria, a 
 venerable, bushy bearded Oriental, whose gold-banded hat and 
 large chain and grey locks attracted much attention even in the 
 south of France where people are familiar with all manner of 
 Greek, Turk and pagan costumes and physiognomies. The 
 steamer was a curiosity. It was 350 feet long, and not fifteen 
 feet wide, to shoot like an arrow through the bridge. The masts 
 and even the cabin stove pipe lowered. Now, what do you 
 think of this? For the operation has to be repeated almost every 
 dozen miles, and not only for bridges, but for ropes thrown across 
 the streams for ferry purposes. We left Lyons at 6 a. m. and 
 arrived at Avignon at 4 p. m. and thence, at Marseilles, in three 
 hours by railroad. I there met Mr. and Mrs. Hofner. You may 
 be sure that I did not forget Rev. Mr. Egan while there, although 
 I had seen nothing of his name in the wonderful correspondence 
 of Mrs. Seton with Rev. Mr. Babad, which I was reading on the 
 steamer, in almost utter inattention to every snow-capt ]Mt. and 
 vineyard and town on the banks of the Rhone. Enclosed is a 
 flower from the lofty hill-side of Notre Dame de la Garde. It 
 was red when I gathered it. It is now purple. Our Consul, Mr. 
 Hodge of Philadelphia and also the Pope's Consul were quite 
 polite. Took tlie "Vesuvio" steamer to Naples, travelled by 
 night, lay by in the day-time at Genoa and at Leghorn. . . 
 T intend, D. V. to go later to Florence. Here I arrived on Satur- 
 day night from Civita ^'ecchia. The Captain of the Vesuvio 
 was ^ery clever and attentive and I met on board an interesting 
 young man, Mr. McClure of Phila., — well-disposed to join the 
 church.""^ 
 
 Shortly after Avriting this letter, the Bishop was made as- 
 sistant at the Papal Throne in recognition of his services 
 and had the privilege and happiness of receiving from Pope Pius 
 the Ninth's own liands, the pallium, emblem of his archiepiscopal 
 power. ^'^ He made a trip to Bologna, after Easter, to visit Arch- 
 bishop Bedini, tlicnce to Vienna by special invitation of its Arch- 
 })ishop. He hoped to st;irt on his homeward journey in July or 
 August, according to the con\onience of Arclibishoj) Hughes who 
 wished to be his conqjauion en roijagc. Wliile waiting he read in 
 the European pa])crs that Count Hipj)olyte Bocarme, accused of 
 murder, said he had been in Arkansas for several years with his 
 father. TJie Archbishop saw in this an opportunity of hehiini' 
 him in liis last moments, for the Count had steadily refused the 
 ministrations of a priest connected with the government, but was 
 
 1" rhid. 
 
 "« Culholii- Kiirydopcdia. \o\. XXII, pp. .570-572. 
 
. I rclihisliop PurccU and thr Archdiarcsc of < 'iiiciinuifi :">'.) 
 
 ready to see a missionary. After journeying for six months 
 through Europe, the Archbishop had arrived in Porronay, Bel- 
 gium, just two days before the Count's execution there. He lost 
 no time in seeking admittance to the unfortunate prisoner who 
 asked "Have you been sent by King or Pope?" The Archbishop 
 replied, "By neither, I come by the Providence of God." "You 
 are the man I want," exclaimed the Count, kissing the cross and 
 the Archbishop's hand with emotion and begging him not to leave 
 him any more. The Archbishop complied with his request, 
 heard his confession, prepared him to meet God, and finally ac- 
 companied him to the scaffold."^ Referring to this incident, the 
 Reverend Bernard Smith wrote him from San Calisto, Rome, 
 several years later, "The Holy Father still recollects your ,Vpos- 
 tolic labors on the Rhine when you converted the celebrated 
 infidel."'"- While Archliishops Purcel! and Hughes were in Europe 
 the Church in the United States lost its Primate, Archbishop 
 Eccleston avIio died April '-2^', 1851, in the fiftieth year of his age, 
 the twenty-fifth of his priestly life, and the scAeiiteenth of his 
 episcopal dignity.^" He and Archbishop Purcell returned from 
 Paris in 18 27 and began their wonderful careers to end in Bait- 
 more and Cincinnati. At three o'clock, Saturday morning, Aug- 
 ust •2.'), the Archbishop reached Cincinnati and on Sunday ad- 
 dressed a thronged audience eager to hear again his dear familiar 
 tones and to look upon the face which always lighted up with 
 happiness in tlie midst of his children.^'" The following Sundays 
 for several weeks saw various Bishops officiating in the Cathedral, 
 among them Bishop Xiles of Nashville, O'Connor of Pittsburgh, 
 and Ra])j)e of Cleveland who had asked the privilege of taking 
 up a collection for his needy diocese.'*' Archbishoj) Purcell's 
 generosity to his brother Bishops was proverbial, always ready to 
 share his blessings with them. Only a month previous the Ger- 
 man Orphan Asylum had been destroyed by fire and three of the 
 one hundred and thirty-two children had perished in the flames. ''- 
 At this time it was under the care of a matron, who with her as- 
 sistants did all in her power to save her little charges. 
 
 "' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 "* Archives Mount St. .Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 "^Concilia ProvincAaliu BuUiniori hahila, \Si')-\?,Vi. Raltimore, 1851. p. 
 81. Archives Cincinnati .\rrhiJiocese. 
 "» Calholic Telegraph, August 30, 1851. 
 1" Ibid., December 6, 18.51. 
 "^ Archives Mount .St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 THE SISTERS OF CHARITY OF CINCINNATI OHIO. PROVINCIAL 
 COUNCILS. MRS. TETER. FA-CHER HECKER. 
 
 The year 1852 is memorable for the introduction of the 
 "Cornette" into America through the affiliation of the Sisters at 
 Emmitsburg to the Daughters of Charity in France. 
 
 An authentic account of this union is given in The History of 
 Mother Seton's Daughters. 
 
 The Sisters in Cincinnati who were opposed to the change, 
 remained as they had been founded in 1809, "The American 
 Daughters of Charity" with Mother Seton's garb, ideals and 
 rules. ^*' This was possible to them through the cooperation of 
 Archbishop Purcell, who having known the founders and directors 
 of the Society and having witnessed the growth and spread of the 
 order, learned by his own experience the good resulting from a firm 
 adherence to the plans mapped out by Archbishop Carroll and 
 Mother Seton. When a notification of the impending alliance with 
 France was sent to the mission in Cincinnati,'^* the Archbishop 
 was silent until the Sisters approached him with an expression of 
 their feelings. He listened to their opinions, took down their senti- 
 ments in writing, drew up a statement of their disapprobation,, 
 had their signatures affixed to the document and forwarded it to 
 the Mother House at Emmitsburg.i^s While awaiting the course 
 of events, and judging rightly that the Cincinnati protest would 
 have no effect on the plans of Father Deluol, he consulted with other 
 Bishops and priests who understood the importance of such a 
 change in a community then at work in almost every diocese of the 
 United States. After serious deliberation, he announced to the 
 Sisters that it was God's will, for them to remain Mother Seton's 
 Daughters and that he would oj^en a novitiate in his Episcopal 
 City and be their Father and Ecclesiastical Superior. This 
 office he held until his deatli on July 4, 1883. 'ss 
 
 In taking upon himself this new charge, he did more than found a 
 religious comnmnity— he ga^-e all the weight of his influence and 
 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-tlie-Ohio. 
 
 '»*McCann, History of Mother Seton's Davghters, Vol. II nn QS-llS 
 New York, 1917. ' 
 
 '"Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 60 
 
Archiishop Purccll and the ArclidioceHc of Cincinnati CI 
 
 protective power to a small minority, who recognizing a great 
 responsibility, suffered much for a sacred trust. It is gratifying 
 to be able to note that he could say in his declining years — "There 
 go the good Sisters of Charity, the first 'to aid me in all my under- 
 takings, the pioneer religious of this diocese, who always bore the 
 brunt of the burden.' "'^^ It pleased him to reflect that his com- 
 munity was following the plan of St. Vincent de Paul himself, 
 whose original constitutions of 1646 placed the direction of the 
 Society in the hands of the Archbishop of Paris, ^'^ the Fathers 
 of the Mission being made Superiors, nine years later, in 1655, 
 through the persistent efforts of Mile. Le Gras.^^' 
 
 Instead of being a new burden to the Archbishop, the little 
 ■community in Cincinnati with no worldly possessions, lifted many 
 cares from his mind. It was not long until through it he saw 
 many of his plans realized and many of his hopes fulfilled. A hos- 
 pital under the management of the Sisters was opened in a short 
 time. The domestic arrangement of the Seminary was entrusted to 
 them; parochial schools, one after the other, were placed under 
 their guidance, and the Archbishop saw that it was good to have a 
 reserve force at home.''" Just at this time, too, he welcomed from 
 Home, one of his spiritual sons, the Reverend Sylvester H. Rose- 
 crans, and appointed him assistant editor with Father Edward 
 Purcell of the Catholic Telegraph. Father Rosecrans was also 
 pastor of St. Thomas Church and Professor at Mount St. INIary's 
 of the West."i 
 
 The great missionary, the Very Reverend T. S. Badin, who had 
 been a member of the Cathedral household for three years, reached 
 his last hour on April 19, 1853. "^ He died assisted by the prayers 
 of Archbishop Purcell, the clergy of the Cathedral and the Sisters 
 of Charity who were at his bedside. Although in the 88th year 
 of his age, his bodily strength alone showed decline, his mind 
 remaining clear and vigorous. Shortly before his death one of the 
 priests asked him "Father Badin, in all your long years, have you 
 saved even the price of a grave?" He smiHngly replied: "Xo, he 
 
 1S7 /Jjy 
 
 "8 Life of Mile. Le Gras, pp. 223-224. Translated from the French by a 
 Sister of Charity. New York, 1884,. 
 "» 2hid., pp. 282-286. 
 "° Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 "1 Ibid. Shea, op. cit., p. 537. 
 !»' Ibid. 
 
(;2 A)rhh\%h()ii Purccll «'"' the AnhdiocrKc o/ I'hiciiiiKiti 
 
 trusted Providence for that, — Providence who had never forsaken 
 him." 
 
 His obsequies were conducted with all the dignity and solemnity 
 which his rank as proto-priest and aged missionary demanded and 
 his body was placed in a crypt beside Bishop Fenwick in the 
 Cathedral of Cincinnati. 
 
 Father Baraga, an associate of Father Badin, in early missionary 
 life, who came to Cincinnati to assist Bishop Fenwick in 18.31, was 
 consecrated Bishop on the Feast of All Saints with another Cin- 
 cinnati priest, Father Carrell, S. J.'^' 
 
 In a pastoral published by the Archbishop, at this time, he 
 explained that the faithful were exhorted, though not commanded, 
 to observe the Feast of the Immaculate Conception as a ho'y day. 
 He called attention, also, to the question of education, then being 
 agitated by the daily press. "^ He wrote at length on marriatie and 
 temperance, warning and instructing his flock. 
 
 The Catholics were growing in influence as well as in numbers. 
 The Catholic marriages of this year were 1261 and the baptisms 
 .3,7.5.5.^'° By an insidious note from the Cincinnati Relief Union, 
 the Archbishop was asked what provision the Catholic Church 
 made for its poor. He answered giving in detail the amounts 
 spent by various congregations, the relief afforded by religious 
 orders, societies, institutions, and individuals, as well a= all that 
 was expended in supporting the orphan asylums. He called 
 the attention of the Relief Union to the robbing of Catholic 
 emigrants by ship agents, contractors, and bankers, the civil 
 authorities doing nothing to save them. Before the clo-e of this 
 year, the Sisters of Charity added to their charitable work-s l)y 
 opening the "St. John's Hotel des Invalides," on Franklin and 
 Broadway."^ 
 
 In December, Cincinnati was honored by a visit from the Most 
 Reverend Cajetan Bedini, Archbishop of Thebes and Xuncio to 
 Brazil. On his way to South America, he called at Wa>' incton 
 by direction of Pope Pius IX., to present a friendly letter from the 
 Papal Court to the President of the United States He h.al an 
 interview with President Pierce, but the Secretary of State, Mr. 
 iMarcy, raised difficulties about receiving him officially, saving 
 
 "'.Slici. op. cil.. V<i'. Ill p. 6;u. 
 
 ''■''' .\rchives Muunt St. .Jos ■pli-dii-tlie. O'.iio. 
 
 "='.'S|]Ci, oji. cil., \o\. IV, pp. 5il-.U-'. 
 
 "'■ .Archives :\Imint St. Joseph-iin-tlir-Ohio. 
 
ArcJihit<hop I'urccll and the Archdioccsf of ('hicinnuii (i.'} 
 
 "It would be different had the Pope sent a layman," although 
 Rev. Father Correa had been received as Minister of Portugal 
 and Archbishop Hughes had been sent, less than ten years later, to 
 represent the United States government in Europe. When the 
 affair was brought before the Senate, a reading of the letter from 
 the United States Minister at Rome explaining the nature of 
 Monsignor Bedini's visit, was demanded, but the letter had been 
 "carefully mislaid." The action of the administration at Wash- 
 ington in not recognizing the Nuncio as a member of the diplo- 
 matic body was criticized, since the government of the United 
 States for several years had been represented at Rome by a 
 Minister to His Holiness. Moreover, Archbishop Bedini was well 
 versed in civil and diplomatic affairs having been secretary to 
 the Nuncio at Vienna, Pontifical Commissary of the Legations, 
 and Internuncio at Rio Janeiro where he had done excellent work. 
 Part of his mission to the United States was to investigate com- 
 plaints of the trustees of Holy Trinity Church in Philadelphia 
 and of St. Louis in Buffalo. 
 
 Italian and German revolutionists spread calumnies about the 
 Nuncio and some of the secular papers printed their false repre- 
 sentations. By tlie time he reached Cincinnati, the Know-Xoth- 
 ings had formed a plot against his life. On December 16, .Vrch- 
 bishop Purcell with Bishop Spalding met him at the railroad 
 station and conducted him to the Archiepiscopal residence, where 
 he remained for a few days, and then went with Bisliop Spalding 
 to Louisville, returning to Cincinnati before Christmas. The 
 German Turners had published in their official organ some of 
 the calumnies about him and ex])ressed a hope that some brave 
 man would be a Brutus to this modern Caesar. Personal violence 
 was threatened, but the Archbishop's prudence and vigilance and 
 a guard of Catholic gentlemen prevented the first attack planned 
 by the conspirators, for the night of the Nuncio's arrival from 
 Kentucky. 
 
 On Christmas evening, however, a nioh marched toward the 
 Cathedral with insulting transparencies and mottoes and fired on 
 the police sent against them. The police, however, quickly over- 
 powered them and arrested sixty of their number, the others saving 
 themselves by flight. Although treated inhospitably by the 
 rabble, Archbishop Bedini remembered his visit to Cincinnati with 
 great pleasure, especially his entertainment at Mt. St. Mary's 
 
64 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Seminary and the Feast of the Holy Innocents at the Asylum."' 
 This Feast was the twenty -fifth anniversary of his first Mass. The 
 Sisters with the ladies of the Cathedral congregation had changed 
 the children's large refectory into a magnificent banquet hall 
 where Archbishop Purcell, the clergy, lay friends of the Asylum 
 and all the orphans dined with Monsignor Bedini, the honored 
 guest of the occasion. He wrote to the Archbishop after his 
 departure from Cincinnati: "It is in veritable gratitude for having 
 been found worthy to suffer the outrages of the World for His 
 Name's Sake that I send you the enclosed little offering for your 
 dear orphans. Never shall I forget the beautiful Feast you gave 
 me among them. Accept it, dear Archbishop, and bless it, that 
 I may have some share in the prayers of those innocent children 
 and by them, as I trust, be protected from evil." To the Sisters 
 of Charity he sent a special blessing and a beautiful steel engraving 
 of the Crucifixion."' A very old friend of the diocese, Mr. M. P. 
 Cassilly, benefactor of Orphan Asylum, Seminary, and several 
 churches, died on March 6,' in his 80th year. Archbishop Purcell 
 consecrated Bishop Young in the Cincinnati Cathedral on April 
 23. On June 1, the orphan boys took possession of their new 
 home in Cummins ville."' On the Feast of All Saints, the Presi- 
 dent of Mt. St. Mary's of the West, Doctor Quinlan, later Bishop 
 of Mobile, dedicated the Chapel of the new Mother House of the 
 Sisters of Charity, to the honor of God under the special patronage 
 of St. Vincent de Paul. The Mother House was called Mount 
 St. Vincent. The community was incorporated as "The Sisters 
 of Charity of Cincinnati Ohio" and the Academy was chartered 
 according to the laws of Ohio.^"" 
 
 In every church and chapel of the world the December 8, 
 1854, was one of special exultation. The Immaculate Concep- 
 tion of the Mother of God was proclaimed a dogma, and the 
 Catholic world participated in the joy of the Ephesians of earlier 
 days when the gates of their basilica were thrown open and they 
 heard it announced that Mary had been proclaimed what every 
 Catholic heart knew that she was before — the stainless INIother of 
 God. Pulpits, now, as then, were filled with the best orators 
 
 '»' CalhoJic Telegraph, Vol. XVIII. February 4, 1911. 
 '»' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 100 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 ^""Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
Archbishop PurccU and the Archdiocese of CincUinati Go 
 
 defending her queenly privilege, her absolute spotlessness. Doctor 
 Bernard Smith, acting Rector of the American College, Rome, 
 wrote Archbishop Purcell on December 12, 1854: "I regret that 
 your Grace was not present at the Solemn Decree on the Feast of 
 the Immaculate Conception; never was such a sight Seen in St. 
 Peters. "="1 
 
 The Archbishop had issred a pastoral expressing his wish to 
 unite his diocese with tie faithful in Rome and throughout the 
 whole Catholic world in paying honor to Alary, the Immaculate 
 Mother of God. The homage paid to Heaven's Queen by priests 
 and people of the Cincinnati diocese proved their love for the 
 Mother of God and their loyalty to their Archbishop. ="2 
 
 The new chapel of the St. Joseph Asylum was dedicated on St. 
 Joseph's day, 1855, by the Reverend James F. Wood. The 
 Archbishop sang Pontifical Mass assisted by Fathers Wood, 
 Quinlan, and Luers. The Archbishop told the Sisters and children 
 that he would depend much on their prayers for the success of his 
 First Provincial Council to open in May.^"^ 
 
 Letters were sent forth to all the Bishops of the Cincinnati 
 Province, to the Superiors of the Dominican, Jesuit, Franciscan, 
 Precious Blood, and Holy Cross Ort'ers, stating the object of the 
 Council, the subjects to be discussed, and inviting their presence 
 and help.2M 
 
 On May 13, 1855, with ceremonies befitting so important an 
 occasion, Archbishop Purcell opened the First Provincial Council 
 of Cincinnati. 
 
 Bishops Le Fevre, Rappe, Spalding, Carrell, and Baraga, with 
 many eminent clergymen and the Superiors of the various Orders 
 of the diocese were present. Bishop St. Palais of Vincennes was 
 unable to attend. Two well-known missionaries. Fathers Young, 
 O.P., and De Smet, S.J., took part in the deliberations. Fathers 
 Rosecrans and Coppinger were Masters of Ceremonies. The 
 Council lasted one week and passed nineteen decrees, one of which 
 was that Mount St. Mary's of the ^Vest be made a Provincial 
 Seminary. Six of the decrees were demoted to the training of a 
 pious and learned priesthood for the work of the ministry. The 
 
 "1 Ibid. 
 2 "2 Ibid. 
 "' Ibid. 
 ■"* Catholic Telegraph, May 19, 26, 1854. 
 
66 Arclihisliop Purccll aiiij the Arclidiocrsr of Cincinnati 
 
 Fathers of the Council called to mind in the words of the Tridentine 
 Council the care that Bishops should take to promote to sacred 
 orders only men of approved piety and learning, and to subject 
 them when invested with the pastoral ministry, to examinations 
 on their fitness for the office, whenever they judge necessary. The 
 Fathers decreed that in addition to the resources already afforded 
 for ecclesiastical instruction in the various dioceses, St. Thomas, 
 in Kentucky, should be the Provincial Seminary for preparatory 
 studies, and Mount St. Mary's, Cincinnati, for Holy Scripture, 
 Theology, Church' History, Patrology, and the cognate branches 
 of clerical learning. A decree was passed, too, asking the Holy 
 See to make Mount St. Mary's a Pontifical College, and requesting 
 the faculty of conferring degrees in Philosophy and Theology. 
 
 The Sacred Congregation of the Propagation of the Faith, 
 through its Prefect, Cardinal Barnabo, rendered decision regarding 
 seventh decree, as in note below. 
 
 The Fathers of this Council urged the erection of Sees at Sault 
 Sainte Marie and Fort Wayne. They forbade the borrowing or 
 receiving money on deposit, without episcopal permission; they 
 encouraged the erection of parochial schools, hospitals and 
 asylums, and they recommended that a definite support be estab- 
 lished for infirm clergymen. The Council closed on May 20. 
 with great dignity and ceremony. The Archbishop had the pre- 
 lates as guests for several days, during which they visited the 
 Catholic institutions of Cincinnati. ^"^ 
 
 By the conversion of Mrs. Sarah Peter, Archbishop Purcell 
 
 2»5 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. VI. "Cum innotuisset Patribus 
 deesse in plerisque Seminariis Dioecesanis turn copiam quae decet magistrorum, 
 turn numerum alumnorum ad alendam aemulationem in studiis scientiae et 
 pietatis necessarium, placuit omnibus, Seminarium commune pro universa, 
 Provincia instituere, Seminariis Dioecesanis tamen minime sublatis- aetern- 
 que Seminarii Sanctae Mariae ad Montem prope urbem Cincinnatensem, 
 Munificentissime a Reverendissimo ac Illustrissimo DD. Archiepiscopo' 
 Cincinnatensi oblatam, eligere in situm novi instituti." VII. "Perpensis 
 quoque incrementis, quae exinde sacrarum rerura scientia, atque decore 
 quern Catholica Religio in his regionibus caperet, censuerunt omnes suppli- 
 candam esse Sanctam Sedem ut ex sua dignatione hoc Seminarium Pro- 
 vinciale aiiquo modo Collegium Pontificium fieret, quatenus per auctoritatem 
 Apostolicam facultate conferedi gradus Philosophiae et Theologiae, atque 
 exigendi ab alumnis, post sex mensium probationem juramentum rnanendi 
 in propria Missione in ejusmodi Collegiis consuetum, decoraretur." The 
 Sacred Congregation of the Propagation of the Faith, through its Prefect, 
 Cardmal^ Barnabo, rendered the following decision regarding the seventh 
 decree: "Differi voluerunt responsum quoad petitionem ut Provinciale 
 Semmarmm declaretur Pontificium, eidemque conferatur tradendi gradus 
 academicos.' 
 
Arclitisliop PitrccU and the A rchdiocesr of Ciiiciinidti 07 
 
 gained a valuable co-worker, especially, in securing the aid of 
 different religious orders for his diocese.^"" She was the sister of 
 General Worthington and daughter of Mr. Thomas Worthington, 
 United States Senator and later, Governor of Ohio. She was 
 received into the Church during a visit to the Eternal City, 
 though, three years before, while in Jerusalem, grace had spoken to 
 her heart and she began the study of Catholicism. Her first 
 husband was the Hon. Rufus King who died in 1836. A few 
 years later, she married Mr. Peter, British Consul at Philadelphia. 
 After his death she visited Rome and henceforth devoted her 
 life and means to the good of religion in the Cincinnati diocese. 
 Through her influence the Good Shepherd Sisters took up their 
 residence in the Bank Street Academy, in 1857. The following 
 year she secured a band of Sisters of Mercy from Kinsale, Ireland, 
 and in 1858, brought over the Sisters of St. Francis from Cologne. 
 She made frequent visits to Rome and other places in Europe and 
 was of great assistance to Archbishop Purcell. Pope Pius IX. and 
 many of the Cardinals appreciated her devotion to charitable 
 works and gave her frequent marks of their kind recognition. 
 Doctor Smith of the American College wrote Archbishop Purcell, 
 July 16, 1857: 
 
 "At the request of our good and pious friend. Madam Peter, 
 I write you these few lines. She has just left for Bologna 
 where she hopes to receive the benediction of the Holy Father. 
 She was so busy the last days in Rome, with her retreat at 
 the Sacred Heart, and the business for her holy mission that she 
 could not write to your Grace or to her friends in Cincinnati. 
 She hopes your Grace will tell her friends that she never was in 
 the enjoyment of better health. With regard to her mission here. 
 My Lord, she has succeeded beyond the expectation of all who 
 have heard of it. I beg to assure your Grace that I never saw 
 greater attention paid by Propaganda to any Prelate than was 
 showed to your Grace's representative in ^ladam Peter. The 
 Cardinal Barnabo was always pleased to see her. He has promised 
 her money, a thing he often refused to Bishops; he has given her 
 letters to all the Nuncios. With his seal and name he has con- 
 firmed all your Grace states in your letter to Madam Peter. 
 Besides this, he would not allow her to leave Rome without paying 
 her a long and friendly visit. The Cardinal Reisach, to wliom I 
 introduced her, has also visited her personally and has shown the 
 warmest zeal in her mission. ]Madam Peter is confident that all 
 this polite attention is due to your Grace. Without travelling out 
 
 ^"^ Catholic Telegraph, May 12, 1855. Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 Shea, op. cit. Vol. IV, pp. 544.-545. 
 
68 AichMshop PurccU and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 of her province, Madam Peter has placed things before Propaganda 
 in their proper light. Her visit, at the present time — was most 
 providential. May God grant nothing will arise hereafter to 
 change the present relation between Rome and America. I cannot 
 say more on this delicate subject. And as a friend, I must beg of 
 your Grace .'<ub sigillo never to mention what I have said on this 
 delicate subject. I cannot close this letter without saying a word 
 about the American College. The Holy See gives the College. 
 For this object they have resolved to purchase the JJmilta — the 
 Presentation Convent — at the sum of 42,000 scudi. It has a 
 beautiful Church, and will be capable of receiving 150 students 
 when in order. Nothing will be done at it till the return of His 
 Holiness. I understand from the Propaganda that they will 
 recommend to the American Prelates to support the College by 
 yearly contributions or a general collection. The archbishops will 
 nominate the Rector who must be confirmed by the Pope. The 
 funds for the College can be placed in Roman or American Banks. 
 These and other regulations and rules will be confirmed by a Bull 
 which will give over the College to the American Bishops. From 
 the great sum of money the Pope is giving for your College, you 
 may infer the great interest he and Propaganda feel in it. Of its 
 success there can be no doubt. Bishop O'Connor came here and 
 did some things about it and went off to Jerusalem. His return 
 is daily expected. His Holiness does not return till September. 
 He is well and the general ovations that await him wherever he 
 goes show how he is revered not only as a temporal Prince but 
 also as the common Father of the faithful. Rome, the States of 
 the Church, all Italy is more at ease since the Revolution has been 
 put down in Genoa." 
 
 The Little Sisters of the Poor were the last community which 
 Mrs. Peter brought to Cincinnati, nine years before her death 
 in 1868.2"' 
 
 The Sisters of Charity, finding their property too small for the 
 needs of Academy and Community, with the approbation of the 
 Archbishop exchanged their property on ]\It. Harrison and on Park 
 Street for the historic "Cedars," 3 miles from the city and 1 mile 
 west of Mount St. Mary Theological Seminary. They took pos- 
 session of it on March 3, giving it the name it still holds. Mount 
 St. Vincent, Cedar Grove. ^os Its history was written in 1845 by 
 Mary Howitt, the English authoress, in a storv called "Our Cousins 
 in Ohio."2('9 
 
 On April 26, Archbishop Purcell consecrated two more of his 
 spiritual sons, the Right Reverend James F. Wood for Philadelphia, 
 
 "" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 "" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 '»» Ibid. 
 
Arclihishop T'urcrlJ and the A rchdioccsc of Cineiniiali 69 
 
 the Right Reverend H. D. Juncker for Alton. The beautiful 
 Gothic Chapel of Mount St. INIary's of the West was consecrated 
 on June '24, the Archbishop's Feast. ^"' Toward the close of the 
 year, 1857, the Archbishop was appealed to in the controrernij which 
 arose in the Congregation of the Holy Redeemer and which led to 
 the foundation of the Paulist Congregation. The state of the 
 question and the Archbishop's attitude in the matter will be best 
 learned from the following original documents : 
 
 "Most Rev. axd Dear S;r, 
 
 The remembrance of that kindness which I and my missionary 
 companions have received at your hands, at that time especially, 
 when we were engaged in missionary labor at Cincinnati, and still 
 more of the interest so warmly expressed in the missions them- 
 selves, emboldens me to address your Grace in full confidence 
 upon a matter which not only concerns us personally, but also 
 involves the continuance of those missions. Common rumor at 
 least if not some more direct channel, will have brought it to your 
 knowledge that F. Hecker is no longer a member of our order. He 
 has been summarily dismissed by the Superior General at Rome. 
 We love F. Hecker too much, and prize your Grace's good opinion 
 too highly, to be willing that this untoward event should give oc- 
 casion in your mind to any unfavorable thoughts either of him or 
 of us. Permit me, therefore, to explain how little any fault of 
 F. Hecker's has given occasion to this extreme act of severity. 
 Our English missions have for a long time been exposed to con- 
 stant danger of dying out, through the indifference, not to say, 
 hostility of our Superiors, and from the want of an English house 
 as a basis and centre of missionary operations. An offer of such 
 an establishment T\'as made, last summer })y the Bishop of Xewark 
 and afterwards by the Archbishop of New York, and forwarded 
 by the Provincial to Rome, but refused. To our still greater dis- 
 may we learned that it was the intention of tlie General to accept 
 of two parish stations out of the country, one in Quebec and another 
 in the West Indies to which English Fathers from this Province 
 were to be sent. This involved not only our expatriation, or that 
 of some of us, but the breaking up of our missions and the com- 
 plete loss of our missionary vocation. We found also that this 
 danger was a pressing and impending one. In such a crisis of 
 affairs it was that F. Hecker went to Rome to expose to the 
 General in a filial and faithful manner the true condition of things 
 here and advocate the interests of our missions, and for this step he 
 was expelled. The reason alleged by the General is that he went 
 to Rome in violation of a certain circular of his forbidding subjects 
 to come to Rome without his permission. Our Constitutions, 
 however, provide that every subject shall have the right to go to 
 
 211 Kelly and Kirwin, op. cii., pp. 99-101. 
 
70 ArchMshop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 the Superior General, and this even although permission should be 
 refused him by his local superiors, only warning him not to do so 
 under the influence of temptation, and without pressing necessity. 
 This was a pressing necessity and some of the oldest and most 
 esteemed Fathers in the Province considered that the circular, 
 whatever might be its real value and significance, could not extend 
 to such a case as this. The Provincial himself although, on 
 account of the circular, he was afraid to give F. Hecker permission, 
 said he would willingly do so, if he thought he had the power, and 
 gave him a written statement to that effect to take with him. 
 And yet — will it be believed — on arriving at Rome, F. Hecker was 
 summarily dismissed and not even allowed to lay open the pressing 
 circumstances which made his journey necessary, and justified 
 the step. The General, moreover, reprimanded us all as accom- 
 plices of F. Hecker, with threats of expulsion and forbade us to 
 cherish our hopes any longer. Your Grace will not be surprised 
 that under such circumstances, we have adopted the only course 
 still open before us, by appealing to the Holy See for "protection. 
 To be sure, Monsignor, these things are not very entertaining for 
 a Christmas letter, but I trust that to a heart so full of Christian 
 zeal and warm with charity, they will not prove uninteresting. I 
 do not wish to engage your attention to matters which you will 
 probably regard as foreign to your office, but I am anxious to 
 prevent any hard thoughts which might be engendered by rumors 
 of this affair, either of poor F. Hecker, or of ourselves, as if we had 
 forgotten our duties as good religious. 
 
 There is, nevertheless, Monsignor, one aspect which these events 
 present, which may deserve some especial interest in your eyes as 
 an American Archbishop deeply concerned both for the weKare 
 of your own flock and for the general good. You have heretofore 
 expressed great satisfaction at the good done by our missions and 
 especially in your own diocese. I suppose that these missions 
 may seem of value to the interests of our holy Faith in America, 
 and that it is important to the common good that they should be 
 maintained and not suppressed, or sufl^ered to fail. Perhaps your 
 Grace would not scruple to state as much to the Cardinal, Prefect 
 of the Propaganda, or some competent authoritj^ of the Church at 
 Rome, and recommend them to protection. Such a testimonial 
 would come most naturally from one in your Grace's responsible 
 position, and would be of great service to the hopes of your humble 
 friends the missionaries, who are anxious not to lose their only and 
 plainly marked vocation of missionary labor. We beg also for 
 your kind remembrance at the Holy Sacrifice, and the episcopal 
 benediction at your hands. Wishing your Grace many a happy 
 return of this holy season, 
 
 I remain with great respect 
 
 Your faithful friend and servant, 
 
 C. A. AValworth, C.S.S.R." 
 
ArchiishoiJ PurcrU and the Ai-cJuliortsf of Cincinnati. 71 
 
 The Archbishop lost no time in complying with Father Wal- 
 worth's request, for Doctor Bernard Smith wrote him on March 4, 
 1858: . . . 
 
 "I saw the Cardinal Prefect and Secretary of Propaganda, 
 yesterday. They told me they had just received your Grace's 
 letter on Fr. Hecker's case. They were both glad to see how 
 you spoke like an Archbishop. Nothing could give greater 
 pleasure to Propaganda than your letter. The question is now 
 very difBcult. Nothwithstanding a powerful opposition the 
 Propaganda is determined to carry out your Grace's views. I 
 mention this to let you know the mind of Propaganda on this 
 question." On April 6, Father Walworth wrote the Archbishop, 
 telling him of the favorable decision of the Holy See and sending 
 him a copy of the Decree. "It is hard," he said, "to express how 
 deep a debt of gratitude we feel to the American Bishops who have 
 brought about the success of our cause, among whom, as we well 
 know, Monsignor, you have stood foremost and friendliest, and 
 we trust that in the future we may show oursehes worthy of such 
 distinguished patronage, by the religious fervor of our lives, and 
 the fidelity and energy of our labors. Of course you cannot 
 doubt that our intention is to remain together and follow our former 
 life and vocation, although under a new organization. Such is in 
 fact the understanding at Rome, as well as among our friends and 
 protectors in this country generally, and such seems to be our 
 plain vocation. Should anj^thing in the way of counsel or encour- 
 agement suggest its'elf to your mind, Monsignor, at this crisis of 
 our affairs, we should be only too proud to hear from you, although 
 words can add but little to the solid proof of friendship already 
 manifested. Anything addressed to the care of Mr. George Hecker, 
 Croton Mills, 201 Cherry, New York, would find us for some time 
 to come Monsignor, 
 
 Your faithful son and servant, 
 
 C. A. Walworth (in nomine Domini). "^'^ 
 
 At the close of 1857, the Catholic population of the Cincinnati 
 diocese was estimated at 277,680. The following year was marked 
 by two important events, the consecration of the first Bishop of 
 Fort Wayne and the meeting of the Second Provincial Council of 
 Cincinnati. The Right Reverend J. H. Luers, D.D., Bishop of 
 Fort Wayne, was consecrated in the Cincinnati Cathedral, on 
 January 10, 1858. Archbishop Purcell was consecrator, with 
 Bishops St. Palais and Carrell as assistants. Doctor Orestes H. 
 Brownson lectured in the Melodeon Hall on "Charity and Philan- 
 thropy." 
 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
72 Arclibishop Pitrcell and the A rchdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 The Second Provincial Council began on May ^.^'^ When the 
 prelates had assembled in the sanctuary, Archbishop Purcell, 
 kneeling before his faldstool, intoned the Veni Creator which was 
 sung by the clergy, and followed by the Litany of the Saints. The 
 Archbishop then asked the concurrence of the prelates present and 
 declared the Council open. Bishop Spalding requested a reading 
 of certain decrees of the Council of Trent. Bishop Luers who was 
 assisting at a Council for the first time was required according to 
 the rubrics to make a solemn profession of Faith. Officers were 
 chosen: Promoters, Secretaries, and Chanters. Besides the Arch- 
 bishop, there were present the Bishops of Detroit, Cleveland, 
 Louisville, Vincennes, Sault Sainte Marie, and Fort Wayne with 
 Superiors of the religious orders. The entire week was given to 
 important deliberations, twenty-five grave questions being placed 
 before the assembled Fathers. The decrees of the First Provincial 
 Council of Cincinnati and those of Baltimore were renewed and 
 twelve others adopted at this mee'ting. These were approved in 
 October by the Holy Father, Pope Pius IX. Henceforth, accord- 
 ing to the decrees, parochial schools were obligatory; foundation 
 Masses were to be avoided; questions on solemn and simple vows 
 were to be decided by definite instructions from the Holy See; also 
 questions relating to appeals from suffragans to the Metropolitan; 
 pious associations, especially that of the Holy Childhood, were to 
 be encouraged. The Pastoral issued by the Council gave direc- 
 tions concerning the manner of life and the duties of clergy and 
 laity. It showed the obligation of supporting the clergy, of rearing 
 children properly, of avoiding scandal and intemperance. It 
 explained the necessity of Catholic Schools, the power of the 
 religious press, and the means of gaining the Jubilee. The prelates 
 took a recess on Thursday afternoon and visited St. Peter's 
 Academy and the Boys' School and then called on Mr. Considine, 
 the donor of the Seminary property. ^^^ 
 
 The Feast of St. Edward of England, October 13, 1858, was the 
 Silver Jubilee of Archbishop Purcell's episcopacy. The clergy 
 and people wished it celebrated with pomp and religious ceremony 
 to testify their gratitude for his long years of faithful service and 
 their love for him as a missionary, a Bishop, and Patriarch of the 
 
 "2 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Concilium Cincinnatense II., habitum 
 anno, 18.58. Cincinnati. 
 
 '" Ibid. Pastorial Letter, May, 1858. Catholic Telegraph, May 8-15. 1858. 
 McCormick, Rev. P. .J., th.D,, Hixlory of EdticaHon. The Catholic Educa- 
 tion Press, Washington, V. C. 1915, 
 
Archhishop PurccU and the .1 icIkUoci sc of Cincinnati !'■', 
 
 West. A Solemn Pontifical Mass was offered in the Cathedral. 
 Bishops Spalding, Luers, Juncker and Wood were present in the 
 sanctuary. The whole Archdiocese united in showing its great 
 Metropolitan the appreciation of his mighty works and of his 
 sacrifices in accomplishing them. 
 
 Addresses were made to him by the clergy, by the Cathedral 
 congregation, by the German Catholics, by the Orphans, the 
 students of Mount St. Mary's, and by the pupils of the various 
 schools. Bishop Wood said in his discourse: "He has indeed 
 raised material monuments enough to perpetuate his name — such 
 as twelve out of the thirteen Churches in the city, the great Orphan 
 Asylums, the schools, the colleges. But his most endearing monu- 
 ment is built within the hearts of tens of thousands whom his 
 agency has brought from death into life."-'^ Amid the joy bells, 
 and with letters of congratulation from all over the country. 
 Bulls arrived naming Very Rev. Edward Purcell, Coadjutor to the 
 Bishop of Pittsburgh. He declined the honor and responsibility 
 and returned the documents to Rome, although word had been 
 received that there was a disposition among the Cardinals to force 
 the nominee to accept: "they were getting tired of the refusals 
 here in the United States." Doctor Bernard Smith wrote the 
 Archbishop : 
 
 "S. Cal'sto Roma, 
 4 December, 1858. 
 My Dear Lord. 
 
 I duly received your Grace's favor of the 23rd of September 
 and the '28th of October. With regard to j^our Brother, 1 regret 
 very much that he declined the coadjutorship of Pittsburg, I 
 regret it because I was most anxious to see him promoted; I was 
 anxious because I know that Dr. O'Connor wanted his assistance. 
 I fear also that it will not please the Holy Father, as it certainly 
 has displeased the Propaganda. I have seen the Cardinal and the 
 Secretary since the Papal Bulls were returned and they seem to be 
 dissatisfied. I communicated to the Cardinal the reasons your 
 Grace assigned for your Brother's refusal. "^i° 
 
 One of Bishop Purcell's first acts, on coming to Cincinnati in 
 1833, was to announce a Jubilee published by Pope Gregory XVI. 
 This year, his Episcopal Silver Feast was a year of Jubilee also. 
 
 '" Anniversary Address of the Priests and People of the Diocese of Cin- 
 cinnati, presented at the Silver Jubilee, 1858. 
 
 215 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. 
 
74 Archhislioj) Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincivnati 
 
 as wtell as the Golden celebration of Mount St. Mary's Emmits- 
 burg, his old charge. Great prelates, holy priests, learned divines, 
 elegant poets, renowned orators all united in blessing the memory 
 of their Alma Mater and the Founder, Bishop Dubois. Mother 
 Seton's son, William, was honored on this occasion as the oldest 
 student of the Mountain. The cornerstone of St. Francis Assisi 
 Church was laid on November 7, on the spot made sacred in 1818 
 by the little church in the "Northern Liberties." The Vicar 
 General, Father Purcell, reviewed the days from 1817 when "nine 
 Catholic men, seven Catholic women, and four Catholic children" 
 were all that could be gathered at Grandfather Scott's, after posting 
 notices on street corners and having an advertisement in a daily 
 paper. The new Mother House and Chapel, Mount St. Vincent, 
 Cedar Grove, were blessed on November 14. The Most Reverend 
 Archbishop assisted by the President and Professors of Mount 
 St. Mary's sang the High Mass. The seminarists, pupils, and 
 friends formed a large congregation. The Right Reverend Richard 
 Whelan blessed the building. The Archbishop congratulated 
 Mother Margaret on the success which crowned her prayers and 
 efforts and on her energy which seemed to increase with her years. 
 He expressed his pleastire at the erection of the fine building to the 
 greater glory of God, the glorious cause of education and to the 
 honor of St. Vincent de Paul.^'^ 
 
 2" Ibid. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE CATHOLIC INSTITUTE. THE IMMACULATA. THE CIVIL WAR. 
 
 THE Vatican council 
 
 Early in the year 1859 Archbishop Purcell organized an associa- 
 tion called the Catholic Institute, its first object being to provide 
 a Hall in which the Catholic Societies could hold their deliberations, 
 hear lectures, or transact business requiring the attendance of 
 large representations of ,the various congregations. A site was 
 secured on Vine and Longworth Streets and a building in the 
 Roman style of architecture was erected with dimensions 160 by 83 
 feet. The Society issued stock which sold A'ery rapidly. Chief 
 Justice Taney had been invited to lay the cornerstone, but the 
 letter miscarried and reached the venerable gentleman only the 
 day previous to the ceremony. In his reply he expressed "deep 
 regret that the delay looked like a discourtesy when he felt highly 
 honored to be asked to visit Archbishop Purcell's city and would 
 have been overjoyed to meet again one whom he had always held 
 in such high respect and veneration. He thanked His Grace for 
 the words of hope and encouragement addressed to him, words to 
 be cherished during life and to cheer and console him when the 
 parting hour would come, and reminded him that he was now in 
 his eighty-third year and asked a remembrance in prayer."'^" 
 
 Statistics of the Cincinnati diocese now showed baptism regis- 
 trations for the year to be almost 9,000, marriages about 2,000, 
 and deaths nearly 2,700.^^* This increase together with immigra- 
 tion required the building and enlarging of churches in all parts of 
 the diocese and the Archbishop encouraged the people by his own 
 zeal and activity. While addressing a congregation on this sub- 
 ject, a collection was started and some one protested that the noise 
 might distract the speaker, but the Archbishop quickly replied 
 "No, the clink of the coin given for the Church of God is music to 
 my ears and gives me new spirit." As he appreciated material 
 help, so he gave generously moral help. Bishop Bayley of Newark, 
 New/ersey, wishing the services of Mother Seton's Daughters for 
 his diocese and being unable to obtain a colony from New York or 
 Cincinnati, finally decided to establish a diocesan Mother House. 
 
 ^" History and Organization of the Catholic Institute. Cincinnati, 1860. 
 "» Ibid., January 15, 1859. 
 
 75 
 
7G Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Correspondence with Archbishop Purcell and Mother Margaret on 
 the subject resulted in his sending postulants to the Cincinnati 
 Novitiate to be trained by Mother Margaret. The five Sisters 
 returned to Newark at the end of September, 1859, when the New 
 Jersey Daughters of Mother Seton began.^" 
 
 A great public tribute to Mary Immaculate in Cincinnati took 
 place on Sunday, August 21, when the cornerstone of a church 
 in her honor was laid with imposing ceremonies by the Archbishop 
 on ]\It. Adams close to the Observatory. This was in the Arch- 
 bishop's mind since the time the Honorable John Quincy Adams 
 was invited in 1843 by the Astronomical Society of Cincinnati to 
 lay the cornerstone of the Observatory on Mt. Ida, changed then 
 out of deference to him, to Mt. Adams. The "Old Man Eloquent " 
 displeased his Catholic audience by repeating old falsehoods about 
 Galileo and the cruelty of the Popes and ended by hoping that all 
 emblems might find a home on that Mount excepting the symbol 
 of Popery. Archbishop Purcell resolved that a church spire would 
 point to the clouds from that very summit and his vow was ful- 
 filled in the Immaculata first, and later in the Holy Cross Church 
 and Monastery, the latter being the Observatory itself whose cor- 
 nerstone was laid by the ex-President. The Archbishop gave the 
 ground for the Immaculata and stone for the building and asked 
 all Catholics to donate liberally to its erection as a monument 
 to God's glory in thanksgiving for the first privilege conferred on 
 Heaven's Queen and for the benefits obtained through her by 
 christian people. "When this Beacon Light shines over the city, 
 let e^■e^y one who sees it remember with pleasure the help he gave 
 to place it on its watch-tower." The Passionist Fathers in charge 
 of the Immaculata have placed a statue of the Blessed Virgin 
 surrounded by electric lights on the "watch-tower."^-" After 
 the ceremony on Mt. Adams, the Archbishop was called East and 
 on September 11, addressed an audience of eight thousand people 
 assembled on Bunker Hill, Boston, to witness the laying of the 
 cornerstone of St. Francis de Sales Church on the historic site. 
 The Archbishop after referring to the patriotic feelings which the 
 place evoked and arousing enthusiasm in his hearers closed his 
 speech with the little legend that Christ after the Crucifixion 
 
 ""Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-thc-t)hio. Letters. 
 
 "» Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, August iT, 1859. 
 
Archhishop PurccU and the Arehdioccxc of Ciiiriiiiiati 77 
 
 travelled over all the world and blessed every spot where in future 
 ages a temple would be reared to the glory of the Father. ^^' 
 
 Soon after his return from the East he learned that the President 
 of his Seminary was appointed Bishop of Mobile. On December 
 4, the Right Reverend John Quinlan was consecrated in the New 
 Orleans Cathedral by Archbishop Blanc, Archbishop Purcell being 
 the speaker of the occasion and Bishops Wood, Elder, Juncker, and 
 Lynch being present in the sanctuary. ^^^ 
 
 The impending calamities of Civil War were heavily pressing the 
 souls of men and Shepherds of the flock, at the opening of the year 
 1861, realized the serious responsibilities coming to them and 
 sought spiritual help accordingly. A Jubilee had been granted to 
 the Daughters of St. Vincent de Paul on the occasion of the two 
 hundredth anniversary of the Saint. "By a rescript dated Rome, 
 December 16, 1860, obtained at the prayer of the Archbishop of 
 Cincinnati and the Right Reverend Doctor Spalding, Bishop of 
 Louisville, the Holy Father extends to all the Sisters of Charity of 
 the United States the grace of the Jubilee granted the Daughters 
 of St. Vincent de Paul on the occasion of the Saint's two hundredth 
 anniversary," was the message received by the Sisters in Cincinnati. 
 They chose for their special celebration March 2.5.^^ The Arch- 
 bishop sang Mass in their Community Chapel and preached. The 
 Sisters renewed their Holy Vows "the low but distinct voices of so 
 many Sisters ascending to Heaven with the Sacred Host, at the 
 solemn moment of the Elevation, were the best incense of praise 
 and prayer that could accompany the Divine Oblation." The 
 Archbishop asked prayers in thanksgiving for the settlement of a 
 case in litigation since Bishop Fenwick's time. Messrs. Stanley 
 Matthews and V. Worthington were his counsel and their decision 
 coincided with the opinion of Judge Storer, many years before, in 
 favor of the Archbishop's claims. ^^* It was the celebrated Goshorn 
 versus Purcell Case, and while the public gave a valuation of a half 
 million to the disputed property, the Archbishop would have been 
 glad to receive one-third that amount. 
 
 He begged prayers also for those to enter the coming conflict. 
 "The President has spoken and it is our duty to obey him as head 
 
 ^' Ibid., September 24, 1859. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 2^ Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, February 16, 1861. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. IV, p. 549. 
 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 ^■■Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Catholic Telegraph, April 13, 1861. 
 
78 ArchhisJioji Purccll and ih<- Archdiocc.'ic of C'inciniiaii 
 
 of the nation. Moreover, Ohio, the State in which we are, has 
 also spoken on the subject. It is then our solemn duty as good 
 and loyal citizens to walk shoulder to shoulder with all our fellow 
 citizens in support of the national honor." This was the counsel 
 Archbishop Purcell sent forth to his people after the proclamation 
 of war. The President's Proclamation was dated, Washington, 
 April 14, and signed Abraham Lincoln, President, and Wm. H. 
 Seward, Secretary of State. Governor Dennison of Ohio wrote his 
 Proclamation and call for Volunteers on April 15. He promised 
 the President that Ohio would furnish the largest portion of the 
 required force.^^^ 
 
 In the Third Provincial Council of Cincinnati which began its 
 sessions on Sunday, April 27,^^^ the Archbishop, in his opening 
 address, called attention to the sad spectacle never before witnessed 
 in our glorious republic since the proud day when it gained high 
 rank among the nations. He said: 
 
 "The iron bands of our highways, which we once fondly hoped 
 would link us in indissoluble union, and the noble rivers which 
 bear the rich product of our land and the creations of our 
 sciences and arts to our respective marts and homes, have failed 
 to keep us what God and our Fathers intended us to be — one 
 people. In the midst of the most formidable preparations of 
 our fellow citizens for mutual destruction, the Church in this 
 her peaceful meeting gives us a glimpse of the peace of the 
 Heavenly Jerusalem. She renews the blessings of the 'Truce 
 of God.' We pray God that hostilities may cease, that wiser 
 and better counsels may prevail and that the great heart of 
 this magnificent land, which our Council represents, may send 
 its throbbing pulse of fraternal love to the most distant extremities 
 of our common country." 
 
 Bishops Le Fevre, Rappe, Spalding, Carrell, Baraga, and Luers 
 with the Superiors of the religious orders took part in the 
 Council. Twelve decrees were adopted and these were approved 
 by Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1861.^2' 
 
 Archbishop Purcell, in the beginning of the war, was very cau- 
 tious in his political views, but having studied the question 
 carefully, he became an earnest supporter of the United States 
 government and boldly proclaimed his sentiments although he 
 knew that many of his flock adhered to the party in the North 
 
 '" Jbid.. April 20, 1861. 
 
 ''" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 »' Ibid. 
 
Arelibishop PiirctU and thr ArcJidioccsc of Viiic'nuKitl 79 
 
 against the war. In order to show his feelings of loyalty, he 
 ordered the United States Flag to be placed on the spire of the 
 Cathedral, 225 feet high, and this was regarded not only as a 
 fearless expression of his views, but as a severe rebuke to the Know- 
 Nothingism which acted so maliciously at the time of Archbishop 
 Bedini's visit. ^^'* The Catholic Telegraph edited by Father Purcell 
 had opposed, at first, coercing the seceding states but later, it 
 advocated the whole policy of the government at Washington. 
 Almost simultaneous with the call for troops was the request for 
 nurses and following closely, the Army Chaplain. Early in May 
 and June, Sisters of Charity had gone to Richmond, and to Camp 
 Dennison and Archbishop Purcell had sent three priests to minister 
 to the wants of the soldiers. ^^' The Theological Seminary gave 
 two of its professors to the service of the country, Mr. E. P. 
 Scammon as Brigadier General and Dr. Charles O'Leary as Sur- 
 geon. When General Rosecrans received word to hasten from 
 New York to West Virginia, his brother, the Reverend Sylvester 
 H. Rosecrans, also had a message — Bulls from the Holy Father 
 appointing him Auxiliary Bishop of Cincinnati. Archbishop 
 Purcell feeling the effects of long years of unbroken labor, had 
 asked this favor of the Holy See.^'" Bishop Rosecrans was conse- 
 crated Bishop of Pompeiopolis on March 25, 1862 in the Cin- 
 cinnati Cathedral. 2" Archbishop Purcell assisted by Bishops 
 Spalding of Louisville and Luers of Fort Wayne consecrated the 
 new prelate. The Bishops of Covington and \'incennes were in 
 the sanctuary. Bishop Rosecrans began at once the work of 
 visitations, confirmations, and had the care of the diocese during 
 the Archbishop's visit to Rome where he attended the canoniza- 
 tion of the Japanese Martyrs, by invitation of the Holy Father. 
 He reached Rome in twenty days after sailing from New York. 
 The American College had thirty-six students. In its chapel the 
 Archbishop sang High Mass, during which singers from the 
 Sistine Chapel joined the College choir. The Holy Father was 
 greatly interested in the war conditions of the United States and 
 was pleased to learn that the Sisters of various -orders had gone 
 forth to nurse the soldiers. The Archbishop did not prolong his 
 
 '^s Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, p. 571. 
 '" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 "» Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., pp. 234-240. 
 "1 Catholic Telegraph, March 26; April 2, 1862. 
 
80 Arclihialiop Purccll and the Ardtdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 stay in Europe,_for tliis was his second trip within a year. At his 
 decennial visit, a year previous, the Holy Father had made him 
 a member of the Noble Society of Rome and created his mother 
 the Countess Joanna.^^^ He returned to Cincinnati on Friday, 
 August 22, bringing the learned Doctor Francis Joseph Pabisch 
 for the Seminary. The train on which he came was delayed all 
 along the line by deputations from the cities of his diocese. Mayor 
 Hatch had sent as a bodyguard two platoons of police to walk on 
 either side of the prelate's carriage, while a military escort from 
 the 10th Ohio marched in front. All the church bells pealed forth 
 merrily from the time of the arrival until the procession reached the 
 Cathedral. ^^^ Within a few days after his arrival the Catholic 
 Societies asked him to give a lecture for the benefit of St. John's 
 Hospital. He replied "I cannot refuse anything to the devoted 
 Sisters who care for our sick and wounded soldiers, on the battle- 
 field, on the rivers, and in St. John's Hospital.'"-" 
 
 Cincinnati made a brave resistance to the attack of Generals 
 Kirby Smith and Heath, on September 10. A short time before 
 this the city was under martial law and a state of suppressed 
 excitement prevailed because General Boyle, military commandant 
 in Kentucky, sent word that Morgan the Raider, leaving ruin in 
 his wake, was marching rapidly toward the Ohio and Cincinnati. 
 Governor Tod of Ohio and Mayor Hatch of Cincinnati conferred 
 with Governor Fisk and Adjutant General Fennell of Kentucky, 
 and in less than two hours armed men were crossing the Ohio on 
 their way to Lexington. The President had sent an order on the 
 factory of Miles Greenwood for as many heavy guns as might be 
 required. 236 Morgan changed his direction and passed by Cin- 
 cinnati.236 The Archbishop wrote, September 15, 1862: 
 
 "The big scare of Louisville and Cincinnati is past for the 
 present. Father Collins went to Louisville to look after things 
 there, but they talked so of 'Yankees' he found the place one 
 where 'he might have to hurt some one,' so he skedaddled in sk 
 hours. "2" 
 
 Mount St. Mary's of the West lost on April 20, 1863, its gifted 
 President, V ery Reverend Wm. J. Barry, who died at the early age 
 
 "2 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 '^' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 "' Ibid., Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 2'' Ibid. 
 
 "« Ibid. 
 
 '" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
Arclihisliop Purcrll aii<] the Archdiovcxc of Ciiiriinidl i SI 
 
 of twenty-eiglit years. He had gi^'en promise of a \'ery brilliant 
 future as a writer, orator, scholar, and professor, both at Emmits- 
 burg College and in the Propaganda, Rome.^^* In his Pastoral 
 Letter, dated jNIay 10, the Archbishop appealed earnestly for gen- 
 erous contributions to the Seminary. Rev. Francis Jos. Pabisch, 
 D.D., LL.D., who had come from Europe with the Archbishop in 
 1862, became President of Mount St. Mary's and held the office 
 until his death in October, 1879.^^' The proposed Normal School 
 which the Archbishop had in contemplation before the opening of 
 the war again occupied his attention. Its object was the training 
 of Catholic teachers. All the scholars of the diocese, especially 
 Bishop Rosecrans, Father Gilmour, and the officers of the Catholic 
 Institute, felt great interest in the success of the work and lent 
 efficient aid. The Archbishop, on the vigil of Pentecost, published 
 a Pastoral Letter explaining its scope, and asking the cooperation 
 of clergy and people."" 
 
 The summer of 1865 deprived the diocese of Cincinnati of two 
 remarkable clergj^men. Fathers MacLeod and Collins.-^' The 
 Reverend Donald Xavier iNIacLeod, Professor of Mount St. JMary's 
 of the West and pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church, was well 
 known in the literary world. He was a contributor to the Knicker- 
 bocker and wrote the Life of Mary, Qtieen of Scots, Sir Ti' alter Scott, 
 Bloodstone, Pynshurst, Our Lady of Litanies, and Devotion to the 
 Blessed Virgin in North America. He was a Presbyterian minister 
 first, then became an Episcopalian and was ordained by Bishop 
 Levi Silliman Ives of North Carolina, in Brooklyn. Xot satisfied, 
 he entered the Catholic Church, as did Bishop Ives also. The 
 church in which Bishop Ives ordained Father ]\IacLeod became 
 in later years the Church of St. Charles Borromeo, where they met 
 afterwards as Catholics. Father MacLeod became a Catholic 
 priest in 1860. Death came to him when carrying the Bles.sed 
 Sacrament to a sick woman. Being obliged to cross several 
 railroad tracks, and seeing the cars rounding the curve where he 
 was walking, he stepped to the next track and was immediately 
 struck and rendered lifeless. When his body was found, his hand 
 was covering the pyx containing the Blessed Sacrament.'-^- Llardly 
 
 ''' Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., pp. 23-l-iJiO. 
 
 "» Jhid. 
 
 "0 Cal/iolir Telegraph, .June ii, 18G1, December 16, 1863. 
 
 '" Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., p. 213. 
 
 "2 Catholic Telegraph, June, .Aug., 186j. Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., p. iil. 
 
82 ArchiisJiop Putccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 two months later, the Very Reverend Edward T. Collins, the 
 Vicar General died. A link between the two great colleges. Mount 
 St. Mary's of the East and of the West, he was loved and revered 
 by all. He was a perfect priest, a man of rare literary taste, a 
 remarkable collector of antiquities, and a model citizen. In the 
 early days of the city he had joined the Volunteer Fire Corps, and 
 always at the sound of the fire alarm he would rush to his clothes- 
 press and, donning his helmet and firecoat, hasten to the scene of 
 trouble.2^3 Bishop Lamy, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, a pioneer 
 missionary of Ohio, wished help in his far-off field of labor, and wrote 
 the Archbishop explaining his needs and begging his intercession 
 with the Sisters of Charity. Bishop Lamy had come from Europe 
 at the Archbishop's cry for assistance, in the early days. Gladly, 
 therefore, and gratefully, after the Diocesan Synod in the spring, 
 the Archbishop hastened to the Mother House of the Sisters of 
 Charity and eloquently pleaded for his friend and asked for 
 volunteers. So many and generous were the offers that the merit 
 of obedience was added to the voluntary sacrifice, when Superiors 
 named the four Sisters who were to take the journey to the Indian 
 hunting ground. This was one of the first acts of Mother Regina, 
 elected to the office of Mother Superior in July. The Archbishop 
 sent the glad news to Bishop Lamy and asked directions for the 
 journey.^'''' He wrote Mother Regina from St. Martin's, August 
 8, 1865: 
 
 My dear Mother Regina: 
 
 Enclosed, or accompanying, please find the letters giving the 
 best route to be taken by the four Sisters, on their way to New 
 Mexico and a letter to Bishop O'Gorman. I hope the travellers 
 will find a welcome from Religious Communities in St. Louis and 
 Leavenworth. If they do not leave before the 17th, I hope to see 
 them again, as the retreat here closes on the 18th. We shall want 
 as many Sisters as before, this coming year at the Seminary, as 
 the Bishop so kindly and meritoriously resumes his place there. 
 
 This is my first letter to you as Mother Superior. INIay you 
 be signally blessed and eminently successful in your responsible 
 office. I have constant work here to do, also during the retreat. 
 May Heaven grant the light and grace without which our poor 
 human efforts are worth just nothing. 
 
 God bless you and all under your care. 
 Your devoted Father in the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, 
 
 J. B. PuRCELL.'-^'' 
 
 »' Shea, op. ril.. Vol. IV, p. 553. 
 
 ^" Archives Mount St. Joeeph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 "''Ibid. Bishop Rosecrans kept his position as professor. 
 
Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati So 
 
 The Sisters left the Mother House on August 21 and met in the 
 various cities the hospitahty desired for them by their spiritual 
 Father. ^^^ After stopping at St. Louis, Omaha, Denver, Maxwell's 
 Ranch, and other places on the trail where the Prairie Schooner 
 rested, at last they reached the "City of Holy Faith," their own 
 abundant supply of Faith, Hope, and Charity being necessary 
 for the experiences awaiting them. From the Sisters of Loretto 
 they received a warm welcome and, for many, many weeks, almost 
 the necessaries of life. The Bishop was not at home, but the 
 best he had, his adobe "palace, " was given to the Sisters. ^^' 
 
 Colonel James F. Meline, former American Consul to Brussels, 
 a writer of note, especially for his crushing exposure of Froude's 
 falsifications in regard to Mary, Queen of Scots, wrote: 
 
 "The Sisters of Charity — four of them — from Cincinnati have a 
 Hospital, Orphan Asylum and Free School, and are of the same good 
 and devoted class of women so well known to the wounded soldiers 
 of the Army of the Cumberland and the sick strangers in all our 
 large cities. Their Hospital here, I am told, is likely to be a sine- 
 cure. New Mexico is too healthy for its success. But the Sisters 
 have their hands full with orphans, aged, infirm, and poor scholars. 
 When we think of these heroic women taking up their line of march 
 like a soldier's forlorn hope, crossing desert, confronting every 
 danger, falling in the ranks, or dying at their posts, with no name 
 to leave for a bulletin, and all for neither honor, money, glory, nor 
 fame, but for the sake of God and suffering humanity, I must 
 confess that I for one become impatient at the exaggerated praise of 
 Florence Nightingale. I do not wish to detract one iota from her 
 real merit, but we have, in this country alone, a thousand nobler 
 women than Florence Nightingale, in their graves — a thousand 
 more following in their paths of Heavenly Charity." ^^' 
 
 Reverend Edward Fitzgerald, nominated Bishop of Little Rock, 
 wished that this honor and burden might not be imposed on him, 
 and asked Archbishop Purcell to intercede for him at Rome. Rev- 
 erend Doctor Smith, in his reply to the Archbishop on May "21, 
 1866, says: 
 
 "I duly received your kind favor of the 27th of last March. 
 I translated the letter of the Right Rev. E. Fitzgerald for 
 His Eminence. I regret to tell you it was too late. The Holy 
 Father had confirmed his election. Besides, the Cardinal does not 
 
 2« IKd. 
 »' Ibid. 
 
 2*' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the- 
 Ohio. 
 
84 Arclihisho]} Purccll and Ihc Archdiocese of Cinchniati 
 
 consider the reasons sufficient for a dispensation. The Brief for 
 his consecration has been sent ofF. You will be glad to hear the 
 Holy Father is in good health. Better than when you saw him. 
 If the state of Europe permits it, he will invite all the Bishops to 
 Rome for the 29th of next June. I hope to see your Grace then. 
 It is hard to foretell the fortune of Italy. As it is now, it cannot 
 last. Napoleon unless prevented by an armed Coalition will 
 change both the map and the land of Europe." Bishop Chatard 
 wrote about the same time: "The papers \Ahich your Grace for- 
 warded to Rome relating to the Bishop of Little Rock were duly 
 received and placed in the hands of His Eminence Cardinal 
 Barnabo. We are having just now rather gay times in Rome on 
 account of the new Cardinals. They are five in number: Cardi- 
 nals CuUen, Hohenlohe, Bilio (Barnabite), Matteucci, and Con- 
 solini. In the Consistory yesterday, His Holiness made known the 
 nominations of Bishops Hennessy of Dubuque and Fitzgerald of 
 Little Rock. Cardinals Cullen, Hohenlohe and Bilio have been 
 holding their reception in the Quirinal and it has been well attended. 
 Of course the English have been to pay their respects to the Car- 
 dinal of Dublin — and everything goes on well. I was bold enough 
 to say to His Eminence that I thought I was justified in offering 
 the congratulations of our Archbishops and Bishops. Of course 
 he understood it as an expression of my knowledge of the satisfac- 
 tion, which his election would give to the Church of America. The 
 Bishop of Galveston is here, he will remain a few days longer. On 
 Sunday we expect the war to break out between Italy and Austria, 
 as Lamarmora has sent a declaration of war to that effect to the 
 Archduke Albert. People here look forward to a long and bloody 
 war. Some think that the Italian Kingdom will be the greatest 
 sufferer. In fact there is a great deal of wild talk and uncer- 
 tainty. In Rome things are quiet. His Holiness is in excellent 
 health . 
 
 "Wishing every success to the Council, I have the honor to be 
 "Your Grace's obedient, humble servant, 
 
 "S. M. Chataed."2« 
 
 Bishop Fitzgerald was consecrated on February 3, 1867. 
 
 The work of Sister Anthony and her companions during tlie 
 Civil War had attracted the notice of the public and this, together 
 with the charity performed in the quiet of old St. John's, was now 
 to bring forth fruit. Two non-Catholic gentlemen, Mr. Joseph 
 C. Butler and l\Ir. Lewis Worthington, bought the LTnited States 
 Marine Hospital for $7.5,000 and presented the deed to Sister 
 Anthony on her fiftieth birthday, August 15, 1866. The building 
 had been erected by the Government at a cost of $300,000."^" 
 
 -" Ihirl. LvHcr.'.-. 
 
 "".\rchivcs Mount St. Josepli-on-llie-Ohio. Shea, op. cit.. Vol. IV, p. 554. 
 
ArcJihishop Purcell and the A rchdiocrsc of Ciiiciiiiiatl S5 
 
 Even during the period of war the activities of the diocese were 
 remarkable, but at the close of hostilities, churches were built 
 in many places, schools opened, and academies filled to their 
 utmost capacity with pupils from the southern states. The 
 Seminary, too, was in a flourishing condition, and the Colleges 
 conducted by the Jesuit, Holy Cross, and Franciscan Fathers in 
 Cincinnati and by the Brothers of Mary in Daj'ton, as well as the 
 Novitiates of the Dominicans and of the Precious Blood Fathers, 
 and the charitable institutions, were all showing the vigor of 
 Catholicity in southern Ohio. Statistics obtained for the Second 
 Plenary Council of Baltimore accredited the See of Cincinnati with 
 an Archbishop, an auxiliary Bishop, 150 priests, 181 churches and 
 a proportionate number of parochial schools. The Council met 
 on October 7, 1866, and was presided over by Most Reverend 
 Martin John Spalding, Apostolic Delegate. Six other Archbishops 
 and thirty-nine Bishops were present. The question of establish- 
 ing a Catholic University like that of Dublin was discussed, also the 
 manner of reaching the colored people made free by the late war. 
 The eloquent sermons of Archbishops Purcell, Spalding, ]\IcClos- 
 key, and Kenrick and those of several of the Bishops were printed 
 in this country and reprinted in Europe. President Johnson 
 attended the closing session of the Council. ^°^ 
 
 In June, 1867, the Centenary of St. Peter's martyrdom was 
 celebrated in Rome. The Archbishop journeyed to the Eternal 
 City for this memorable occasion. Ilis letter from Ancona, 
 July 10, 1867, gives us an idea of the Holy Father's daily life. 
 
 "My dear Mother Rbgina, 
 
 "This morning I thought of you and of all the dear Sisters, when 
 I had the inestimable privilege of saying Mass in the Holy House 
 of Loretto, at the Altar said to have been blessed by St. Peter, 
 before the statue — all black — attributed to St. Luke, who was so 
 devoted to our Lady, and I applied my pectoral cross to the sauce- 
 pan or dish now encased in gold, which was so often in the hands of 
 the Blessed ^'irgin, St. Joseph, and our Divine Lord in His child- 
 hood, to which a Plenary Indulgence is attached for all who kiss 
 the said article. I kissed the chimney on the right and left cheek 
 over the hearth where Heaven's Queen cooked the meals for 
 Heaven's Prince and St. Joseph, and herself and the poor who 
 were always welcome. Then I placed medals and beads in the 
 pan, and these are highly indulgenced. I shall have a medal 
 
 "1 Ibid., pp. 715-720. Brother John E. Garvin, S. M. The Centenary 
 of the Society of Mary, Dayton, 0., 1917 
 
86 .1 rchhishop Purccll and Uir Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 for each of the Sisters and a medal blessed by the Pope for every- 
 one of the dear little orphans. 
 
 "With 480 bishops and 10,000 priests from France, in Rome, you 
 will not wonder if it was no easy matter to get the ear, or occupy 
 the attention of His Holiness for a moment. It was a charity not 
 to take an instant of his time. With such oppressive weather and 
 crowds more than enough to fill over and over again the 1,000 
 apartments of the Vatican, all pressing, not for an audience, but 
 to kiss his hand, or the cross on his slipper, he was almost suffo- 
 cated. 
 
 "He was truly paternal to all, and when Irish priests, hardly 
 less importunate than the French Abbes, thronged around him, he 
 asked Father Kirby, the saintly Rector of the Irish College, how 
 'Patienza' was pronounced in English, and then said it to the 
 jostling, eager sons of St. Patrick, always so devoted to the Holy 
 See and the Vicar of Christ. He will surely be one day canonized 
 and I have for you a piece of his robe given me by Mgr. Talbot. 
 You know already he told his Master of Ceremonies to have 
 me immediately at his right hand at the throne when he said Mass 
 on the great centenary at St. Peter's. I assure you, if I felt happy, 
 I felt deeply humbled at my littleness in such a place. Bishops 
 Wood, Rosecrans, Bayley, Rev. Mr. Lancaster, and the charming 
 Peyton Boyle came with me here, or, I with them. 
 
 "Since leaving Rome, the spiteful Victor Emanuel, as if there 
 was cholera in Rome, which there is not, has had us fumigated in 
 every little or large town in his usurped dominions. A horrible 
 ordeal of villainous odors, compounds, and chemicals — and priests 
 from Italy are obliged to spend seven days in quarantine before 
 they can return to their homes from the visits to the Tombs of the 
 Hoiy Apostles. ""2 
 
 On his return from Europe his first visit to the Sisters of Charity 
 was one of condolence because of the report that the train of 
 Archbishop Lamy had been attacked by Indians and the Sisters 
 taken captive, on their way to New Mexico. God in His mercy 
 spared all.^*^ 
 
 At the opening of his Seminary in September, the .\rchbishop 
 distributed to the twenty-three theologians copies of the New 
 Testament in Latin and, to the other 107 students, rosaries and 
 medals blessed by the Holy Father. The Bishop of Natchez, 
 Right Rev. Wm. H. Elder, conducted a retreat for the clergy in 
 August after which a Synod was held. It was decided that a new 
 wing would be added to the Seminary. Mr. Reuben R. Springer, 
 
 "'^ Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 263 Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
ArchMshop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 87 
 
 who hadrecently given $5,000 to the House of the Good Shepherd, 
 contributed $10,000 toward the addition, and Mrs. Springer gave 
 $1,000. As the clergy and people subscribed generous amounts 
 the cost of the building was assured. For fifteen years. Mount 
 St. Mary's^eminary had supplied chaplains for the Mother House 
 of the Sisters of Charity with rich spiritual and intellectual gain to 
 the Sisterhood and Academy, but with the closing of the Seminary 
 Chapel to the public, the Sisters lost this privilege. ^^^ St. Lawrence 
 Church was begun by Rev. John M. Bonner, who had lately 
 returned from St. Sulpice, Paris, and he and other professors attend- 
 ed to the congregation until the appointment of Rev. Doctor 
 Richter as pastor of St. Lawrence and resident Chaplain at Cedar 
 Grove. Until the mitre of the Grand Rapids diocese was presented 
 to Bishop Richter in April, 1883, he presided o^'er both places giving 
 to the inmates of Mount St. Vincent not only his spiritual ministra- 
 tions but the riches of his scholarly attainments. ^^^ 
 
 On March 3, 1868, Bishop Rosecrans was installed first Bishop 
 of Columbus, Ohio. Archbishop Purcell's original diocese was now 
 divided into several parts, each governed by one of his own spiritual 
 sons and consecrated by him. The Church in the West had not 
 only struck its roots firmly into the ground but had also sent forth 
 enlivening shoots to other sections of the country, and it was the 
 hand of Archbishop Purcell which had moulded her destiny and 
 his foresightedness that had directed her movements. 
 
 In September, the Archbishop had several conferences with the 
 Public School Board of Cincinnati on matters relating to methods 
 not just to Catholic citizens. His stand drew forth from the Re^^ 
 A. D. Mayo three lectures on "Religion in the Common Schools," 
 and many articles in the daily press. The discussion was still in 
 progress when the Archbishop left for Rome.^^^ 
 
 In his seventieth year, still fresh and active, and with unabated 
 zeal, he sent forth his Pastoral asking for the prayers of his people 
 to direct the great Council of the Church to which all the Bishops 
 of the Catholic World had been invited by the Sovereign Pontiff, 
 Pope Pius IX. A Jubilee for this purpose began June 2, to con- 
 tinue until the close of the Council. ^^^ 
 
 '^'Jbid. 
 
 256 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 ^^^ Religion in the Common Schools. Cincinnati, 1869. 
 
 267 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
88 ArdihinJio/) PurccU and the ArclidioccHc of Cinchtnati 
 
 Before his departure for Rome he permitted the Sisters of 
 Charity to purchase the "Biggs Farm" for a Mother House and 
 Novitiate and appointed the Reverend Thomas Sebastian Byrne, 
 Chaplain and Confessor for the community. The Ladies of the 
 Sacred Heart established their first house in the Cincinnati diocese, 
 at this time. The Archbishop left Cincinnati on October 14, to 
 attend the Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, which began on 
 December 8, 1869, and adjourned on July 18, 1870. As a repre- 
 sentation of the entire world, it far exceeded all previous councils, 
 and in number of Bishops, at least 800 being present, it was equal 
 to the Second Lateran Council assembled by Pope Innocent II, 
 in 1139, with 1,000 prelates in attendance. No more remarkable 
 event occurred in the nineteenth century than this great Council 
 of the Church. The Bull of convocation was published during 
 the summer of 1868, and to expedite affairs and not detain the 
 Bishops too long from their dioceses, committees of chosen theo- 
 logians were selected to prepare the matter to be discussed. There 
 were seven of these "commissions" and within the Council seven 
 "deputations," all chosen by the Council excepting one — "Pro 
 recipiendis et expendendis Patrum propositionihus," chosen by the 
 Pope. Objections and amendments had to be given in writing to 
 the responsible deputation. Very Reverend Doctor Corcoran 
 of Charleston, South Carolina, was one of the theologians to the 
 Pope. The Bishops of the Orient were the first to arrive, even in 
 October, and before the latter part of November, 500 Bishops had 
 reached the Eternal City. Never before in the history of the 
 world was there seen such a gathering of prelates from the utter- 
 most parts of the earth. Every country of Europe excepting 
 Russia had a strong representation. There were forty-nine 
 Bishops from the United States, eighteen from Canada and the 
 British Possessions, and forty from Mexico and South America. 
 Africa, Egypt, India, Thibet, China, Japan, Australia, New 
 Zealand and the islands of the Pacific — all were represented and 
 by chosen men holding posts of dignity, responsibility, and 
 authority. Archbishop Purcell, in this august body, held the 
 position of oldest Archbishop by rank. 
 
 He wrote from Rome, November 28, 1869: 
 
 "My dear Mother Regina: 
 
 "A few lines from your far away spiritual Father will not be 
 unacceptable to you, nor to any of the good Sisters. It seems to 
 
.1 rchhishop PttrcrU and the , 1 rchdincvxc of Ciiiciiinafi S!l 
 
 me already a long time since I left home, and the 29th of next 
 June, which we hope to be the close of the Council, appears to be 
 still further in the distant future. But it is for duty and not for 
 pleasure that we ha^e left the scene of our labors abroad, and 
 assume those that await us here. 
 
 "This forenoon we had an audience from His Holiness, and we all 
 remarked that he had never in the memory of us who had known 
 him longest, looked better. His countenance was clear, his eyes 
 bright, his form erect, his mien cheerful, his welcome and his 
 blessing to us and all our clergy, communities, congregations, 
 most cordial. We were thirteen on the list, but as the Romans 
 and even the Americans count this number unlucky, one was 
 absent, fortunately, and we were only the reputed lucky number 
 presented. His remarks to us embodied quite a variety of sub- 
 jects, but as talking tongues had borne to His Holiness an idle tale 
 of lack of discipline in the American College, and he alluded to it 
 as a fret, I took the liberty to assure him it was not so, that there 
 is not in Rome, or anywhere else, a Seminary where discipline is 
 better observed, or where students are more fervent and exemplary, 
 appealing to Rev. Dr. Corcoran who was a student in the College 
 an entire year, and to all the Bishops present, for the truth of my 
 assertion. The Holy Father said 'Deo Gratias!' 
 Solemn High Mass this morning, first Sunday of Advent, was 
 sung by the Patriarch of Antioch. The Holy Father was on his 
 throne. The Blessed Sacrament was exposed for the Forty Hours 
 Devotion. The sermon was preached by a Dominican in Latin. 
 It was a beautiful discourse of fifteen minutes. The preacher com- 
 pared the Pope to the Savior coming to judge the world at the 
 last day, the Holy Father surrounded Ijy the Angels of the Churches 
 of all the world — as Christ will be by those of Heaven — condemn- 
 ing lies, heresy, and hypocrisy, and consoling the truthful, the 
 merciful, and the just. The Pope granted the Plenary Indulgence, 
 and filled the great Basilica when he gave Benediction. After 
 Mass there was a procession of tlie Blessed Sacrament borne by 
 the Holy Father, followed by three or four hundred Bishops witli 
 large wax candles in their hands, one of which I keej) to be lighted 
 when I am dying, if God so will. An Englishman in the crowd 
 remarked that it was worth a lifetime to witness such a scene. 
 Archbishop Odin is exceedingly feeble. "-^^ 
 
 With the permission of Cardinal Patrizi, Cardinal- Vicar of 
 the Holy Father, the Archbishop gave Mr. Geyer, a student 
 from Cincinnati, ecclesiastical tonsure on Sunday, and the four 
 Minor Orders on the Feast of St. Andrew. 
 
 The Archbishop's birthday, February 20, 1870, was celebrated 
 by the Cincinnati students at the American College, Rome, by 
 
 ^* Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
90 ArrJibishop PurccU and the Archdiocrsr of Cincinnati 
 
 an address and presentation of a handsome set of breviaries. 
 He received also a handsome mitre from the Countess Pourtahs, 
 embroidered in arabesques with nine of the purest amethysts, 
 large as plums, on each side, and the inscription "In Fide vivo" 
 on a scroll.^^^ 
 
 A letter from Rome dated February 12, 1870, and written to the 
 Catholic Telegraph, states: 
 
 "Yesterday there was a meeting of the American Bishops 
 in the College, which lasted over two hours. The matter under 
 consideration was of importance. I would inform you of its 
 character if I knew what it was, but as I don't I can only 
 assure you that the meeting took place. ... I presume 
 you have heard of the protests which have been presented 
 to the Pope against promulgating the dogma of personal infalli- 
 bility, of having it considered an article of faith. The first protest 
 was signed by a number of German and French Bishops and the 
 Archbishop of St. Louis; the second was signed by a large number 
 of the American Bishops — Archbishop Purcell heading the list. 
 Many of the American Bishops declined to sign the latter, but 
 another one, not so strong in phraseology, has met the approval of 
 those who declined to sign the first one. Few of the American, 
 Canadian, English, or Irish Bishops are in favor of the dogma. 
 Archbishop Connolly is its principal opponent from Canada. The 
 Archbishops and Bishops who are not in favor of the dogma were 
 not the initiators of the petition business. Archbishop Manning 
 initiated this new system in matters relating to the Church, but he 
 has not been able to obtain the signatures of one-half the Bishops. 
 . . . Many preachers have spent a deal of time explaining the 
 differences between infallibility and impeccability as if every 
 member of the Council was ignorant of his Catechism."-^" 
 
 On Low Sunday, the preamble and first four chapters of the 
 dogmatic constitution de Fide Catholica were irrevocably disposed 
 of, and the withdrawal of the veil of secrecy from that portion of the 
 schema removed from the minds of many, doubt and misgiving, 
 and rewarded the patient hope of the faithful. 
 
 On April 29, the Fathers passed from Faith to Discipline and 
 began the discussion of the reformed schema on the Little Cate- 
 chism, a subject which received a large share of attention. The 
 general congregations were resumed on May 13, when the oral 
 discussion commenced on the great and fundamental question 
 de Romani Poniificis Primahi et Infallibilitate comprised in a 
 
 ^'' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 260 Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
ArcKhishop PurccU and the Archdiocese of Chic'nniati !)1 
 
 preamble and four chapters and forming the first part of the dog- 
 matic constitution de Ecclesia Christi.^^^ 
 
 The Bishop of Poitiers opened the discussion with a clear expo- 
 sition and vindication of the substance and form of the text. 
 The next day, the Cardinal Vicar of Rome, the Venerable Con- 
 stantine Patrizi, commenced the discussion followed by Arch- 
 bishop Alemany of San Francisco and others. On Tuesday, the 
 Primate of Belgium addressed the Fathers; on Wednesday, the 
 Archbishop of Saragossa and several Cardinals; on Thursday, 
 Cardinal CuUen of Dublin; on Friday, the Primate of Hungary 
 and Archbishop McHale; on Saturday, Bishop Leahy, the Bishop 
 of Strasburg and others. Up to the second of June, the only 
 English-speaking Bishops who had addressed the Council were 
 Archbishops Purcell, Spalding and Kenrick, Bishops Verot and 
 ^Yhelan from the United States; Archbishop Connolly from Nova 
 Scotia; Archbishop Manning, Bishops Ullathorne, Vaughan, 
 Clifford and Errington, of England; Cardinal Cullen, Archbishop 
 McHale, Bishops Leahy, IMcEvilly, and Keane of Ireland. 
 
 On every question from the beginning of the Council, there was 
 prolonged and animated discussion, but never was more dignity 
 manifested in any deliberative assembly. In the congregation of 
 the 25th England and Ireland had the whole field to themselves. 
 Archbishop Manning's speech was three minutes shorter than that 
 of Cardinal Cullen, who gave the longest address of the whole 
 Council and without notes. He spoke for an hour and forty- 
 two minutes. On the 30th, the Archbishop of Baltimore spoke 
 for fifty minutes, and on the 31st, Archbishop Purcell, neither 
 using notes. Archbishop Connolly addressed the meeting after 
 Archbishop Purcell. 
 
 On June 15, the discussion of the fourth chapter concerning the 
 infallibility of the Roman Pontifl: was opened. The difference of 
 opinion existing among the Bishops is a fact of history. The 
 prelates acted with a conscientious conviction of the justice of the 
 cause they defended. They were bound in conscience to declare 
 their opinions and to use all lawful infiuences to make them prevail. 
 
 There were three classes of dissentients : 
 
 1. The Galileans, who taught the opposite of the proposed dogma. 
 
 2. Those who believed the doctrine but did not think it capable 
 
 "' Cf. Catholic World, Vol. X, p. 11. 
 
92 ArclibiKltop T'urcrll uikI llie Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 of definition, because the tradition of the Church was not suffi- 
 ciently clear on that point. 
 
 3. Those who believed the doctrine and thought it capable of 
 definition but who considered that the definition would be perilous 
 to the Church and who, for the sake of peace and the good of souls, 
 would have it postponed. This third class was called "The 
 Inopportunists," and Archbishop Purcell was one of the leaders. 
 It embraced about one-fifth of the Bishops. 
 
 The Roman correspondent to the Catholic Telegraph wrote, 
 
 June 30: 
 
 "The Discussion of the Schema involving the Dogma of Infal- 
 libility is now closed. It has continued three weeks and a large 
 number of Prelates, both in favor of the Definition and against 
 it, have spoken. On the 31st of Ma5^ among the speakers was the 
 Archbishop of Cincinnati who has been highly complimented by 
 both sides for the strength of his arguments, the eloquence of his 
 address, and the easy grace and classical elegance of his Latinity. 
 One of the Fathers expressed his surprise that His Grace should 
 have preserved intact amid the distracting missionary labors 
 of forty years the elegance of deep scholarship." ^^^ 
 
 On the same date the Archbishop wrote : 
 
 " We have not yet come to a vote on the infallibility question. It 
 has made many anxious minds and restless nights or nights rest- 
 less. The Archbishop of Halifax thinks he must ha^-e walked a 
 hundred miles pacing his room, unable to sleep, for the past six 
 months. He feared he would lose that Faith of which he had 
 never had a doubt before coming to the Council. God will 
 bring all out right at last, as I firmly believe. I would have left 
 Rome this morning had I not been too suddenly and violently 
 attacked with one of the Roman ailments, but you know how soon 
 I rally from those attacks, so I trust I shall leave Saturday or 
 Monday, to sail from Brest with Archliishop jNIcCloskey and to 
 see you, please God, in August."-"^ 
 
 The Catholic Telegraph announced at this time: "In a few days 
 we expect to hear the result of the discussion on the question of 
 infallibility. Whatever the decision may be, it will be the voice 
 
 'f' CalhoHc Eiiryrlopcdia, Vol. XV, pp. 303-309. jSIacCaffrey, Rev. Jas., 
 History of the Calhnlic Church in Xiitelccnth Cciitnnj. Vol. I, pp. 438-409, 
 St. Louis, 1909. Catholic Telegraph. August, 1S70. 
 
 Gibbons, James Cardinal, Rclmspecl of Fifty Years. Vol. II, p. 129, 
 Baltimore, U)16. 
 
 Farley, John Cardinal. The Life of John Canii nal McCloshey, p-p iSi-iS9. 
 New York, 1918. 
 
 Catholic Historical Review. Missionary Society of St. Paul. 
 
 '«' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
Arcliltishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 93 
 
 of the Holy Ghost speaking to the faithful who will accept it with 
 the ready obedience which their Divine Faith imposes. Though 
 there will -be, in all probability, no formal prorogation of the 
 Council during the summer months, the Archbishop has received 
 permission to return home.-'^^ They who have conscientiously op- 
 posed the Definition, for many divers reasons, will bow their 
 human learning and judgment to the Illuminating Spirit that 
 reveals to them a supernatural truth thus made more certain than 
 the simplest axiom of human science. They will subscribe «ith 
 their hearts as well as with their hands, and they \\\\\ defend Papal 
 Infallibility when made an Article of Faith with that noble candor, 
 marked sincerity, and distinguished learning which brought to 
 them honor in their former opposition. After the promulgation 
 of God's decree tliat, in all time to come, the \\cax of Christ must 
 be held to be infallible when speaking to the world, ex cathedra, 
 they will be as strong and zealous in its defense as its first sup- 
 porters through the same spirit of fidelity. If the Definition he 
 proclaimed, — discussion of the truth will be closed, for then the 
 Council shall have spoken and the Council is infallible. On 
 August 4, the Catholic Telegraph, the official organ of Archbishop 
 Purcell announced: "The Infallibility has been unanimously 
 adopted, with only two dissentient voices. The dogmatic defini- 
 tion of the Primacy, of its perpetuity, and the supreme jurisdic- 
 tion of the Holy See over the whole Church, closes forever the 
 school of Gallican doctrine. Gallican liberties making the Church 
 the handmaid of civil powers are now condemned as heretical." 
 
 When the general, though not final vote was taken on Julj' 13, 
 601 Fathers were present. Four hundred and fifty-one voted 
 placet; sixty -two, placet ju.rta modum; eighty-eight, mm placet. 
 On the 18th of July, one day before the outbreak of the Franco- 
 Prussian War, under the Presidency of Pope Pius IX, 435 Fathers 
 of the Council assembled and the final vote was taken. All voted 
 placet excepting two, one of A\-hom was Bishop Fitzgerald of Little 
 Rock, Arkansas. The Archbishop had left Rome before the final 
 vote on the Infallibility, and the world at large, especially the press, 
 felt great interest and curiosity as to his utterances on the subject, 
 since he was known to be a strong member of the minority. He 
 was invited to give a lecture in the Catholic Institute Hall, on his 
 
 2" Ibid. 
 
94 Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 return to Cincinnati, and his clergy felt that it would be an occa- 
 sion of extreme importance. It was discovered that five of the 
 largest newspapers of New York had sent reporters to take his 
 speech, and the telegraph wires between Cincinnati and New York 
 had been chartered for five hours, the night of the lecture, to 
 transmit his expressions for the next morning's papers. The 
 Archbishop was not aware of this and the priests wished him to be 
 forewarned, but were reluctant to offer advice. Finally, they 
 selected for the delicate task one of their number who shrank from 
 it on account of his comparative youth. Assured that the Arch- 
 bishop would receive it well from him and feeling that the affair 
 was urgent, he called on the Archbishop, who expressed pleasure at 
 seeing him and asked to be taken for a drive on some road where 
 they would meet nobody. On the way, the Archbishop remarked : 
 "You know I must speak tonight at the Catholic Institute and 
 I am in doubt what subject to select. Would you make a sug- 
 gestion.?" This was the clergyman's opportunity and he used it, 
 asking, "Do you know. Archbishop, that reporters are here from 
 New York and that the telegraph line is engaged for several 
 hours to transmit your lecture.''" Replying that he knew nothing 
 of the arrangement, he asked again what topic would be suitable. 
 The priest reminded him of the public interest in his attitude 
 toward the Infallibility question, and said: "This is your chance 
 to tell the world your views. In a few short sentences, make your 
 position very clear and then let your lecture develop your state- 
 ment." The Archbishop's opening words at the Catholic Institute 
 that night were: "I am here to proclaim my belief in the Infalli- 
 bility of the Pope, in the words of the Holy Father defining the 
 doctrine." One of the Cincinnati daily papers expressed its 
 disappointment that Archbishop Purcell yielded so readily, but 
 the lecture was a great success. The Archbishop's lucid explana- 
 tions and persuasiA-e eloquence left no doubt in the minds of his 
 hearers as to the nature of the dogma and his firm belief in it. 
 Before leaving for Rome, the Archbishop had cooperated with 
 Bishop Domenec in his wish and endeavors to have a diocesan 
 community of Mother Seton's Daughters in Pennsylvania. From 
 the Eternal City he nTote to Mother Regina, Superior of the 
 Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, Ohio, asking, "Have you been 
 able to accommodate Bishop Domenec? If so, you will add your 
 name to another good work." He learned now with great satis- 
 
Archbishop Puicdl and the Archdiocese of Ciiiciiiiidti 95 
 
 faction that the new foundation was made at Altoona, Pennsyl- 
 vania, the Cincinnati Sisters lending their assistance. 
 
 The first Bishop of Michigan, likewise a pioneer priest of Cin- 
 cinnati, Bishop Rese, died at Hildesheim, on December 29, 1871. 
 Archbishop Purcell celebrated a Solemn Requiem Mass in the 
 Cathedral for the repose of his soul. 
 
 Early in the year 1872, the Archbishop received from Cardinal 
 Barnabo an acknowledgment of 10,981 francs sent to His Holiness, 
 the Pope and Bulls for the Right Reverend Richard Gilmour of 
 Cleveland, and the Right Reverend Joseph Dwenger of Fort 
 Wayne. They were consecrated on April 14, 1872, by Archbishop 
 Purcell in the Cincinnati Cathedral. ^^^ 
 
 ^^' Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio- 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 COERESPONDENCE— GOLDEN JUBILEE — FINANCIAL CRISIS— DEATH. 
 
 In the years which passed between the ^'atican Council and the 
 year 1876 in which Archbishop Purcell celebrated his Golden 
 Jubilee as a priest, his activity seemed as vigorous as in the earlier 
 days when he was laying the structure of his great Archdiocese. 
 Churches were increasing in number and smaller ones were being 
 replaced by imposing edifices, educational establishments were 
 reaching forth to the highest point of efficiency, his Seminary, the 
 apple of his eye, had registered 1.S0 students and had a .splendid 
 facultj^ while the religious communities were growing apace, 
 supplying the wants of the people. Not only at home was the 
 Archbishop busy and interested, but calls from many quarters of 
 the world sought his help, advice, encouragement or protection, as 
 is shown by a glance at his letters. Father Kundig, the first priest 
 ordained in Cincinnati, asks him "to go to Milwaukee to see the 
 fruit of his own handiwork in consecrating John [Martin Henni, 
 twenty-five years before." Monsignor Byrne of Boston thanks him 
 "for the kind manner in which he has been pleased to receive The 
 Young Crusader," and begs "the privilege of printing the Arch- 
 bishop's letter of appreciation or even a part of it as it would add 
 ten thousand to their subscription list.'""^ INIonsignor Herbert 
 Vaughan writes January 8, 1872, from 106 Charles Street, 
 Baltimore ; 
 
 "My dear Lord Archbishop; 
 
 "On my way to New Orleans, I propose to myself the pleasure 
 of presenting my respects to your Grace. I am anxious to consult 
 j'our wide experience and to take your advice upon matters ''on- 
 nected with my Mission to the colored people. A work of such 
 general and apostolic interest as the Foreign [Missions and espe- 
 cially the missions to the colored people, I know beforehand, will 
 find a large place in your Grace's Apostolic soul. I beg to send 
 you two pamphlets, the larger one printed some years ago in 
 England, the smaller one for Maryland. I propose being in 
 Cincinnati toward the middle or end of next week and staying there 
 over the Sunday. If your Grace would gi^-e me an opportunity 
 of niaking the work known by my preaching a sermon or even 
 delivering a lecture upon it on next Sunday, I should esteem 
 
 '" Arcliives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 96 
 
AroliMshop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 97 
 
 it a great favor and another proof of the large-hearted sympathy 
 for which you are ah-eady well known in Europe. 
 "I beg to remain with much esteem^ 
 
 "Your Grace's Obedient servant, 
 
 "Herbert Vacighan.^" 
 
 "P. S. There appears to be some hope that Archbishop 
 Spalding may yet survive, though he is still in danger." 
 
 The Archbishop received Monsignor Vaughan, gave him all 
 possible help and encouragement, and announced his lecture for 
 January 21. 
 
 Monsignor Va"ghan was so impressed by the power of the 
 press in the United States that he bought "The Tablet" on his 
 return to England and used it to promote the cause of St. Joseph's 
 Missionary Society and to defend the Infallibility of the Pope. 
 He was made Bishop o' Salford in 1872, Archbishop of Westmin- 
 ster in 1892, and Cardinal in 1893, ten years before his death. 
 
 From Govanston, Baltimore County, Maryland, Dwight E. 
 Lyman addressed the following on March 17, 1874, in behalf of 
 Doctor Marshall of England. 
 
 "Most Reverend Father, 
 
 "I have taken the liberty of enclosing to your Grace, a letter 
 just received from our mutual friend. Dr. T. W. Marshall, of 
 England, in which truly sad epistle, he speaks so warmly of your 
 kindness and thinks that something might be done should you 
 know his situation. I can hardly understand exactly what he 
 hopes for by the appeals that he speaks of having made to Father 
 Clark, S.J., and Dr. Anderson of New York . . . nor, indeed, 
 from the letter he has just addressed to me. But I rather think 
 he would like to find something to do in the way of writing, by 
 which he might assist his suffering family. Perhaps your Grace 
 can find some means of helping so learned and useful a man in his 
 present dire necessity. At least, I thought it would be no more 
 than charity to enclose to you his letter to me, and let its burning 
 words speak for themselves. We have been trying here to find 
 something for him to do, but thus far have failed. Father Clark 
 did receive his letter, but I suppose has not answered it because he 
 had nothing as yet cheering to write. Please enclose the letter 
 to my address when it has been read. 
 
 "Hoping I shall be pardoned for my boldness, and with senti- 
 ments of great respect, I remain 
 
 "Yours in the bonds of a common Faith and Hope, 
 
 "Dwight E. Lyman."^"' 
 
 ''" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. Snead-Cox, The Life of Herbert 
 Cardinal Vavghan, 2 vols., London, 1910. 
 
 ^'Ibid. Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol, IX, p. 718. 
 
98 Archbisho}) PurciU and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Doctor Marshall came to Cincinnati, was introduced by the 
 Archbishop to the various educational institutions and gave a 
 series of lectures at the Catholic Institute, Cincinnati. He had 
 written many books published between 1844-1874, among them 
 "Christian Missions" "'My Clerical Friend" and "Protestant 
 Journalism" and had been a valued contributor to the Catholic 
 Press in England and America. 
 
 A letter from The Herald, New York, November 15, 1874, 
 and marked " private "sho-ws that his opinion on important ques- 
 tions was valued by the leading journals of the country. 
 
 "Dear Sir: 
 
 The controversy now going on in England between Archbishop 
 Manning and Ex-premier Gladstone attracts so largely the atten- 
 tion of all Christendom that a letter from you upon the subject 
 for publication in the Herald would prove most welcome to the 
 American public and especially to American Catholics. I for- 
 ward you by this mail the Herald of today, containing Archbishop 
 Manning's letter, together with the chief points of the contro- 
 versy and the editorials of the English press. Hoping for an 
 expression of your views on a subject of so much importance allow 
 me to place the columns of the Herald at your disposal for that 
 purpose. 
 
 "Very respectfully yours, 
 
 Jas. Gordon Bennett. "^^'' 
 
 A great-granddaughter of Sir Walter Scott wrote from Melrose 
 Abbey asking "help for a school in Edinburgh." The letter was 
 signed, 
 
 "Sister Mary Maxwell Scott.''^'" 
 
 These letters and hundreds of others bearing on all subjects of 
 human weal and woe, human hopes and discouragements, point 
 unerringly to the Archbishop's great characteristics, a desire to 
 impart truth and a boundless charity .^'^ If he loved to receive, 
 it was only that he might give. A Sister having business with him 
 one Holy Saturday was the bearer of a check, an Easter gift. 
 
 ''^ Ibid. James Gordon Bennett was born in New York City in 1841. As 
 editor of The Herald he sent Henry M. Stanley into Africa to find Liv- 
 ingston in 1870, and planned the ill-fated Jeannette expedition to discover 
 the North Pole. He started a. Paris edition of the New York Herald, still 
 the only American daily newspaper published in Europe. He died in Beau- 
 lieu, France, on May 14, 1918 — .The Washington Post, May 15 and 24 1918 
 
 "'Ibid. 
 
 "■' Ibid. 
 
Arehhishop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 90 
 
 Two weeks later, having met him, he said to her, "My child, do 
 you know what I did with the check you brought me from the 
 Community?" "No, Archbishop," she answered, "something 
 good, I am sure." "Just after you left my room," he said, "good 
 
 Father from the country came to see me and he had on a 
 
 very shabby overcoat, so I said, 'Here, my son, take this and buy 
 yourself a suit of clothes', and he went away very happy." Pro- 
 testants and Catholics alike understood that personal gifts pre- 
 sented to him went to the poor. 
 
 Accustomed to the best society of the Old and New World, a 
 great linguist, a delightful speaker, he had the faculty given to 
 very few of selecting from a thousand words the very simplest, 
 to convey his meaning. It was often said of him, "When praise 
 is due, he praises and he spares the feelings of those who deserve 
 censure;" but it was also known that correction would come in due 
 time. He shrank from wounding others as is shown in the fol- 
 lowing: "Many thanks for the ever kind feeling which has 
 prompted you from year to year, to celebrate, as you know better 
 than any other friend how to celebrate it, the Mountain Festival 
 of St. John. But it was too great a consolation for me for whom 
 Heaven is pleased to mix a salutary bitterness with everything like 
 pleasure or respite from labor or anxiety which he has ever enjoyed. 
 
 I know that while Christian charity is never at fault, we cannot be 
 friends with every one — friendship must be natural. It cannot be 
 forced. And as Rev. Mr. W. was by your emphasis on the words 
 'all from the Mountain' excluded from the invitation, and as the 
 Mountaineers seemed all so likely to accept it, I felt it a duty on 
 this occasion, not to leave Rev. Mr. W. at home alone. You will 
 appreciate and trace to its true source this delicacy on my part, 
 and still accept my sincere gratitude and heartfelt prayers that 
 you may be crowned the closing and the coming year, withHea\'en's 
 choicest blessing. "^'^ Children delighted his soul and festivals for 
 them in the Cathedral grounds were of frequent occurrence. At 
 these meetings he was not satisfied to be a pleased spectator, but 
 with his own hands he would distribute the sweetmeats prepared 
 for them. From a few experiences, the Sisters learned that after 
 
 II o'clock in the morning was an unwise time to call at the Arch- 
 
 "^ Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
100 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 bishop's, for even if there were a dozen or more prelates and 
 dignitaries present the Sisters who happened to call were escorted 
 to the table by the Archbishop himself, their protests availing 
 nothing. Two Sisters from the Infant Asylum having been de- 
 tained at market until almost noon hour and being obliged to see 
 the Archbishop, planned that one would call on him, the other re- 
 maining out in the wagon to indicate their great hurry to reach 
 home. What was the dismay of the latter to see, in a few mo- 
 ments, the aged prelate himself coming down the walk after her! 
 She followed her companion to the dining-room, her ecclesiastical 
 superior leading the way. 
 
 His humility was as great as his simplicity, hospitality, and 
 charity. To him it hardly seemed explainable that a priest at the 
 Altar or when communicating the people could drop the sacred 
 Host. Once when descending the steps of the High Altar, with a 
 large Ciborium filled, his alb tripped him, and many of the Sacred 
 Particles fell on the floor of the sanctuary. Several of the priests 
 hastened to give him assistance but he declined their help. On 
 his knees, tears streaming from his eyes, he gathered all the sacred 
 species and afterward said "It was a punishment for my pride. 
 God has shown me that an accident may happen even at the 
 holiest of times." 
 
 The fiftieth anniversary of his ordination occurred on May 21, 
 1876.2" j<fQ^ Qjjjy jjj ^}jg annals of the Cincinnati diocese, but 
 likewise in the history of the Catholic Church in the United 
 States, the Golden Jubilee of the priesthood of Archbishop Purcell 
 was an event of great importance; for it was the first celebration 
 of the kind in the American Church. It was made glorious by all 
 the religious pomp and ceremony such an occasion would call forth, 
 on account of the eminence of the prelate himself and with the 
 additional grandeur furnished by his many spiritual sons in the 
 episcopacy, all of whom gathered from far and near to offer their 
 homage of love and gratitude. The religious orders which owed 
 to him their place in the country and in his diocese, the institutions 
 of learning of which he had been the inspiration, the hundreds of 
 churches whose congregations he had encouraged, the people of 
 the city and state who felt themselves honored to claim him — all 
 presented richest testimonies of love and congratulation. The 
 
 "' Catholic Telegraph, February 19, 1875. Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. Hi- 
 pp. 773-776; Vol. XII, pp. 570-572. 
 
ArciiMshop Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 101 
 
 week of celebration began on Sunday, May 21,"^ but for many 
 months there were visits of friends, letters and telegrams bearing 
 good wishes from all parts of the United States and Europe. The 
 country was celebrating the centennial of American Independence 
 and both festivities harmonized in the diocese of Cincinnati. 
 Rarest vestments and priceless altar vessels were sent or borne to 
 him by members of the hierarchy or their representatives and the 
 Chalice which he used on the Jubilee Day was of purest gold set 
 with richest gems — a gift from his own priests and a true love- 
 offering.^" The Bishops of the Province gave him a pectoral 
 cross set with fifty half-carat diamonds with a full carat diamond 
 in the center. 
 
 An account of the week's festivities with the entertainments 
 offered by the various religious and secular bodies, the addresses, 
 the list of the visiting dignitaries, and an enumeration of the gifts 
 presented, would fill a large volume. It was apparent that the 
 secular and religious celebrations, the many institutions, the 
 dioceses of his own Province, and those governed by prelates of his 
 own training, vied with one another in paying him honor; but the 
 rivalry was not discordant — it was rather the swelling outburst of 
 overflowing gratitude and reverential love.^^^ Following this season 
 of rejoicing, a sad message was sent him from the east, news of the 
 death of two very dear friends. Father McElroy, S.J., in September, 
 and that of Archbishop Bayley in October making him realize the 
 long course of his own life, so full of deeds to others, but in his 
 humility, still wanting. Slowly but surely the chastening blow 
 was approaching, the blow that was to take all human pleasure 
 out of life, the unexpected blow like a bolt from a clear sky. When 
 the death of Pope Pius IX came in February, 1878,^" the Arch- 
 bishop's sorrow for this great Prince of the Church and his own 
 special friend, was mingled with dread; for there was disturbance 
 in the financial markets and banks which held diocesan funds 
 either as loans or deposits were closing their doors. The Arch- 
 bishop had always been opposed to the care of money and Father 
 Purcell a man of very high literary taste, shunned such respon- 
 sibility, but during the financial panic of 1837, when there was 
 
 "■* Ibid. Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
 "5 Ibid. 
 
 "^ Catholic Telegraph, June, 1876. Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 
 "' Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. Ill, pp. 773-776. 
 
102 Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 almost a universal suspension of payments by banks and a general 
 distrust of the money market, the sterling honesty of Archbishop 
 Purcell and his Brother, Father Edward, had induced thousands of 
 their fellow-citizens to urge them to receive deposits and use them 
 for the needs of the diocese. ^''^ In the days of the Civil War other 
 sums were added and Father Purcell's notes promised 6 per cent, 
 the legal interest in Ohio. 
 
 In the period of reconstruction, after the War, Father Purcell 
 ceased taking loans and tried to free himself from the burden of 
 earlier deposits, but the people insisted on leaving their money in 
 his hands. ^" Previous to the collapse of 1878 -1879, there had been 
 a series of financial crises, property had depreciated, and securities 
 had lessened in value, so that, finally, when smaller banks, like 
 those of Adae, Hemann, and Bussing, closed their doors, the 
 people were thrown into a panic and a run was made on Father 
 Purcell. In ordinary times, the affair might have been adjusted 
 with less difficulty; for the priests of the diocese, the religious 
 communities, the members of the hierarchy and individuals, 
 immediately offered help. Collateral and property might have 
 been converted into cash and debtors required to pay the amount of 
 their loans, but panic reigned. 
 
 The Archbishop who during all these years had left the care 
 of the temporalities to his brother, reserving for himself, in par- 
 ticular, the moral, intellectual, and spiritual growth of his diocese, 
 now insisted on turning over everything available to the creditors. 
 In the hope of doing justice to all, he made an assignment, affixing 
 his name to the document at the Academy of Mount St. Vincent, 
 Cedar Grove. John B. Mannix, Attorney, was the assignee. 
 Charles Stuart and John. Holland were witnesses. The Reverend 
 Doctors Byrne and Callaghan were present as attendants of the 
 Archbishop.^'" 
 
 The assignee was the recipient of all moneys, whether debts or 
 donations. Eager to free the Archbishop from the weight of sorrow 
 so suddently thrust upon him and in the hope of relieving the 
 diocese of its burden, he invested the money of the creditors in 
 what seemed to him gilt-edged securities, but they proved worth- 
 less, and made the debt still heavier. The Court then appointed, 
 
 "» Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 "' Kelly and Kirwin, op. cit., pp. 310-342. 
 ''" Archives Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio. 
 
Archbishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 103 
 
 as assignees, Judge Tafel and Attorney Miller, non-Catholics. 
 Many complications followed, but no better results in the liquida- 
 tion of the debt. By the persistent efforts of the clergy and the 
 Archbishop's Counsel, order was brought out of chaos, true notes 
 were separated from false, the Court came to a decision on the 
 amount due and it was paid in a reasonable time but not until it 
 had cost the diocese the lives of three great men: Archbishop 
 Purcell, Father Edward Purcell, and Doctor Francis Joseph 
 Pabisch, the President of Mount St. Mary's of the West. 
 
 When the Archbishop, overwhelmed by the disaster and hoping 
 some younger person might be appointed who could cope with the 
 trouble sent his resignation to Rome in January, 1879, the Holy 
 Father, Pope Leo XIII, through Cardinal Simeoni, announced on 
 March 21, that he would not accept the resignation but would give 
 a coadjutor. ^^^ The Right Reverend William Henry Elder, 
 Bishop of Natchez, was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Avara and 
 reached Cincinnati on March 3, 1880.2»2 
 
 The last public act of Archbishop Purcell was to confer the 
 degree Doctor of Sacred Theology on Father Callaghan, his 
 Secretary. It took place in the Cathedral on February 8, 1879. 
 The honor was conferred by the Pope in recognition of Father 
 Callaghan's able elucidation of the Dogma of Infallibility, as 
 published by him in the Catholic Telegraph. The Archbishop sent 
 forth on July 18, 1879, a circular announcing that the Seminary 
 "his pride and hope" must be closed for at least one year, on 
 account of the financial pressure. He then retired from active 
 work leaving his Coadjutor free to form his own plans. Doctor 
 Pabisch died on October 2, 1879; at the opening of the year 1882, 
 the great heart of Father Purcell was stilled. After forty years 
 of labor for the diocese, of devoted love for the poor, of unfailing 
 assistance to struggling industry, his whole worldly wealth con- 
 sisted of a few books and the scant furnishings of his room. His 
 whole life had been a sacrifice of self for the diocese. 
 
 The Archbishop died on July 4, 1883, mourned as only a beloved 
 Father could be mourned. Had Pope Pius IX. in 1862, approved 
 of his wish to retire to a monastery, what a burden of sorrow he 
 would have escaped! but the Pope's answer was "Nemo salvabitur 
 nisi perseveraverit." He persevered to the end. The cloud 
 
 2*' Archives Cincinnati Archdiocese. 
 "2 Ibid. 
 
104 Arehhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 which appeared at the sunset of his life passed leaving his memory 
 the more brilliant and attractive. 
 
 His Golden Jubilee as Bishop would have been celebrated, three 
 months later, on October 13. His solemnly dignified funeral ob- 
 sequies at the Cathedral in Cincinnati, were attended by Arch- 
 bishops and Bishops from almost every diocese in the country. 
 The sermon, powerful in its eloquence and touching in its tender- 
 ness was delivered by the Bishop of Cleveland, the Right Reverend 
 Richard Gilmour, D.D. The funeral train which had borne the 
 Archbishop's body from St. Martin's returned with it to the little 
 mound near the resting places of his mother and of that brother 
 whose whole-hearted trust of humankind had brought to both an 
 insurmountable sorrow. ^^^ 
 
 The impetus given to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati by its 
 Patriarch, Most Reverend John Baptist Purcell, D.D. of itself 
 would have carried forward for many years the religious and 
 intellectual activity; but fortunately, Archbishop Elder as Coad- 
 jutor and successor kept before his mind the ideals of his prede- 
 cessor, likewise his preceptor, and with his own devotion to the 
 cause of virtue and learning kept the light of each burning bril- 
 liantly. He had for powerful allies several who were called to wear 
 the purple; such as Bishop Richter, consecrated for Grand Rapids, 
 in 1883; Bishop Byrne made Ordinary of Tennessee, in 1894; the 
 present Metropolitan, chosen first as Bishop of Columbus in 1900, 
 and Archbishop of Cincinnati, in 1904; Monsignors Mackey and 
 Murray and Doctor Shee, Presidents of Mount St. Mary's of the 
 West; Doctor Schoenhoeft, Vicar General, who declined the mitre 
 of Fort Wayne, and many, of the clergy experienced in pastoral 
 cares. 
 
 In the minds of people at a distance, the memory of Arch- 
 bishop Purcell may be associated with the so-called "Failure." 
 There was no failure in Archbishop Purcell's life. Failure means 
 death and he lives, today, in his Episcopal City and Province, and in 
 the History of the Church in America. Like the Master whom he 
 served for four-score years, "he walked about doing good and his 
 works remain. " Simonumenium quacris, circumspice." What can 
 be said of the material, may be affirmed still more strongly of 
 the moral, intellectual, and spiritual. He created a diocese 
 with a history and traditions unsurpassed in the Church of God. 
 
 ^»3 Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, pp. 570-573. Archives Cincinnati 
 Archdiocese. 
 
BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 I. SOURCES 
 
 Journal of Bishop Purcell, 1833-1834. 
 
 Archbishop Elder, 1883. 
 
 Mother Margaret George, 1813-1868. 
 
 Mother Josephine Harvey, 1835-1895. 
 
 Mother Regina Mattingly, 1852-1883. 
 
 Marianne Reilly, 1829-1839 and 1849-1888. 
 
 Civil War Nurses and Western Pioneers (Sisters). 
 Court Records furnished by the Hon. Edw. J. Dempsey. 
 Letters of Archbishop Purcell, 1833-1883. 
 Letters of Archbishop Elder, 1880-1904. 
 
 Correspondence of Archbishop Purcell with Cardinals, Archbishops, 
 Bishops, Monsignori, Priests, Religious, Noblemen, Statesmen, 
 Soldiers, Authors, Journalists, and others. 
 In Archives of Mount St. Joseph-on-the-Ohio, not fully classified. 
 
 II. WORKS 
 
 Albach, Jas. R., Annual Meeting of the Western Literary Institute, 
 1838-1839. 
 
 Alzog (Pabisch and Byrne), Universal Church History, 3 vols., Cin- 
 cinnati, 1878. 
 
 Atwater, Caleb, A.M., A History of Ohio. Natural and Civil. 1838. 
 
 Bayley, Right Rev. Jas. Roosevelt, Memoirs of the Right Rev. Simon 
 Wm. Gabriel Brute. D.D., 1865, pp. 223, et seq. 
 
 Burnet, Judge, Notes of the Early Settlement of the Northwest Ter- 
 ritory, Cincinnati, 1847. 
 
 Burns, J. A., Very Rev., C.S.C, Ph.D., The Catholic School System in 
 the United States. 1906. 
 
 Burns, J. A., Very Rev., C.S.C, Ph.D., (growth and Development of Ihe 
 Catholic School System in the United States, 1912. 
 
 Burns, J. A., Very Rev., C.S.C, Ph.D., Catholic Education : A Study of 
 Conditions, New York, 1917. 
 
 Cist, Chas.. Cincinnati in IS'/l, '.'/. '59. 
 
 Clarke, R. H., Lives of Deceased Bishops, 1872. 
 
 Darras, General History of the Catholic Church, 1866. 
 
 DeBarbery, Madame, Elizabeth Seaton et les commencements de I'Eglise 
 Catholique aux Etats-Unis, 2 vols., Paris, 1881. 
 
 DeCourcy, H. and Shea, J. G., History of the Catholic Church in the 
 United States, 1859. 
 
 De Vere, Aubrey, Heroines of Charity, 1855. 
 
 Drake and Mansfield, Early Cincinnati, 1826. 
 
 Elder, Mrs. Susan B., Character Glimpses of Archbishop Elder, 1910. 
 
 Elliott, Rev. W., The Life of Father Hecker, New York, 1898. 
 
 Encyclopedia, Catholic, New York, 1907. 
 
 England, Rt. Rev. Jas., D.D., Works of, 4 vols., 1866. 
 
 Parley, John Cardinal, The Life of John Cardinal McCloskey, New 
 York, 1918. 
 
 Parnsworth, Oliver, Cincinnati in 1819, lft'20. 
 
 Flint, Timothy, Life of Daniel Drake, Cincinnati, 1868. 
 
 Flint, Timothy, History and Geography of the Mississippi Valley, 1832. 
 
 FoOTE, J. P., Schools of Cincinnati, 1855. 
 
 FowKE, Gerard, Archaelog. History of Ohio, Chillicothe, 1901. 
 
 Fulleeton, Lady Georgiana, Life of Madame Barat. 
 
 105 
 
100 Archhisho'p Purccll and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 
 
 Gibbons, James Cardinal, Retrospect of Fifty Years, 2 vols., Baltimore, 
 
 1916. 
 Golden Jubilee of Archbishop Purcell, 1876. 
 Goss, Rev. Cha.s. Pbed., The Queen City. 1912. 
 Hall, Jas., Legends of the West, Nevir York and Cincinnati, 1855. 
 Hammer, Rev. P. Bonhentura, Edw. Dom Fenwick, der Apostel von 
 
 Ohio, St. Louis, 1890. 
 Hassard, Jno. R. G., Life of the Most Rev. Jno. Hughes, New York, 1866. 
 History of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, Kansas City, 1898. 
 HoucK, MoNSiGNOB, Church in Northern Ohio. 
 Howe, Henry, Historical Collection of Ohio, 1848. 
 Howe, Henry, History of Ohio, 2 vols., 1908. 
 Howells, Life in Ohio (1813-18J,0), 1895. 
 HowiTT, Mary, Our Cousins in Ohio, 1848. 
 Howlett, Life of Right Rev. Bp. Macheboeuf, 1908. 
 Katholischen Kirchen und Institute, Die, in Cincinnati, New York, 1889. 
 Kelly, M. J., and Kirwin, Jas. M., History of Mount St. Mary's of the 
 
 West, Cincinnati, 1894. 
 Kendall and Bernard, Western Literary Institute, Cincinnati, 1841. 
 Kenny, The Queen City, 1893. 
 Lambing, Rev. A. A., A History of the Catholic Church in the Dioceses 
 
 of Pittsburgh and Allegheny, New York, 1880. 
 Life of Most Rev. Peter Richard Kenrick, D.D., 1891. 
 Loth, Abthur, St. Vincent de Paul et La Missione Sociale, Paris, 1881. 
 Mansfield, Personal Memories (1803-1843), 1879. 
 Mansfield and Drake, Early Cincinnati, 1826. 
 Marshall, T. W. M., Christian Missions, 2 vols., 1864. 
 Mabtineau, Harriet, Society in America, 2 vols., 1937. 
 MacCaffeey, Rev. James, History of the Catholic Church in the Nine- 
 teenth Century, St. Louis, 1909. 
 McCann, Sister Mary Agnes, The History of Mother Seton's Daughters, 
 
 2 vols., New York, 1917. 
 McCann, Sister Maky Agnes, Mother Seton, Cincinnati, 1909. 
 McCann, Sister Maby Agnes, Biographical Sketch of Mother Margaret 
 
 George, Cincinnati, 1912.. 
 McCormick, Rev. P. J., Ph.D.. History of Education, WEishington, D. C, 
 
 1915. 
 McSweeny, Very Rev. Dr., The Story of the Mountain, 2 vols., Em- 
 
 mitsburg, 1911. 
 Miller. Francis W., Cincinnati's Beginning, 1880. 
 One Hundredth Anniversary of Baltimore Cathedral, 1906. 
 O'Daniel, Rev. V. P., The Dominicans, 1917. 
 Prince, L. Bradford, History of New Mexico, 1883. 
 Randall, B. 0., Ohio Centennial Celebration, Columbus. 1903. 
 Robinson and Fairbank. Cincinnati in 18.29. 
 Robinson and Jones, Cincinnati in 18.'i6. 
 Sadlier, Mrs. Wm., Life of Mother Seton. 
 Seton, Right Rev. Robt.. Memoir. Letters and Journal of Elizabeth 
 
 Seton. 2 vols.. New York. 1869. 
 Seton, Right Rev. Robt., An Old Family. New York, 1899. 
 Shea, John Gilway, History of the Catholic Church in the United 
 
 States, 4 vols., New York, 1886. 
 Shaffer, Advertising Directory. 1839-40. 
 Short, North American of Antiquity. New York, 1884. 
 Silver Jubilee of Archbishop Purcell. 1858. 
 Spalding. Most Rev. M. J.. Sketches of the Early Catholic Missions in 
 
 Kentucky, Louisville, 1844. 
 
Archhishop Purcell and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 107 
 
 Squier and Davis, Ancient Monuments, Washington, D. C, 1848. 
 
 Stevens, George E., The City of Cincinnati, 1869. 
 
 St. Mary Seminary of St. Sulpice, Baltimore, 1791-1891. 
 
 Teetor, H. B., Past and Present of Mill Creek Valley, Cincinnati, 1882. 
 
 Thebaud, Rev. Aug. J., S. J., Three-Quarters of a Century, 1904. 
 
 Trollope, Mrs., Domestic Manners of Americans, 1828. 
 
 Venable, W. H., LL.D., Footprints of the Pioneers of the Ohio Valley, 
 
 1888. 
 Venable, W. H., LL.D., A Buckeye Boyhood, 1911. 
 Venable, W. H., LL.D., Beginnings of Literary Culture in the Ohio 
 
 Valley, 1891. 
 Webb, Benj. J., The Centenary of Catholicity in Kentucky, Louisville, 
 
 1884. 
 White, Rev. Chas. I., D.D., Life of Mrs. Elizabeth A. Seton, New York, 
 
 1853. 
 Williams, History of Cincinnati, 1881. 
 
 III. Periodicals 
 
 The Cincinnati Directory, 1819. 
 
 The United States Catholic Miscellany, Charleston, S. C, 1822. 
 
 The Commercial Gazette, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1829. 
 
 The Metropolitan, Baltimore, 1830. 
 
 The Catholic Telegraph, Cincinnati, 1831. 
 
 The Catholic Herald, Philadelphia, 1833. 
 
 The Catholic Directory, New York, 1833. 
 
 The N. Y. Freeman's Journal, New York, 1840. 
 
 The Religious Cabinet, Baltimore, 1842. 
 
 The Catholic Expositor, New York, 1842. 
 
 The United States Catholic Magazine, Baltimore, 1843. 
 
 The Catholic World, 1864. 
 
 American Catholic Quarterly Researches, 1884. 
 
 Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia, 
 
 1884. 
 America, New York, 1907. 
 The Catholic Historical Review, Washington, D. C. 1915. 
 
VITA 
 
 TLe writer of this dissertation, Hister Mary Agnes McCann, 
 was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on April 24, 1851. She finished 
 her academic course at Mount St. Vincent, Cedar Grove, Cin- 
 cinnati, and entered the novitiate of the Sisters of Charity in 
 1867. She gained the degree Bachelor of Arts under professors 
 of Mount St. Mary's of the West in 1880. In the following 
 years she was Directress of Mount St. Vincent, Cedar Grove; 
 of St. James' High School, Bay City, Michigan, and of St. 
 Raphael High School, Springfield, Ohio. She received the de- 
 gree Master of Arts in 1915 from the Catholic University, 
 Washington, D. C, and has done graduate work in History, 
 Philosophy of Education and History of Education under 
 Doctors Weber, Shields, and McCormick. 
 
 108 
 
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