USA > Michigan > Marquette County > Marquette > History Of The Diocese Of Sault Ste, Marie And Marquette; Containing A Full And Accurate Account Of The Development Of The Catholic Church In Upper Michigan, With Portraits Of Bishops, Priests And Illustrations Of Churches Old And New, Volume 1 > Part 22
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have been the recipient of such an enve- lope, inclosing eighty silver dollars, for the use of our mission. These were the savings above his needs, from his pen- sion, and he expended them as fast as he received them. At the time of his death there were still three hundred dol- lars due him which he allowed to remain in Bishop Vertin's possession for burial purposes, otherwise he died penniless.
Bishop Mrak outlived his successor, John Vertin, who died on February 26, 1899 and was present at his obsequies with that equanimity, his great charac- teristic in life, which embodies Christian faith and hope in the eternal life beyond the grave. Again, and for the last time, he made his public appearance, donned his episcopal robes, on the 24th of August of the same year, when, following the sol- emn procession to the consecration of the fourth bishop of Marquette, he with firm step made his way to the Cathedral and took his seat in the sanctuary among younger fellow bishops who had assem- bled for the occasion. Rev. Frederick Eis, whom he had raised to priesthood himself, was being consecrated a bishop- what might have been his thoughts!
At last his own summons came! His life, ennobled by unselfishness, great charity, exemplary humility, piety and purity closed on Wednesday, January 2, 1901 ; at two o'clock in the afternoon, at the grand old age of eighty nine years,
two months and sixteen days, he breathed his pure soul into the hands of his Maker. The solemn obsequies were held on Sat- urday, January 5th, at St. Peter's Cathe- dral, Marquette, at 9 o'clock.
The casket, containing all that was mortal of the second bishop of Marquette, was enclosed in a wooden box and de- posited in the mortuary vault beneath the Cathedral, in the niche above that of Bishop Baraga. The inscription on the closing marble slab is the following :
Jacet hic in Domino Ignatius Mrak
Episcopus Antinoensis. Secundus An- tistes Marianopolitanus et Marquettensis. Natus in Poljane, Carniolia, Austria, 16. Octobris, A. D. 1810. Presbyter factus Labaci die 13. Augusti A. D. 1837. Epis- copus consecratus Cincinnati die septima Februarii, A. D. 1869. Titularis Anti- noensis A. D. 1878. Obiit die 2. Jan. 190I.
Laudant eum opera pro conversione Otchipwe-Indianorum. Fidelis Baragae Cooperator et successor. 6 R. I. P.
6 Here in the Lord lieth Ignatius Mrak
Bishop of Antinoe; Second Ordinary of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette.
Born in Poljane, Carniolia, Austria, October 16, 1810. Ordained priest in Laibach, August 13, 1837. Consecrated Bishop in Cincinnati Febru- ary 7, 1869. Made titular Bishop of Antinoe in 1878. Died January 2, 1901. His labors for the conversion of Otchipwe Indians glorify him. Faithful co-worker and successor of Baraga.
May he rest in peace.
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Chapter X. THE RIGHT REV. JOHN VERTIN, D. D.
His family connections .- His early Education .- His arrival in America .- His ordination to priesthood .- Priestly labors .- Elevation to the Episcopate.
His consecration in Negaunee .- The Burning of his Cathedral and concomitant troubles.
Upon the resignation of Bishop Mrak, the bishops of the Province, Archbishop Henni, of Milwaukee, Bishop Heiss of LaCrosse and Bishop Krautbauer of Green Bay, were in a quandary selecting a bishop for Marquette. It was not a question of nationality, as in most in- stances nowadays, but the plain reality of finding a man who could most ably fill the position. Next to the personal qualifications considered were those of being able to furnish means for his own subsistence as the contributions from the
Propagation of Faith Societies from abroad could no longer be depended upon, and the diocese yielded about nothing, so they selected primo loco the Rev. John McMullen, a priest of Chicago. after- wards Bishop of Davenport, Iowa, who, upon being apprised of this fact, advised the Bishops that he would under no cir- cumstances accept the honor if elected by the Pontiff. To obviate any such refusal a new slate was drawn up with the Rev. John Vertin as dignissimus, Rev. John
Cebul as dignior and the Rev. Edward Jacker as dignus. The Holy Father se- lected the first named Father Vertin of Negaunee.
John Vertin was born, as were both his predecessors, in the Province of Carnio- lia, Austria, at Dobliče on the 17th of July, 1844. His parents were Joseph and Mary, née Deržaj, Wertin. They had four children :
I. Joseph L. Wertin, born May II, 1841, died in Red Jacket, Mich., a much respected citizen, September 20, 1895.
2. John Vertin, the bishop.
3. Mary Wertin, born July 29, 1846, died as Mrs. Jos. Bosch at Lake Linden.
4. George Wertin, born April 9, 1849, a prominent citizen and merchant of Hancock, Mich., died in Chicago, March 30, 1890, and was brought home for interment in the family lot in the Catholic cemetery of that city.
The discrepancy in the spelling of their family name is simply due to the circum- stances that the Bishop retained the
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original, Slovenic way of writing, while his father, and the two brothers after him, had adopted a phonetic spelling, as it was pronounced in every day life.
John Vertin, the subject of this sketch, was then, the second oldest child. His schooling commenced in his eighth year, in the town of Černomelj (Tschernembl), a distance of four miles from his native village. In company of other village children John measured the distance afoot, back and forth, every day, winter and summer, completing in four years the four, normal or grammar, grades.
The town Černomelj, of oldest origin, is located in the extreme south east cor- ner of Carniolia. For the section of the province it is of considerable importance, being the seat of civil and political authority. There is located also the par- ish church of St. Peter the Apostle, built in 1487, from which the surrounding country, for miles and miles, receives its spiritual guidance. Although there are fourteen churches within this circuit, none of them has a resident priest; only from time to time Mass is being cele- brated by one of the assistants in each one of them. On Sundays people flock to the town in throngs to attend divine services. In 1841 the parish counted five thousand seven hundred and sixty four souls. Among the fourteen villages is also Dobliče with the church of St. Vitus. Baptisms were conferred always only in the parish church. Accordingly John Vertin was baptized, the same day of his birth, by the assistant pastor, the Rev. Joseph Barl. His godparents were Michael Mušič and Mary Vertin.
This system of concentration in church attendance is still in vogue, though in
schools a considerable change for the better has taken place since the boyhood days of John Vertin. There are now, outside of the city four well graded schools, and in Dobliče, where once the Vertin home stood, as house number thir- teen, in a fine two-story school building. After their immigration to America the Vertins have donated the whole terrene of their former home for school purposes ; the outlying land they distributed among the relatives.
The possessions of the Vertins con- sisted mostly of lands. They were, on account of the poorness of the soil, as unproductive as they were extensive. Joseph Wertin, like most of his co-villag- ers, saw himself compelled to seek a more lucrative occupation than farming. The country at home offered no opportu- nities. He entrusted the government of his estate to his wife and embarked in the haberdasher business. All through Ba- varia, Saxony, Wurtemberg and even Switzerland he retailed all kinds of dry goods from the pack on his back. It was a hard and toilsome life, but his endur- ance and saving habits coached him to prosperity. In his travels he had read much and heard more of the opportuni- ties in America. In April 1852 he crossed the Atlantic and spent five years in trading in the Western States. In 1857 he returned to his native country. At home he found his second son just completing his highest grade of the local school. His teachers praised his blame- less conduct and his great talents. Then the reflections came! In his travels through the German Provinces he had come into contact with many and all kinds of people; he had slept, many a
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lish and French, because most of the seminaries were still unsettled on account of the raging Civil War. In September 1863, John Vertin took up his residence in Bayfield, Wis., with Father Čebul, and remained under his tutorship till the fol- lowing summer, when at his own request he was sent to Negaunee, to Father Bour- ion's, in order to perfect himself in the French language.
We reproduce a facsimile letter of Bishop Baraga to Father Bourion touch- ing upon the above arrangement. It reads in translation as follows : "Rev. Mr. Bourion, my well beloved son. One of my students, named John Vertin, who is at present in Bayfield with Rev. Mr. Čebul, desires very much to come to you for two months in order to perfect him- self in the French language, which he has already studied a little. I beg of you to receive him and assist him in his French studies. You will render a great service to our diocese. I believe he will be a good priest.
"May the good God bless you as also your good mother and your good sister. Your Father in J. Ch., "
"FREDERIC BARAGA.1"
In the fall of the same year John Ver- tin entered the Salesianum in St. Francis, „ thousand dollars, had but a small house
Wis. In June 1865 Archbishop Heiss conferred upon him minor orders and Bishop Baraga ordained him a priest, August 31, 1866. The first priest or- dained in the city of Marquette and the last by Bishop Baraga.
After his first Mass in St. Anne's church, Hancock, Father Vertin was as- signed to the Houghton parish. His first
baptism recorded there is that of John S. Manderfield, September 30, 1866. The parish was in a much neglected condition, the polyglot elements composing the con- gregation did not seem to harmonize and by their race squabbles seriously impeded its progress. The church was small, the original one put up by Bishop Baraga ; the house still smaller, purchased to- gether with the lot adjoining the church property in the rear, from one Murphy for a consideration of three hundred dol- lars. Father Vertin set himself to enlarge both. The church he extended thirty feet to the rear with a wing 16x20 to the north. This addition he connected with the old house and used the first floor for living rooms, while the upstairs he util- ized as a sacristy. In 1868 and 1869, besides his parish with a scattered popu- lation over the present townships of Portage, Chassell, Adams and Elm River, he attended to the Germans and French on the Hancock side, during the time Father Jacker resided in Marquette as administrator of the diocese.
In September 1871 Bishop Mrak called Father Vertin to the pastorate of St. Paul's church in Negaunee. The parish was encumbered by a debt of over fifteen
for priest's residence at No. 408 on Case Street, several blocks away from the new church and the times least favorable to the conditions, on account of the prevail- ing depression in copper and iron indus- tries. Still Father Vertin proved himself master of the situation; he first ascer- tained by repeated correspondence with Father Bourion of Central City, Colo- rado, the exact amount and to whom due and then set out to make with the credit -
1 Letter, dated Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., April 19, 1864. Original in dioces. Archives.
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until September. If anybody, so the provision, in which no one, outside of Jesuit Fr. Weninger, is mostly responsi- ble that Father Vertin finally accepted his appointment.
The Apostolic Brief is in translation as follows :
LEO XIII. POPE.
Beloved Son, Health and Apostolic Benediction. The office of the Apostolate, conferred upon Us, not through our own merits from on High, by which We pre- side over the government of all churches, by Divine Providence, striving, with the help of the Lord, usefully to exercise, We are solicitous in Our heart and watchful, that when there is a question of committing the government of churches, We endeavor to give them such pastors as know how to teach people, entrusted to their care, not only by word of doc- trine, but also by the example of good works, and are desirous and capable, un- der God, healthfully to guide and happily to govern, the churches commissioned to them, in peace and tranquillity. Since We have reserved the provision for all churches, that are or shall in future be vacant, to Our own appointment and pro- vision and declared thenceforth null and inane all efforts to the contrary, no mat- ter by what authority, whether know- ingly or unknowingly made. The episcopal church of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette, in the United States of North America, presided over lastly by the Venerable Brother Ignatius Mrak, being deprived of a pastor, upon the voluntary renunciation of the aforesaid Venerable Brother, that it may not suffer long under the inconvenience of a vacancy, being desirous with paternal and solocit- ous interest to make a quick and happy
Us, can now or shall in future interpose by decree or reservation contrary to the above, with paternal interest and solici- tude, after a diligent deliberation, which We have had, about placing at the head of same church a useful and fruitful per- son, with Our Venerable Brothers the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, in charge of the Propagation of Faith, We turned Our mind to you, who, born of lawful wedlock, and are of lawful age and whose integrity of life, blameless morals and the merits of learning as well as the skill and practical knowledge of managing affairs more than usual, docu- ments, with Us on file, so splendidly prove. Having all well considered this, We absolve you and hold you absolved in so far as this matter is concerned, from whatsoever excommunication, in- terdict and other ecclesiastical sentences, censures and punishments, no matter what way or for what reason pronounced, if you have perhaps incurred any, in vir- tue of Our Apostolic Authority, with the advice of the same Brothers, by these presents, We make provision for said episcopal church of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette, in the United States of North America, in your person, which is accept- able to Us and the above mentioned Cardinals on account of the excellence of your merits, We appoint you its bishop and pastor, fully committing to you the care, rule and administration of that church in spirituals and temporals, trust- ing in Him who bestoweth graces and gifts, that said church, the Lord guiding your actions, will prosper as well in spirituals as in temporals by your watch- ful diligence and studiousness, that it will
1
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be directed unto usefulness and prosper- ity, and that it will speedily advance in spirituals as well as in temporals. Ac- cepting with prompt devotion the burden placed upon your shoulders you will faithfully undertake the care and admin- istration, and with prudence exercise them, that the aforesaid church may truly rejoice in a prudent ruler and adminis-
choose, in favor and communion with the Aspostolic See, inviting two other bishops to act as his assistants, or if they cannot conveniently be had, in their stead two priests, in ecclesiastical dignity, enjoying like favor and communion; and We grant the same Prelate the faculty in like manner lawfully to bestow upon you the aforesaid gift of consecration with Our
Saut Ste Maure, Sich, le 19 Avril 1864.
Riv M. Bution. mon fils bien-aimé
Ile de mes étudiants nommé Jean Vertin, que est maintenant a Bayfield avec le he's A . Chebal devre beaucoup de venue chez vous pour deux nous, pour se perfectionner dans le français qu'il a déjà étudié un par de vous que de le excevor et de l'assister dans ses études françaises Vous ferez condrey un grand service a notre diocèse, pe cns qu'il fera un bon prêtre
Que le bon Den vous bénisse , avise que votre bonne mère et-
votre bonne soeur
Votre père en 2 C. + Fredens Baraga
FACSIMILE OF BISHOP BARAGA'S LETTER SENDING YOUNG JOHN VERTIN TO FATHER BOURION TO LEARN FRENCH.
trator and that besides the eternal retri- bution you henceforth fully merit Our favor and blessing and that of the Apostolic See. As for the rest, looking with favor upon your convenience We impart to you the faculty to receive law- fully and validly the gift of consecration from any Catholic Prelate whom you may
Apostolic Authority, after having first received from you the profession of Faith according to the articles proposed by the Holy See and the usual oath of fidelity in Our name and that of the Holy Roman Church. We will and decree, however, that if without having first received from you this oath and the profession of faith
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the above Prelate presumes to bestow upon you the gift of consecration and you to receive it, the same Prelate as well as you, by the very fact be suspended from the pontifical office and from the govern- ment and administration of your churches. Notwithstanding the apostolic, or in universal, provincial and synodal councils enacted general or special con- stitutions and ordinances as well as those of the said church of Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette even though binding under oath by apostolic approval or any other firmity, statutes or customs and any other whatsoever to the contrary. Given at Rome, at St. Peter's, under the ring of the Fisherman the 16th day of May, 1879. Of Our Pontificate the second year.
For the Lord Card. Carafa de Traetto D. JACOBINI, SUBST.
The consecration was set for the 14th of September, the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross in the church of St. Paul in Negaunee. An episcopal consecration had never before taken place in Upper Peninsula and the event awakened un- usual interest. Preparations were in progress a long time; the church was thoroughly overhauled inside, around the residence there was a hum of excite- ment arranging for the proper accommo- dation of the distinguished guests, and in the town, to which fell the honor of the first episcopal consecration in the Upper Peninsula, everybody, without distinction of creed, and was contributing towards a suitable reception of the high visitors and their entertainment while in town. By the middle of the week, the 14th being a Sunday, many priests, intimate friends of the Bishop-elect, had arrived and their
number kept increasing until Saturday, when the Bishops and their suits arrived. They were met at the Northwestern de- pot by the committee on reception and conveyed in carriages to the parochial residence, where accommodations were provided for the bishops and as many of the visiting priests as could find room, others finding hospitality among the prominent families of the parish and city, the diocesan clergy took pos- session of "la tuilerie," so nicknamed, the garret. The following bishops and priests assembled : Rt.
Rev. Michael Heiss, Bishop of La Crosse, Wis .; Rt. Rev. Caspard Borgess, Bishop of Detroit; Rt. Rev. L. J. Spalding, Bish- op of Peoria; Rt. Rev. Francis X. Kraut- bauer, Bishop of Green Bay; Rt. Rev. John Ireland, Coadjutor-Bishop of St. Paul; Rt. Rev. Rupert Seidenbusch, Bishop of St. Cloud; Rt. Rev. Ignatius Mrak, Titular-Bishop of Antinoe; Rt. Rev. Alexius Edelbrock, Abbot of St. John's, Minn. ; Revs. L. Batz, of Milwau- kee; E. Joos, of Detroit ; Severin Gross, of St. Cloud; P. M. Abbelen of Milwaukee ; F. X. Weninger, S. J., of Cincinnati; F. X. Katzer of Green Bay; Father Maurit- ius, O. M. C., of Calvary, Wis .; Andrew Andolschek, Morrison, Wis .; Antoine Vermare, Oconto, Wis .; J. M. Flamming, of St. Donatus, Iowa; Joseph Cotter, Winona, Minn .; J. N. Stariha, of Red Wing, Minn .; J. Žuzek, of Caledonia. Minn .; F. Kalvelage, of Chicago. Of diocesan priests were present the Revs. Fox, Terhorst, Langner, Dwyer, Hubly, Rousseau, Pawlar, Roy, Kelly, Paganini and Kenny.
Sunday morning, the day of consecra- tion, dawned bright, clear and warm, giv-
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hearts of all present. This concluded the ceremonies which had lasted just four hours, being two o'clock when the clergy left the sacred edifice. In the evening at Vespers, Bishop Spalding preached.
Of the consecration the three conse- crating bishops have made, at the bottom of the Breve, the following attest :
"I, the undersigned, have consecrated and promoted to the Episcopate the Rt. Rev. John Vertin, in the city of Negau- nee, the 14th day of September, 1879.
MICHAEL HEISS, Bp. of La Crosse. Under assistance of two bishops.
+CASPAR BORGESS, Bp. of Detroit. + J. L. SPALDING, Bp. of Peoria."
The Mining Journal of September 20, 1879, from which we have taken the most of the above information, concludes the article of Bishop Vertin's consecration in the following words: "Bishop Vertin is thirty five years old-the youngest bishop in North America. He is a fine appear- ing gentleman, being tall and straight and one of the most pleasing, kindliest of men. During his eight years' residence in this city, as pastor of St. Paul's church, he has endeared himself not only to his congregation, but to all with whom he came in contact. As a consequence, he leaves a large circle of friends here, who, however pleased with his promotion, are loath to see him change his residence from Negaunee.
"A general invitation was extended by the parish to parties of all denominations to attend and witness the ceremonies and most of the people who filled the church were others than those of the Catholic
Faith. The Reverend gentleman's bearing was gracefully dignified during the entire ceremony, eliciting many favorable re- marks. from those present.
"The clear and powerful voice of the Consecrator and the full and musical sound of the new bishop's words, as he spoke or chanted his part of the service, the impressive appearance of the sanctu- ary filled with high church officials in their appropriate and beautiful robes held the assembled spell-bound from the first to last. The singing by the choir and the music of the orchestra accom- panying it was the finest ever heard in this church and was a fitting accompani- ment to the most impressive ceremony."
After his consecration, Bishop Vertin re- mained in Negaunee almost three weeks chiefly to arrange parochial matters of his parish and, in the meanwhile, to make such changes in the pastorate of the Cathedral as he deemed necessary. Father Kenny, the incumbent, appears to have been a persona non grata and was ordered to Mackinac Island, which act stirred up a great party feeling in the Cathedral congregation at Marquette, but the Bishop remained inflexible. He intended to come to Marquette for Sunday Octo- ber 5th; on Thursday October 2nd, how- ever, his Cathedral was only a heap of ashes. The Mining Journal of October 4th, says : "About four o'clock Thursday morning the people were aroused from their slumber by a loud alarm of fire and on leaving their houses discovered that a fire was raging in the vicinity of St. Peter's Cathedral, the flames having already made sufficient headway to cast a lurid glare over the whole city. It was soon found that the flames were from the
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Pastor gives notice of service for tomor- row in another place in this paper."
Father Kenny published the following notice: "The members of the Catholic Congregation will have Mass at the French Church on Washington St., to- morrow (Sunday). First Mass at eight o'clock; the late Mass at 10:30; vespers at 7:15 P. M .; Boys of the Sunday School Catechism class will attend with their teachers at the school rooms in the Orphan Asylum at two o'clock; The girls at the Convent School rooms.
FATHER KENNEY."
In consequence of the ungraceful cala- mity Bishop Vertin remained in Ne- gaunee and directed the disentanglement of affairs from there. He declined the kind offer of the Episcopalians with grati- tude and ordered services for the cathe- dral congregation to be held in the French Church.
"The Catholic Congregation will have Mass in the French Church tomorrow as follows: First Mass at 7:30 and late Mass at 9 o'clock.
By order of the Rt. Rev. Bishop Ver- tin.
J. C. KENNY." 3
On Sunday, October 12th, Father J. C. Kenny officiated in Marquette for the last time and in obedience to the order of the Bishop was preparing to leave the city on the following day. The Mining Journal gives the following account of his departure : "Marquette was the scene of considerable excitement on Monday last, occasioned by the proposed depar- ture of Rev. Father Kenny for Mackinac to which place he had been assigned by
the Bishop. A large portion of his con- gregation was opposed to his removal and particularly so were the Irish mem- bers of the church, who were devotedly attached to the good priest and they were seemingly determined to do everything in their power to prevent the removal. Ac- cordingly, when, about noon of the day named, his personal effects were being taken to the dock, the dray upon which they were being carried was over-hauled at the corner of Lake and Superior Sts. by a number of his devoted admirers and in a jiffy his goods were replaced on another vehicle and carted away to some place of safety. Immediately after din- ner, the good Father, while on his way down Main St. to che Steamer Peerless, was surrounded by a number of Irish citi- zens who used every persuasion to induce him to remain, notwithstanding the order of the Bishop, but he finally made his way to the dock, where he was plied with more persuasions, which resulted in his retracing his steps up town to the office of S. E. Byrne, Esq., where the Irish citizens held a meeting, and appointed a committee to wait on Bishop Vertin at Negaunee, for the purpose of inducing him to revoke the order removing Father Kenny from Marquette to Mackinac, and shortly afterwards a telegram was re- ceived from the committee stating that the Bishop positively declines to revoke his order and thereupon the good Father was escorted to the boat by a few of his friends, the others, after an affectionate leave-taking quietly dispersed. Of the merits or demerits of the controversy, the Mining Journal does not venture to express any opinion, however, it most heartily joins in the most general regret
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