USA > Kansas > Linn County > A centenary of Catholicity in Kansas, 1822-1922 ; the history of our cradle land (Miami and Linn Counties) ; Catholic Indian missions and missionaries of Kansas ; The pioneers on the prairies : notes on St. Mary's Mission, Sugar Creek, Linn County; Holy Trinity Church, Paola, Miami County; Holy Rosary Church, Wea; Immaculate Conception, B.V.M., Louisburg; St. Philip's Church, Osawatomie; Church of the Assumption, Edgerton, Johnson County; to which is added a short sketch of the Ursuline Academy at Paola; the diary of Father Hoecken, and old Indian records > Part 13
USA > Kansas > Miami County > A centenary of Catholicity in Kansas, 1822-1922 ; the history of our cradle land (Miami and Linn Counties) ; Catholic Indian missions and missionaries of Kansas ; The pioneers on the prairies : notes on St. Mary's Mission, Sugar Creek, Linn County; Holy Trinity Church, Paola, Miami County; Holy Rosary Church, Wea; Immaculate Conception, B.V.M., Louisburg; St. Philip's Church, Osawatomie; Church of the Assumption, Edgerton, Johnson County; to which is added a short sketch of the Ursuline Academy at Paola; the diary of Father Hoecken, and old Indian records > Part 13
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25
The Right Reverend Bishop Fink Administered the Sacrament of Confir- mation to the Following in Paola, Kansas, on May 26, 1885, Rev- erend A. Carius, Pastor.
Patrick R. Clark
James Sheehy
Catherine Koehler
John Hogan John Fenoughty
Charles Dalton
Richard Hogan
Wm. Cunningham
Caroline Fisher
Jeremiah Finn
Alexander Hodges
Gertrude Nolen
Bernard Harkin
Joseph N. St. Louis
Margaret Mahoney
William Cunningham
Wm. McCormick
Mary Dalton
Daniel Dalton Michael Fenton
Michael M. Powers
Mary Klassen
James Bernard Riley
Geo. N. Fleming James Hogan
Catherine McGrath
Maurice Langan
Michael Hogan Sarah Dalton Lizzie Holden Blanche Hogan Bridget Finn Marguerite Jane Pickles Nellie Langan
Anna Sharlot Pickles
Frank Vohs John Maloney Robert Allen
Mary Fenoughty Ellen Fenoughty Anna Allen
Ellen Hogan
William Holden Joseph Fisher Martin Arnhalt
Agnes Strausbaugh Clara Strausbaugh Ida Nolen
110
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
Catherine Riley
Suzenna Harkin
Lizzie Fisher
Margaret Maloney
Ellen Riley
Agnes Pickles
Anna Cunningham
Mary Fisher
Katie Allen
Elizabeth Maloney
Mary McCormick
Mary Agnes Clark
Ellen Harkin
Anna St. Louis
Anna Allen
REVEREND MICHAEL J. GLEASON.
The immediate successor of Father Carius was Father Gleason. He was a young man lately ordained at Alle- ghany, New York, for the diocese of Kansas City and was lent by Bishop Hogan to the diocese of Leavenworth for the time being. He was fresh from his seminary studies in Ireland-a bright, eloquent and high spirited young man, a real Celt-with all the virtues and some of the faults of his race. He was the first and only pas- tor that Paola has had from the be- ginning to the present time who was born in Ireland. Holland, Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, and England are represented in the long list to REV. MICHAEL J. GLEASON. which America has added distinguish- ed names, but Father Gleason up to these latter years stood alone as the representative of Ireland. He proved himself a worthy successor of Fathers Hoecken, Aelen, Ponziglione, Wattron and Hurley. His difficulties were no less great than theirs but he met them all successfully.
When he arrived in Paola about the tenth of August, 1885, he fell into deep dejection of spirit ; it was all so strange, so new, so uninviting; the new church was like a barn, the rectory was miserable with its cellar filled with water and its larder empty.
In the midst of his anxieties he found one good angel and that was Miles Finn. Mr. Finn encouraged him and befriended him in every way.
On the 15th of August he said his second Mass at Paola. Some of the people called on him after the service and assured him of their good will and loyal support. There were some children in the crowd and they attracted his attention at once : this was his first ray of sunshine which never afterwards left him-the love of the little ones, the companionship of the children.
To adjust himself to the new and strange conditions must have been an ordeal. To get on to the roads, to find the missions and to become acquainted with his scattered people was, of course, his first duty. Father Hurley had left a good buggy for his use and Joseph Dalton presented
111
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, PAOLA
him with a fine horse, so that he was soon able to begin the exploration of Miami county, Linn county and a part of Johnson county before the win- ter of 1885-6 set in. He found the interior of the church unplastered and unfurnished. He at once set to work to complete the building in all its details. He proved himself to be a good collector, a great rustler, and a terror to the laggard and the slacker. He enjoyed a fight, and still more the friendship that usually followed it. He never harbored enmity and the quick temper was soon changed to gentleness, and when necessary an apology was given or taken and good fellowship established forthwith. He had the elements in him of a true sportsman. After the plastering of the church was completed the ladies set to work once more to furnish the sanctuary and the sacristy ; the vestments, the altar linens, the statues,
SANCTUARY OF CHURCH WHICH BURNED.
stained glass windows and a full set of new pews were added. The Com- munion railing and Stations of the Cross were finally put in place and thus came to a close a struggle of five years during which the men and women of the parish vied with one another in making this House of God one of the fairest and most devotional churches in the state.
The little frame rectory needed repairs ; it had grown old and dilap- idated since the days of Father Wattron and never had any modern con- veniences. Now it was repainted, plaster-patched and repapered; the ladies found means to add some new furniture, a set of delf for the dining room and other little comforts.
About this time five acres of ground, now Holy Cross Cemetery, was purchased from Andrew Joyce and filed for record September 14, 1885,
112
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
it being part N. E. 1/4, Sec. 22, Twp. 17, Range 23, as seen in Book 48, page 122 of County Recorder's office.
The transfer of bodies from the old cemetery was made during Father Gleason's time. The first interment in the new cemetery was that of Catherine Sheehy. His last act while pastor of Paola was to obtain a deed to the ground in Osawatomie on which St. Philip's church now stands. This plot of ground had been donated by the town company years before for the use of a Catholic Church but it was never claimed until now (1889).
This was the first step in the establishment of a church at Osawato- mie under his successor, Father O'Connor. Like his predecessors, Father Gleason drove to Edgerton once a month in all seasons, a distance of twenty miles north. The State Hospital at Osawatomie was always attended from Paola, but Mass was not then celebrated there. La Cygne and other points in Linn county were visited.
Father Gleason accomplished a great deal during the few years he was pastor of Paola. Bishop Hogan recalled him finally to Kansas City in the spring of 1889 and made him pastor of a new parish which Father Gleason named the "Holy Trinity" after the church at Paola. He retained a warm affection for this, his first charge and once remarked, in after years, that his happiest days were spent at Pacla. The reader understands, of course, that such meager outlines of a priest's life as is here given are far from adequately expressing the entirety of his labors; the important part-his Sacerdotal office is seldom referred to and, yet, it is in that and through that that he is really effective for good, rather than through any material success or financial ability he may possess. It is the priest as such rather than the builder or the money getter that counts. Is he a man of prayer? Is he an humble preacher of the Word "in season and out of season?" Is he a spirtual director of souls in the Sacrament of Penance? Is he zealous for the welfare of the sick and dying? Is he a lover of little children, as may be seen by his delight in bringing them to Christ? In one word, is he a priest of God rather than a "social lion ?" For this he was educated, unto this was he called, and to fail here is to suffer shipwreck, or at least to become an unprofitable servant. The Catholic reader understands all this and, therefore, there is no need to refer to it further in these pages.
REVEREND JAMES J. O'CONNOR. P
After the transfer of Father Gleason to Kansas City in the Spring of 1889, six pastors of Holy Trinity church followed one another in comparatively quick succession until July, 1895, when Rev. Francis Ta- ton was placed in charge.
The first of these was Father James J. O'Connor who held office from April, 1889, to March, 1891, when he was called by death in the
113
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, PAOLA
flower of his young manhood.
He was the first pastor, though not the first priest to die in Paola. Rev. James Colton, brother of Mrs. John Sheehy, died here in 1884 and is buried in the Circle of Holy Cross cemetery, directly west of the Cross.# Father O'Connor passed to his reward in the priest's residence at Holy Trinity church on Tuesday, March 3, 1891, at 6:55 p. m. He had been in poor health since his ordination and the end was not unexpected. He felt the loneliness of the West and the absence of all who were near and dear to him.
Father O'Connor was born in New- ark, New Jersey, in 1867, and took a REV. JAMES J. O'CONNOR. full collegiate course, graduating at Berlin, Canada, in 1885. Soon there- after he was ordained and assigned to Kansas. From Chetopa he came here. From the ontset he was deservedly popular in this parish, and his friends and admirers included people of differing creeds. Self-poised and affable in conduct, he bore the dignity of priest and scholar in every act of life even to the moment of final dissolution. His parents lived in Cleveland, Ohio, and in obedience to their wishes the remains were sent there for burial.
Funeral services as published in "The Western Spirit," is here given :
The funeral of Rev. Father James J. O'Connor on Friday, March 6, was largely attended. Mass was said at the church at 10:30 a. m. by Rev. Father Lee of Armourdale, assisted by Rev. Fathers Madden, Cur- tin, Redeker, Scherr. McGuire and Michel.
Rev. Father Gleason, of Kansas City, preached the funeral sermon from the text, "I am the resurrection and the life," and his eloquent sentences fell on appreciative ears. The large church was crowded and every listener was impressed with the touching tributes to the dead priest. Father Gleason began by saying that he came with no polished sentences of chiseled words to perform the last sad and solemn rites of the Holy Church over the remains of his dead brother. From this he went on without notes or stops to the close of one of the ablest and most appropriate sermons ever delivered in Paola. Many tears were shed by members of the congregation and others.
"-Liber Defunctorum-A. D. 1884, on the 9th of May having received the rites of the Church, died, about sixty years old, the Rev. James Colton, pastor of Eden, Fond du Lac Co., Wisconsin. Having obtained leave of absence to restore his broken health at his sister's (Mrs. Sheehy) home near this place, on account of the greater mildness of the climate. It pleased God to call the good Father to Himself. He was one of the pioneer priests of the arch-diocese of Milwaukee, in which he built many churches and pastoral residences. R. I. P. A. Carius.
114
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
About 1 o'clock in the afternoon carriages and wagons began to arrive at the church and an hour later the funeral cortege proceeded to the Missouri Pacific depot from where Mr. Jacob Koehler accompanied the body to Cleveland, Ohio, for burial. The procession was a long one and represented all creeds and sects.
REVEREND NICHOLAS NEUSIUS.
Father Neusius succeeded the la- mented Father O'Connor in March, 1891, and remained in charge until the following August. He was a young priest, born in Germany, but partly educated in America. He was noted for his thoroughness and efficiency, a strict disciplinarian and a willing worker-an excellent priest in every way. He established the League of the Sacred Heart on the first Friday of June, 1891, and appointed the first promoters.
An explanation of the frequent changes of pastors, during the next few years, may be found in the fact that this was a period of expansion in REV NICHOLAS NEUSIUS. church affairs in Kansas. The old time horse-back missionaries were passing, and mission stations were being supplied with resident priests, who in turn, established other missions, or abandoned fruitless ones as the case might be.
The Right Reverened Bishop sought out theological students in various schools in Europe, and in addition to these, he maintained a number in various American seminaries. A native clergy was, of course, his ideal, but the country was too new to expect its realization. Very soon, however, Bishop Fink was successful in obtaining for his vast diocese-the whole of Kansas-a very efficient body of young priests, and as a consequence, Leavenworth became one of the best organized dioceses in the West. It would be a mistake to suppose, however, that all this was easily attained for we know that the good bishop experi- mented a great deal with the placing of priests in the various parishes so as to obtain the best results, and to satisfy the people of various nationalities rather than the priests themselves. Indeed, the latter had little or nothing to say in the matter.
This aspect of affairs formed the greatest problem of the saintly bish- op's whole regime; it confronted him for years and baffled his best ingenuity at times; but he had a remarkable man as his Vicar General,
115
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, PAOLA
who had the art of cutting the gordian knot at every critical juncture.
Very Rev. John F. Cunningham had spent a life time on the prairies of Kansas and knew how to advise the young men and even sympathize with them as they passed out to grub or starve, as the saying was.
It would be easy to picture, without doing violence to truth, a sad state of affairs over much of the sparsely settled sections of a diocese covering a territory of 82,000 square miles. In the bordering counties along the Missouri River and the Missouri line, the horse-back mission- aries of former days found every Catholic home a home indeed; they were never lonesome, they were welcome to the simple accommodations offered them and, as a consequence, they were to a large extent care-free.
But when the time of expansion came and the missions farther west received their pastors it was then that the real troubles began. It must be remembered that these young priests came from the centers of civiliza- tion in Europe and America, that they were men of education and often highly refined. They were indeed unprepared for the new order of things. Had they been raised in the West, the results would have been different, but as it was, many became bewildered and discouraged, for it required the greatest heroism to endure the lonesomeness of the prairies, and often, also, a lack of sympathy on the part of superiors, no less than on the part of those whom they came to serve.
Mountains and streams are companionable but the dead level of a winter prairie is very oppressive to the mind, all the more when silence reigns and the elements of social life are absent. As a consequence some priests returned again to the East, some sought admittance into other dioceses, and a few fell by the wayside. The slow process of improve. ment, however, went on, the wisdom of the bishop prevailed and finally, the demon of loneliness and the spectre of poverty were gradually elimi- nated. Fine churches, schools, and pastoral residences sprang up all over Kansas as the people multiplied and the towns grew apace. Finally in 1887 the State was divided into three dioceses: Leavenworth, Wichita and Concordia, with a total Catholic population, at the present time (1918) of 132,000. The various Catholic institutions, too, developed won- derfully, so that the Colleges, Academies, hospitals and asylums are now amongst the best in the United States; while many religious orders are well represented, and are laying great foundations for the future.
REVEREND THOMAS QUICK.
Father Quick was the tenth pastor of Holy Trinity church. His term extended from September, 1891, to September, 1892. He was a man ad- vanced in years, of a kind disposition, very charitable to the poor and very forgetful of himself. He did not seem to know the value of money or how to ask for what was his by right. All he seemed to delight in was to give. The wandering workmen who filled the country at this time were known as "tramps" and hungry tramps generally made a
116
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
straight line for the Catholic rectory when they arrived in any town. If there was a hospital or a Sisters' School, that would, probably, be the first place the penniless, able-bodied men would call for a "bite to eat." At times it often looked like a small "bread line" at the back door of nearly every priest's house in the country.
Paola being at the converging point of several railroads, got more than its share of the "Wandering Willies." The citizens protested and refused to aid "strapping fellows that should be at work." but the men protested that there was no work to be had, that if REV. THOMAS QUICK. they could get to Kansas City or St. Louis or Chicago they could find em- ployment. Father Quick found many an occasion to aid this class and never turned any man from his door.
He himself was an Englishman and had labored amongst the poorest of the poor in the slums of Manchester for years before coming to Amer- ica. He had the unique distinction of accompanying the famous "Man- chester Martyrs," Allen, Larkin, and O'Brien, to the scaffold and held the crucifix to their lips before the death-caps were drawn.
The Irish people held this kind-hearted priest in great regard and when he was transferred from Paola to assist Father Hayden in Topeka, the people here sent a delegation to the Capital with a testimonial and purse of three hundred dollars as a mark of their esteem.
REVEREND THOMAS E. MADDEN.
From September, 1892, to September, 1893, Father Madden was pastor of Paola. He was a bright young man, lately ordained, a product of the Eastern schools and a native of Brooklyn, New York, and entirely unaccustomed to western life. He was a refined and lovable character, but, still, "a college boy"-active in sports and sought after in society. Evidently his place was under the tutorship of an older priest where his splendid ability would develop normally with his years.
He established the first parochial school in Paola with Simon Ken- nedy of Fulton, Kansas, as teacher. The basement of the church proved unsuitable for school purposes and the people began to feel the need of a school building which was hoped would be erected in the near future. In the meantime the basement school was abandoned and the school was not re-opened again until St. Patrick's was built in 1902. Father Madden
117
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, PAOLA
left Kansas and took up his duties un- der Bishop Lancaster Spalding of Peoria, Ill., where he has distinguished himself in every line of priestly activ- ity and has been promoted to the pas- torate of one of the leading churches of the city of Peoria-St. John's, where he has an assistant and a pa- rochial school with eight teachers and three to four hundred pupils.
Owing to the scarcity of priests the parish of Holy Trinity was vacant from June 20, 1893, to September 25, or October 1, 1893, when Father Burk was appointed. In the meantime Father Moses McGuire came from Ful- ton, Kas., once a month to say Mass for the people of Paola.
REV. THOMAS E. MADDEN.
REVEREND MAURICE BURK.
The next in order of appointment was Father Burk; he, like the rour preceding pastors remained but a short time, he was destined, however, to return in after years and accomplish great things for Holy Trinity parish. Born in Germany at Wadersloh in Westfalia on September 28, 1869, he passed through all his studies most successfully and was finally ordained to the holy priesthood in Louvain, Bel- gium, on the 29th of June, 1892.
His destination was for the Kansas missions, and on his arrival was, after a short respite, sent to Paola as pas- tor on the 25th of September, 1893, and remained until October 4, 1894. REV. MAURICE BURK. For many years, in fact, from the time of Father Gleason the financial affairs of the parish were at a standstill; Catholic families were being added to the parish year by year but they were all busy with their own affairs and the church was suffered to drift along from 1888 to 1894 when Father Burk took up the most pressing need of the time, namely: the building of a new rectory. The old one built by Father Wattron away
118
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
back in the '60s had served its usefulness and was now unfit for human habitation. The present beautiful building was erected in 1894 and the work incidentally revealed the latent ability of the young pastor which in after years showed forth so conspicuously.
Father Burk was respected and admired by the people although he remained with them but one year. The Right Reverend Bishop knew of his learning and strength of character; of his prudence and industry which was all the more effectual on account of his genial manner. He was a gentleman without affectation and a priest above everything. Such a person could not remain hidden in a country town, so that the next thing we find he was called away on October 4, 1894, to be the Bish- op's assistant as secretary. His heart, however, was in Paola and when a vacancy occurred in 1903 he asked to be sent back to his first love.
THE RIGHT REV. BISHOP HENNESSY, D. D.
120
THE HISTORY OF OUR CRADLE LAND
BISHOP HENNESSY VISITS PAOLA.
Bishop John Joseph Hennessy was born near Cloyne, County Cork, Ireland, July 19, 1847, of Michael and Ellen (Cronin) Hennessy. He came with his parents to the United States in childhood, settling in St. Louis. He attended the Christian Brothers' College of that city, gradu- ating from there to Cape Girardeau College, in which he studied philos- ophy. His theological studies were made at the Salesianum Seminary of Milwaukee, and by special dispensation he was ordained priest No- vember 27, 1869, when only twenty-two and a half years old.
Shortly after his ordination Father Hennessy was sent to the Iron Mountain region, where his parochial duties extended over ten counties and where in 1876 he established the Ursuline convent at Arcadia, Mo.
He was consecrated bishop of Wichita November 30, 1888, in St. Louis by Archbishop Peter R. Kenrick. He suffered a stroke of par- alysis early in the morning of July 13, 1920, and died a few hours later. He was buried from the Cathedral which he erected in Wichita.
The Right Reverend Bishop Hennessy Administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to the Following in Paola, Kansas, June 19, 1894, Reverend M. Burk, Pastor.
Alphausus Johannis
Francis David Fenoughty Maria Langdon
Patrick Daniel Hogan
Edward Carolus Hogan Maria Elizabeth Dalton
Francis Andreas Robinson
Maria Elizabeth Keenan Maria Light
Carolus Edgar Mallory
Lilly Gertrude Allen
Maria Powers
Francis Phillip Cooper
Ella Cecelia Franklin
Giace Maria Koehler
William Joseph Sheehy
Johanna Dalton
Anna Lucia Toelle
Francis Mallory
Elsie Maria Harnden
Genevieve Pickles
Thomas Cunningham
Anna Cecelia Nunning
Rose Clark
Johannis Alburtis Minning
Flora Catharina Cooper
Lilly Hogan
Johannis Edward McGrath
Thomas Joseph Powers
Anna Lucia Finn
Carolus Michael Cooper
Katharine Cecelia Finn
Anna Maria Klassen
Emma Thersia Fenoughty
Maria Veronica Killy
Anna Maria Drehr
Henricus Willelhun Fenoughty Myrtle Anna Klassen
Lucia Maria Sheridan
REVEREND ANTHONY DORNSEIFER.
Father Dornseifer became pastor on October 5, 1894. He was but lately ordained in Louvain, Belgium, and had but a slight acquaintance with the English language. "He was very young, very humble and very kind;"-the people give testimony to all this, for, to this day, they speak his name reverently. His struggles with the English tongue were oftentimes amusing but it made him all the dearer to the people. They liked Father Dornseifer and, he in return, has always retained a sincere affection for this, his first field of labor in America.
During his time the Passionist Fathers gave a mission in Paola and Osawatomie and, incidentally, Father Michael, a famous missionary of that Order, induced the Ursuline Sisters to visit Paola. When Mother Jerome and her companions arrived at the priest's house, Father Dorn-
121
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, PAOLA
seifer welcomed them as Little Sisters of the Poor of St. Francis from St. Margaret's Hospital. He was in a hurry to catch the train for Osawatomie where he had to go to instruct the children, etc., but he took time to place his visitors in touch with some of the leading citizens of the town and thus began the first chapter in the history of Our Ursuline Academy.
During this year the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin and League of the Sacred Heart were greatly revived. He took a great interest in the young folks and in many other ways endeared him- self to the people. He was transferred to Rosedale in July, 1895, where he has labored successfully ever since. The church, school and pastoral resi- REV. ANTHONY DORNSEIFER. dence at Rosedale are amongst the finest in the Leavenworth diocese.
Father Dornseifer has held the important office of "Defensor Vinenli" in the matrimonial court of the Diocese for several years.
REVEREND FRANCIS TATON.
The periodic changes have come to an end at last. Certainly, such fre- quent removals of pastors could not but have a deteriorating effect on any organized parish, but, fortunately for Paola, all the priests who came and went so frequently were mostly of a high order of clerical excellence. Noth- ing but kindly memories enshrine their names in the hearts of the people so that, it is probable, the general effect was more favorable than otherwise. It must be said of the Catholic people of Paola that they have long memories and warm hearts for their old-time pastors. All the first settlers were Irish-direct from Ireland, and this REV. FRANCIS TATON. fact explains it all. It was this beau- tiful sentiment in the minds and on the lips of the old people that induced the writer of these pages to note down, to collect and compile the many items that go to make up this history.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.