USA > New York > Cayuga County > History of Cayuga County, New York > Part 19
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In the year 1874, Rev. Constantine Ulrich was appointed pastor by the Rev. Bishop McQuaid. This priest paid special attention to the Christian education of the children and under great difficulties made divers attempts to have a parochial school, until he succeeded in buying the Carhart property on the corner of Franklin street and Seminary avenue at an expense of $8,700. During Reverend Ulrich's pastorate an addition was built and other improvements made to the church.
In June, 1887, Reverend Ulrich became pastor of the German parish at Webster, N. Y., and Rev. Joseph Netzel succeeded him in St. Alphonsus. The same year the school was re-opened with one hundred and twenty-six children under the directions of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Nazareth Academy, Rochester, N. Y. In 1890, an addition was again built to the school-house.
In April, 1896, Rev. Joseph Netzel was appointed pastor of St. Francis' Church, Rochester, and Rev. Herbert Regenbogen, former assistant in St. Michael's Church, Rochester, succeeded him. Rev- erend Regenbogen was educated in Germany and Switzerland. He studied theology in Germany and philosophy in Switzerland, and was ordained by Bishop McQuaid. Since his coming, the children of St. Alphonsus have been housed in an elegant new brick school- house with all up-to-date appointments, fronting on Franklin street, and in other ways materially improved the church property. Father
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Regenbogen is beloved by his parishioners and most highly esteemed by the general public.
ST. MARY'S CHURCH.
In the year 1868, the Rt. Rev. B. J. McQuaid, D. D., found it necessary to make a division of the Holy Family parish in order to meet the demands of the Catholic population of the City of Auburn.
On the 15th of August, in accordance with the Rt. Rev. Bishop's plans, a new parish was organized under the title of "St. Mary's of the Assumption," with the Rev. Thomas Meagher as pastor. A temporary location at 34 State street was secured and there services were held for a short time. But in a few weeks more room was needed and "Tallman's Hall" was used. Shortly after the lot on which St. Mary's church now stands was purchased and thereon a small wooden building was erected, 70 X 50 feet, known as the "Shanty Church."
Little by little the new parish increased until at the advent of the Rev. Myles J. Loughlin, D. D., as pastor in September, 1869, a new and larger church was deemed necessary.
Dr. Loughlin came, not a stranger, to his new appointment formerly having been an assistant at the Holy Family church and at one time a resident of the city-cultured and enthusiastic, he was impressed with the needs of his people and after considerable diffi- culty and disappointment he entered upon the erection of the present beautiful edifice at the corner of Clark and Green streets. At first it was determined to erect a brick structure; other counsels, however, prevailed. A stone building was deemed more fitting and finally agreed upon. This was in 1871.
Another lot adjoining the one purchased by Father Meagher was bought and the work of erecting the new church began at once. During its construction, Dr. Loughlin toiled and labored as ardu- ously as any workman upon it. For over six years he acted the part of superintendent, architect, builder and pastor, and scarcely
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a day during this period ever saw him absent from his labors. So intimately was he connected with it and so untiringly did he work that it was said there was not one stone of the entire structure which he did not select for its place.
As soon as available the basement was used for church purposes. Here for five years the young congregation assembled to attend mass, and to hear the word of God. Finally in April, 1877, the church proper was dedicated by the Right Reverend Bishop with imposing ceremonies and into it the delighted people went with gratitude to God, and proud of their fine church building and be- loved pastor. The accomplishment of such a work is a strong proof of the greatness of the sacrifice and the power of united action in the work of God.
But too arduous and exhausting had been the labors of Dr. Loughlin. The strain had been too much and was more than he could stand. Almost worn out he was transferred, at his own request, to the quiet mission of St. Rose of Lima and in the following spring he died, after a brief illness, in St. Mary's Hospital at Rochester.
The present pastor, Rev. Wm. Mulheron, was appointed by the Bishop to carry on the noble undertaking of his predecessor, to complete the work for which Dr. Loughlin laid down his life. On the 7th of September, 1877, Father Mulheron assumed charge of St. Mary's, and a better choice could not have been made.
Coming under most adverse circumstances with an enormous debt of $60,000 upon the people, and a financial depression then passing over the country, ordinarily a man would hesitate under- taking such a task. True the church was built, but the furnishings were inadequate and not in keeping with the beautiful edifice; an unsanitary school building, a poor and dilapidated convent for the sisters, a parsonage hemmed in on all sides-these were the con- ditions under which Father Mulheron commenced his labors at St. Mary's. With a loyal and faithful people, and with implicit trust
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and confidence in God, he set about to lift the debt and improve the church property. And now after thirty-one years of persistent effort, St. Mary's church and surrounding auxiliaries are regarded as a credit to pastor and people, an ornament to the city and an honor to religion.
The church is built entirely of gray limestone. Its style is a modification of Gothic architecture in the form of a Latin cross, with nave, side aisles, transepts and apse. The ceilings are groined and enriched with foliated bosses, and the capitals and corbels are finely ornamented. St. Mary's people are to be congratulated upon the possession of such a magnificent church. It would, indeed, be hard to find a more beautiful structure. Its interior is art crystal- lized, its architecture is devotion idealized, its symmetry is art immortalized. Outside it hangs together like a picture, inside it pours down on you all the grandeur, devotion and magnificence of a cathedral Some one has said that art is frozen music, but art and architecture such as St. Mary's are religion, not frozen, asleep, per- haps, but with open eyes. Look at it; go into the church, and everything there, the walls, the pillars, the triple arch, the altars, the ceilings, furnishings, all speak mutely but eloquently of God, of Jesus, of heaven and its inhabitants.
It will not be amiss to enumerate some of the work performed under Father Mulheron's administration. The present school building was erected at a cost of $8,000, the mortgage on the lot of $6,000, paid off. The Francisco property, between church and school, was bought for $10,000. New pews were placed in the church, altars remodeled, the interior decorated at a cost of $4,000, new and modern heating apparatus were installed in church parson- age and school, a new church organ, one of the finest in the city was procured for the sum of $6,000. The new parochial residence cost $10,000 The Shimer property on State street, which enhances the beauty and appearance of St. Mary's, was purchased for $5,000. These items, and many others that might be given, together with
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the annual running expenses of church and school for the past thirty-one years make a grand total of over $400,000 which have been received and disbursed during Father Mulheron's pastorate. The debt on the church property is now reduced to $12,000, which by the generosity of St. Mary's people will in a few years, be entirely liquidated. A tower upon the church with its chime of bells is only lacking. It is the fond hope of pastor and people that the comple- tion of the tower and the acquisition of the chimes will in the near future be accomplished and acquired.
And notwithstanding all this, although deeply involved in tem- poral affairs, Father Mulheron, during all these years, never lost sight of the spiritual welfare of his flock. He has been ever ready day and night to attend to their many wants. Nowhere, it can be safely said, have better opportunities been presented for the practice of religion than those held out by Father Mulheron for his people both young and old. Under his supervision various societies were organized. He has always taken a deep interest in the welfare of these societies and his efforts in their behalf are recognized and appreciated by all. His religious zeal and activity for the welfare of his parishoners have resulted in the following organizations :- The Young Ladies' Sodality, which, by the way, bears the reputation of being the largest in the diocese, if not in the state or nation; the Children of Mary, the Holy Name Society, the Rosary and Scapular, and the Boy's Sodality of the Holy Name of Jesus.
Father Mulheron has always had the interests of Catholicity at heart. He was instrumental in establishing the Auburn Orphan Asylum, fully recognizing the necessity of such an institution in our city, where the fatherless and motherless little ones might receive proper religious training under the guidance of the Sisters of St. Joseph. He threw his whole soul and energy into the work, and ever since its establishment has been its loyal and devoted friend.
About four years ago, under his direction and supervision, St. Edward's, a combination church and school, was erected in the
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southwestern part of the city, at a cost of over $14,000, for the accommodation of his parishioners in that vicinity. At present it is attended from St. Mary's, but in course of time will have its own pastor. He is now busily engaged in looking after the interests of the Italian population of the city. A site has been purchased in lower Clark street, in the center of the Italian colony, on which has already been built a parochial residence, costing nearly $3,000. It is expected that in a very short time the work on the new church, to be known as "St. Francis of Assisi," will be commenced. To both these enterprises St. Mary's people, although taxed heavily to meet their own demands, have contributed generously and in the same kindly and charitable spirit that has been so characteristic of them in the past.
The following priests have been assistants at St. Mary's for periods ranging from a few months to five years, and have ably assisted both Dr. Loughlin and Father Mulheron in all their under- takings :- Rev. Dr. Massino, once president of Allegheny College; Rev. Dr. Lynch, afterwards pastor of Ithaca; Rev. Eugene Pagani; Rev. Father Connelly; Rev. W. Morris, now of Denver, Col. ; Rev. Father Sturton; Rev. Father Russell; Rev. Joseph Hendrick, the present pastor of Ovid ; Rev. James Day, now of Mount Morris; Rev. James Hickey, at present pastor of Holy Apostles'Church, Rochester; Rev. Father Donnelly, of Victor; Rev. James J. Dougherty, now of Canandaigua; Rev. John J. McGrath, pastor of St. Aloysius', this city ; Rev. John Quinn, now of Mount Reid, ; Rev. James J. Gibbons, at present pastor of Newark; Rev. J. Francis O'Hern, of the Cathe- dral, Rochester; Rev. John B. Doran, of Groton; Rev. E. J. Dwyer, now assistant at the Holy Family this city, and the present assist- ants, Revs. John R. Fitzsimons and P. J. Smyth .- By P. J. S.
ST. ALOYSIUS' CHURCH.
St. Aloysius Church, 162 Van Anden street, the fourth organized church of the Roman Catholics of Auburn, was organized in 1901
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by the Rev. John J. McGrath, the present pastor of this one of the most rapidly growing parishes in the state.
Father McGrath is a graduate of the Troy Seminary. He was ordained priest by Bishop McQuaid, September 21, 1889, and prior to his appointment to St Aloysius in 1891, was for one year at the Cathedral in Rochester, and for five years assistant at St. Mary's in Auburn. After leaving St. Mary's he was for five years at Moravia,
Since his appointment to the pastorate of St. Aloysius, he has erected a magnificent combination church and school-house, a parish house, a convent and a parish hall ("The Grand" on Wall street in rear of the church) at a cost of many thousand dollars, and many days of volunteer labor by willing workers, whereby the people of St. Aloysius are possessed with an aggregation of up-to- date church work facilities not to be found in many other parishes.
ST. HYACINTH'S CHURCH (POLISH).
St. Hyacinth's Roman Catholic Church, Auburn's sixth and latest organized Catholic church was formed in 1905, and the next year an elegant $30,000 brick church and school-house combined erected, besides providing liberally for a priest's residence. Rev. St. J. Szupa, pastor of St. Hyacinth's Church, received his early education in the parochial school of Buffalo, after which he took his college course at the Polish Seminary and College, Detroit, Mich. He then went to Rome, Italy, and took a three years' course in the Polish college there. Returning to America he completed his studies by a two-year course in St. Bernard's College, Rochester, N. Y. He was ordained in 1905, and was then appointed to organize a parish, which grew into that of St. Hyacinth, his first and only charge. It is evident that Father Szupa is the right man in the right place, and that St. Hyacinth will soon become a most import- ant parish.
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CHAPTER XII.
HISTORY OF CAYUGA COUNTY.
The first inhabitants of Cayuga County of whom there is any authentic record were the Indians whose tribal name the county bears. How long they had dwelt upon their wild and beautiful domain, before the white man came, no man can say with certainty. As to how they came into the region of the seven lakes there is only the evidence of their own mythological legend. That, so far as it relates to places and their own achievements, is, probably, as credible as much of the ancient history of Old World peoples. Their story is colored with the pigment of superstition and the interjection of the supernatural, but the same may be said of the records of the Greeks and Romans.
According to the story, the remnant of a tribe of Indians, after a bloody war with a stronger tribe, fled from the northern shore of the St. Lawrence, ventured out upon Lake Ontario, and finally landed at Oswego. That was in a time so remote and vague that its words are like the whispers of the forest. Some estimate it as close to a thousand years ago.
The place where they landed and the stream they named Swageh. Ascending the river a short distance, they encamped on the high ground and there took up their permanent abode, finally becoming known as the Onun-da-ga-o-no, or Onondaga nation; the name signifying "People on the Hill." From this name and the location of the tribe came the Indian legend that they were actually called forth from the bowels of the earth at the foot of the hill where they first rested after the flight. Hawen-ne-yu, the Holder of the Heavens, released them from their subterranean prison, so the legend runs.
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As time elapsed the tribe became very numerous, and large bands separated from the parent colony, at different times, going far into the forest to find new hunting grounds and establish new tribes. One of these parties settled upon the Mohawk river and founded the Mohawk tribe; another developed into the Oneidas; a third into the Onondagas; a fourth into the Cayugas, from which the Senecas were an offshoot.
The Cayugas, according to their own tradition, were led in their excursions into the wilderness by Ta-oun-ya-wat-ha or Hi-a-wat-ha, a sort of demi-god partly human and partly divine. They reached Cayuga Lake through the Seneca River and made their home upon its banks becoming lords of the adjacent wilderness. On their journey from Oswego to Cayuga Lake they encountered many marvellous experiences, according to their chronicles-experiences surpassing those of the Trojans in their journey from Troy to Italy, and rivalling those of the fabled Perseus.
When they had reached the foot of Cayuga Lake they found the marshes swarming with all kinds of aquatic fowl including geese, ducks, plover and snipe. These birds were kept in a sort of con- finement by a pair of monstrous eagles, of tremendous strength and appalling appearance. These terrible guards would not permit any of the water fowl to leave the marshes, but herded them there and feasted upon them at will. When the Cayugas approached the marshes the eagles barred their way, refusing to permit them to proceed farther. This led to a terrible combat, for, of course, the Indians attacked them, and after a dire conflict killed the pair. The result of the battle not only proved the valor and prowess of the Cayugas, but conferred a great benefit upon all Indians, for the water fowl being liberated, took wing, with great clamor, and spreading upon all lakes and rivers afforded food for red men every- where. But the Cayugas had no sooner destroyed the terrible eagles than they were beset by another foe. Upon the marshes dwelt a
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monster mosquito. The Indians could not defeat him in com- bat; in fact he killed several braves, who risked an encounter, piercing them with his invincible sting. Failing to conquer him they were compelled to appeal to the Holder of the Heavens to come to their aid. The divinity came in response to their prayer, and before him the mosquito fled. But Ha-wen-ne-yu pursued chasing the monster around lake after lake and over the surrounding coun- try, finally overtaking him at the Seneca River, where he slew him. But the blood flowing from the death wounds of the great mosquito gave birth to innumerable swarms of small mosquitoes which may be seen to this day.
The wandering band entered Cayuga Lake from the Seneca River and settled upon the eastern bank. They were a nameless offshoot from the parent tribe at Oswego, until they settled, when they became known as the Cayugas or "People at the Mucky Land." Their original name was also pronounced Gwe-u-gweh-o-no.
It was not long before the tribe "swarmed" as its parent had, and the offshoot proceeded west to Seneca Lake, settled thereon and founded the Seneca nation. Some historians assume that the original band separated, one part going on into the Seneca country.
There is no account of battles with human foes, no recital of wars with the possessors of the country they had invaded, yet the Allegans, a fierce and powerful tribe, are supposed to have inhabited this land at one time. It is claimed by archaeologists that their territory extended from the Ohio River into Western New York, and the story of their overthrow is that the Huron-Iroquois and Algonquins united to make war upon them, and that after a pro- tracted conflict lasting for about one hundred years, the Allegans were driven out. That race is said to have been the one popularly known as the mound builders.
From the time the Cayugas settled upon the land until the advent of the Jesuit fathers, little is known of them, except that
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they lived their savage life, hunted, feasted, fought and loved in their wild way in their wild domain. Their wars with the neigh- boring tribes were finally terminated by the formation of the great Indian League known first as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations, after the admission of the Tuscaroras.
The Five Nations were known by the general name or title of Iroquois. The word is of French origin or is the French form of the Indian word Iroquoie. It has been supposed that the French gave the name to the five tribes, related not only by blood, tradition and treaty, but also by languages which were but different dialects of one parent tongue. But some philologists boldly affirm that there are traces of the Iroquois speech in the ancient Sanscrit, and are ready with many arguments to sustain their contention. Some Iroquois traditions bear a startling resemblance to passages in the Book of Dzyan, supposed to be the oldest book in the world, and some Iroquois' words in both formation and meaning suggest their origin in the great language of antiquity.
The word Iroquois means "the chain that can never be broken," and while this may have referred to the great Indian Confederacy of the Five Nations, it may have had a more ancient and mystical significance. It is generally conceded that the ancestors of the American Indians came from Asia, and probably were Hindoos. The Iroquois call themselves "The People of the Long House," which, no doubt, was a metaphor representing their great League as a lodge extending from the Hudson to the Niagara, and in which dwelt all the five tribes.
The first mission founded among the Cayugas was in 1656, and soon after the establishment of the Onondaga Mission from which missionaries were delegated to labor among the Cayugas and Senecas. The Cayugas had been represented at the first missionary conncil at Onondaga, when they were received with much formality. Saonchiogwa, the head chief of the Cayugas, was very cordial to the "Black Robes," as the priests were called and assured them of his
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desire to receive them as brothers. A representative Cayugan in his nation asked that one of the fathers might be sent to them, assuring them that a chapel would be built for their use. The request was granted, and Father Menard was sent to the Cayugas, arriving in August, 1656. He found, however, a great antipathy not only to the faith but to his own person. This dislike had come to the Cayugas through the Hurons, who insisted that the mission- aries brought them sickness and misfortunes. But the principal men of the Cayugas, from motives of policy, did not break with the missionary, and set their Huron slaves to work to build a chapel, which at the end of two days was completed and ready for occu- pancy. Father Menard spread the floor with "beautiful mats" and arranged two images in the chapel, one of our Lord and the other of our Lady. The effect, Menard relates, "so greatly surprised our barbarians that they came in crowds to consider it and gaze upon the countenances and movements of the two images." Many con- verts were made not only of the Hurons and slaves, but also from the natives of the country. Many brought their children to him for baptism and aided him in teaching them prayers while repeat- ing them after him.
The first person baptized was a man eighty years old. The second was a cripple deformed by a cancer, who had been a renowned warrior and who was much esteemed by the Cayugas. His conver- sion to the Christian faith led many others to embrace it, not only by his influential example, but through the zeal of his discourse. But Menard met the difficulties common to all the early French missionaries. He said: "Our faith is accused of being the murderer of all who profess it, and the cause of all the evils both public and private with which they were afflicted: that the children died two years after baptism and that those who adopted the Christian faith, either broke a leg, or pierced their foot with a thorn, or became emaciated, or vomited up the soul with the blood, or were attacked with some other signal malady." These superstitious notions of
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the Indians often put the lives of the missionaries in jeopardy. Menard was accused by some of being a sorcerer, by others that he had the power of life and death over the people; that he could if he so willed heal the sick, and if they died he was responsible for their death. Some of the more suspicious desired to remove him, but were restrained by others.
Menard gained many converts, however, at his first visit, but at the end of two months left for Onondaga. He returned to the mission after a brief absence, accompanied by several Frenchmen and also by many prominent Cayugas who had visited him at Onondaga to urge his return, and resumed his labors. A war which broke out between the French and the Five Nations in 1658, caused the missionaries to return to Canada. This war lasted two years. Though the influence of Garacontie the chief sachem of the Onon- dagas and a firm friend of the missionaries, a delegation headed by the Chief of the Cayugas, Saonchiogwa, was despatched to Montreal to negotiate peace. They arrived in July, 1660, without previous notice to the French that they wished for peace. Presents were bought as pledges of this desired peace and they were explained by Saonchiogwa who stipulated that, "A black gown must come with me, otherwise no peace. And on his coming depends the lives of twenty Frenchmen. " The proposal was accepted and Father Le Moyne, who had visited them several years before and was well known to them, was sent. Le Moyne remained for some time with the Cayugas assisting in caring for the sick and finding an ample field for the exercise of his zeal. The missions were now interrupted by eight years of war between the Iroquois and the French. Upon its termination in 1668 the faithful Garacontie succeeded in re-establishing them. Father Etienne DeCarheil arrived at Cayuga on the 6th of November, 1668; a chapel was built for him and the mission dedicated to St. Joseph. Father DeCarheil experienced great difficulty in overcoming their super-
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