PREFACE. THE Volume here offered to the patrons of the work embraces the History of the Catholic Church in the United States, in the original diocese of Baltimore and in that of Louisiana and the Floridas, carrying the narrative from 1763 to 1815. In the growth of Catholicity during that period the Most Reverend John Carroll, Prefect-Apostolic of the United States, Bishop of Baltimore, and first Archbishop of that See, stands as a noble and central figure for nearly thirty years of that half century the controlling and guiding mind in the affairs of the Church. Only during the last decade of colonial days was he absent from his native land: then his priestly labors began; he witnessed the struggle for national existence, full of patriotic sympathy and giving his country's cause all the support compatible with his sacred calling. The efforts of Bishop Challoner at an early date to be relieved of his responsibility for the transatlantic portion of his flock, and to obtain the appointment of a VicarApostolic: the difficulties that arose, and the subsequent project of extending the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Quebec to Pennsylvania and Maryland when the conquest of Canada had brought all Northern America under the British sway, have never yet been made known. Researches in the archives in England, Canada, and Rome, for which I am especially indebted to His Eminence Cardinal Taschereau, Canon Johnson, Very Rev. H. Van den Sanden, and Very Rev. Charles A. Vissani, O.S.F., have enabled me to give a connected account of this interesting movement. For the history of the Church in this country at that period I have drawn mainly on the archives of the Society of Jesus and on a series of letters by Father Joseph Mosley, which I owe to the kindness of Mr. Alex. T. Knight. The part taken by Catholics during the Revolution had been so strangely misrepresented, that it was necessary to present the truth distinctly, and to give some notes of the action of the Chaplain of the French embassy, as well as of what little can be ascertained of the clergymen who accompanied the French army and fleets. The part taken by the Catholics northwest of the Ohio could not be overlooked. Documents obtained from the late Father Freitag, C.SS.R., the Quebec Archives, the Registers of Detroit, Vincennes, Fort Chartres, and Kaskaskia have been used carefully. After the Revolution the organization of the Clergy, the steps taken to obtain an Ecclesiastical superior, the strange intrigue to place this country under a bishop to reside in France, and the final appointment of Dr. Carroll as PrefectApostolic, are presented at length by the aid of the Maryland. records, extracts from the archives of France and Spain, for which I am indebted to Mr. Robert de Crêvecœur, and the Hon. J. S. M. Curry, U. S. Minister to the Court of Spain, and to Señor Santa Maria, Custodian of the Archives. The correspondence and papers of Archbishop Carroll from 1785, for which I am greatly indebted to the late Rev. Charles I. White, D.D., and Bernard U. Campbell, and to the unceasing kindness of His Eminence Cardinal Gibbons, have been the guide in tracing his Episcopal career, with the archives of the Maryland province, the writings of Messrs. Dilhet and Tessier of Saint Sulpice and documents placed at my disposal by Very Rev. A. L. Magnien, Superior of St. Mary's, Baltimore, as well as local information and notes from many sources. I am indebted for important aid to the Fathers of the University College, Dublin, and to the Provincial of the English Province, as well as to Wm. S. Preston, Esq., and the late Ambrose A. White. For the illustrations I have given credit in various parts of the work, but I must express special indebtedness for information and aid to Miss E. C. Brent, of Washington, to the Weld family of Lulworth Castle, as well as to the Carmelite nuns, S. M. Sener, Esq., and Professor J. F. Edwards and his great work, "The Bishops' Memorial Hall," at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana. To Major Edmond Mallet, Oscar W. Collet, Rev. W. P. Treacy, as well as to Right Rev. John Moore, D.D., Bishop of St. Augustine, and Right Rev. Camillus P. Maes, D.D., Bishop of Covington, and Most Rev. Cornelius O'Brien, D.D., Archbishop of Halifax, and the Most Rev. Michael A. Corrigan, D.D., Archbishop of New York, I return thanks for constant and valuable assistance. ELIZABETH, N. J., July 22, 1888. JOHN GILMARY SHEA. CONTENTS. BOOK I. LIFE OF THE REV. JOHN CARROLL TO HIS CONSECRATION AS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE BISHOP OF BALTIMORE ENGLISH COLONIES AND THE UNITED STATES, 1763-1790. CHAPTER I. HIS LIFE TO HIS RETURN TO MARYLAND IN 1774. His Position in the History of the Church-Birth-At Bohemia- CHAPTER II. RELIGION IN THE BRITISH COLONIES, 1763–1774. Condition of Catholics as described by him-Jurisdiction of the Vicars-Apostolic of London-Powers to Bishop Petre-Bishop Challoner's Account-He wishes to be relieved and to have a Bishop or Vicar-Apostolic appointed for America-Opposition-Plan of extending the authority of the Bishop of Quebec-Action in regard to this project--Labors of the Missionaries in Maryland and Pennsylvania-Frederick-Port Tobacco -Newton - Eastern Shore-Lancaster-Philadelphia-Father Theodore Schneider-His manuscript Missals-Father Mosley ---Father Farmer--Church begun in Baltimore-Catholic Highlanders on the Mohawk-Jesuits notified by Bishop Challoner of the Suppression-The Quebec Act-Rev. John Carroll begins his labors at Rock Creek--Catholicity in Florida under British rule-Spaniards retire - Turnbull's colony of Minorcans, Italians, and Greeks-Dr. Camps and Father Casasnovas (15) |