SAN FRANCISCO
441
SAN FRANCISCO
"Strangers have not been wanting, who, despising the
priests of the country, have desired to build a church
apart, and have it attended by priests of their own
tongue. Such pretensions, though based on some
specious reasons, have to some of the parish priests
savoured of schism".
Such were the conditions in the new diocese to which Bishop Alemany was appointed. He was born at Vich, Spain, 13 July, 1814, entered the Dominican Order in 1829, and in the following year, driven from Spain by government persecution, he went with a fel- low novice Francis Sadoc ViUarasa to Rome, where they continued their studies and were ordained priests on 27 March. 1837, at Viterbo. They applied to be sent to the Pnilippine mission, but were assigned in- stead to the United States, where Father Alemany became Provincial of St. Joseph's Province of the order. Ten years were spent in missionary work in Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee, dining which time they learned to speak and write English fluently. After Bishop Alemany's consecration he remained in Rome for a short time, and then, on his W'ay back to his diocese, he stopped at Lyons and Paris, where he collected some gifts of much-needed church furnish- ings, and in Ireland, where he arranged for volunteer teachers for his schools, and priests for his people. He finally reached San Francisco on the night of 6 Dec, 1850, accom{)anied by Father ViUarasa, O.P., and Sister Mary Goemare, a religious of the Dominican sisterhood. Father \'illarasa was for forty years sub- sequently commissar}- geiicial of the Dominicans in California, and died there in 1888. They found at San Francis('() only two churches: St. Francis's, a frame building attended l)y those who did not sjjcak Span- ish, and the old Mission Dolores for those who did. At Monterey the l)isli()i) established the first convent of nuns in California and St. Catherine's Academy, where he and Father ViUarasa taught until the arrival of Mother Louisa O'Neill and a band of nuns. The first Englisli-speaking student to enter the priory there in 18.")2 was Thomas O'Neill, b. in 1832 at Dun- gannon, Co. TjTone, Ireland. Aiter his ordination he spent more than fifty years in missionary work in the houses of the Dominicans in California.
Bishop Alemany devoted much time to meeting the many difficulties which the differences of ideas and forms held by the Catholics of English-speaking countries from those reared under the Si)anish system occasioned. In this he was aided by several pioneer priests, notably the Rev. John Shanuluin, who, or- dained at Mt. St. Mary's, iMninitshurg, Maryland, in 1823, after working many years in New York had gone out to California with the gold-seekers; Rev. Eugene O'Connell, and Rev. John Mc( iinnis. Father O'Con- nell was born 18 June, 181.') in ("o. Meath, Ireland, and ordained priest in 1842. When Bishop Alemany visited Ireland on his way home from Rome, he per- suaded Father O'Connell, who was then a professor in All Hallows College, to come out to San Francisco and direct the dioce-san seminary which he opened at once at Santa Inez. The bishop attended the first Plenary Council at Baltimore in May, 1852, and he was thus able to report substantial progress in his charge, with foundations of the Jesuits, Dominicans, Franciscans, Fathers of the Sacred Hearts, Sisters of Notre Dame, Sisters of St. Dominic, 31 churches, 38 priests and an estimated Catholic population of 40,000. A band of Sisters of Charity from Emmitsburg, Maryland ar- rived in August, 1852, and began their work in the schools. On 7 July, 1853 the bishop laid the corner- stone of St. Mary's Church, San Francisco, and hav- ing been notified of his elevation to the newly-created Archbishopric of San P'rancisco formally assumed the title 29 July, 1853. In order to obtain more priests and religious he sent Father Hugh P. Gallagher, who had gone to San Francisco from Pittsburg, Penn., to Ireland, where he succeeded in securing two bands of
Presentation Nuns and Sisters of Mercy, who arrived
at San Francisco 15 Nov., 1854. The Sisters of Mercy
came from Kinsale, Co. Cork, and were led by the
famous Mother Mary Baptist (Kate Russell) sister of
Lord Russell of Killowen. After a life full of great
utility, she died in Aug., 1898 at St. Mary's Hospital,
San Francisco, which she founded and directed for
more than forty years. Father Gallagher, who had
edited a CathoHc paper at Pittsburg, took up that
work also in San Francisco, where he directed its first
Catholic weekly, the "Catholic Standard". He was
for many years rector of St. Mary's Cathedral.
Among other pioneer priests should be mentioned
Fathers John Ingoldsby, John Quinn, John McGin-
nis, Patrick Mackin, William Kenny, Richard Car-
roll, who was head of the Diocesan Seminary of St.
Thomas Aquinas, James Croke, for a long period
vicar-general, Peter Grey, and John Prendergast, also
vicar-general.
Progress was manifest in the rural sections, churches also springing up at Sacramento, Weaver- ville, Marysville, Grass Valley, Stockton, Placerville, San Mateo, Dalton, and Nevada. A Chinese priest, Father Kian, was even present (1854) for the benefit of his fellow-countrymen. The titles to the old mis- sion property were also secured by legal action. In 1858 the archbishop visited Rome and en 15 July, 18G2 convened the first diocesan synod, which was attended by fortj'-four priests. At this the decrees of the Baltimore Coinicil were ])ronHilgated, and rules prescribed for the administration of the diocese. The year before the increase of the cliurches in the north- ern section of the diocese prompted the Holy See to establish there the Vicariate Apostolic of Marysville and the Kev. Eugene O'Connell was api)ointed to take charge. He was consecrated titular Bishop of Fla- vioi)olis, and Vicar Apostolic of Marvsville, 3 Feb., ISGl, in All Hallows College, Dul)lin," Ireland. He reached Marysville 8 June, and was inducted on the following day at St. Joseph's Pro-cathedral by Arch- bishop Alemany. He had only four priests in his vicariate, which included the territory from 39° to 40° N. lat. and from the Pacific Coast to the eastern boundary of Nevada. In 1868 the vicariate was erected into the Diocese of Grass Valley, and Bishop O'Connell was tranferred to this title 3 Feb. of that year. On 28 May, 188C the Diocese of Sacramento (q. V.) was created out of this Grass Valley district, with the addition of ten counties in California and one in Nevada, and Bishop O'Connell ruled it until 17 March, 1884, when he resigned and was made titular Bishop of Joppa. He died at Los Angeles 4 Dec, 1891.
The succeeding decades gave no respite to the ac- tivity and zeal of Archbishop Alemany in furthering the progress of the Church, and the weight of years and the stress of his long but willing toil began to tell on him. He asked for a coadjutor, and the Rev. Patrick William Riordan, pastor of St. James's Church, Chicago, was selected by the pope for the office. He was consecrated titular Bishop of Cabesa and coadjutor of San Francisco with right of succes- sion, Hi Sept., 1883. Archbishop Alemany resigned the title of San Francisco 28 Dec, 1884 and retired to his native Spain, wherehed. 14 April, 1888 at Valencia. When he resigned the diocese had 131 churches, 182 priests, 6 colleges, 18 academies, 5 asylums, 4 hos- pitals, and a Catholic population of about 220,000.
Archbishop Patrick William Riordan, who imme- diately succeeded him, was born 27 Aug., 1841, at Chatham, New Brunswick. His early studies were made at Notre Dame University, Indiana, whence he went to Rome as one of the twelve students who formed the first class that opened the North American College, 7 Dec, 1859. From there he went to the University of Louvain, and received the degree of S.T.D. He was ordained priest at Mechlin, Bel-
