BALTIMORE
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BALTIMORE
Streets) was used by them as a cliapel. A Catholic
school was established in Baltimore (1757) by Mary
Ann March, but was closed on account of the violent
persecution of Protestant clergymen. The historic
Whitemarsh mission was founded in 1760 by the Re\-.
John Lewis. Frederick Chapel (St. John's) was built
by Father Williams, S.J.; the church was built in
1800 by the Rev. John Dubois, at that time the only
priest between Baltimore and St. Louis. The present
church was consecrated in 1S37. In 1903 the Jesuits
gave up the church and no\-itiate. The Jesuit novi-
tiate was opened at Georgetown, D. C, 1806. During
the War of 1812, it was at St. Inigoes and Frederick
for a few years, then returned to Georgetown, was
removed to Whitemarsh about 1820, and to Frederick
in 1833, whence in 1903 it was finally removed to St.
Andrews-on-the-Hudson, near Poughkeepsie, New
York.
In 1669, the Catholic population numbered 2,000; in 1708 it was 2,979 in a population of 40,000; in 1755 about 7,000. In 1766, the following missions were attended by Jesuits: St. Inigoes, Newtown, Port Tobacco, Whitemarsh, Deer Creek, Fredericktown, Queenstown, Bohemia, and Baltimore. The twenty Jesuits on the Maryland mission at the time of their order's suppression (1773) remained at their posts. The first priest born in Maryland was the Rev. Robert Brooks (1663). His four brothers also became priests. Conspicuous for unselfish zeal at this period was Rev. William Hunter; whilst for over forty years Father George Thorold laboured in Maryland (1700- 42). The clergy was, in general, self-supporting. (Treacy, op. cit.; Extracts from Letters of Mis- sionaries, Baltimore, 1877; Shea, Life and Times of Archbishop Carroll, New York, 1888.)
(c) The Catholic Colonists. — The Catholic popula- tion, mostly rural, was generous to the Church and hospitable to the priest.s. We find many deeds and bequests for ecclesiastical purposes in the early rec- ords. Enduring one hundred j^ears of persecution from the Protestants to whom they had offered asylum, proscribed, disfranchised, offered peace and emolument in exchange for apostasy, the Catholics generally continued faithful, and it is inspiring to read the list of Catholic names that survived the dark days, and that are still in evidence on the Catholic roll of honour — Brent, Lee, Fenwick, Boar- man, Sewell, Lowe, Gardiner, Carroll, Neale, Jen- kins, Digges, Bowling, Edelin, Matthews, Lancaster, Stonestreet, Boone, Mattingly, Brooks, Hunter, Coombes, Spalding, Semmes, Dyer, Jamison, Queen, Hill, Gwynn, Wheeler, Elder, McAfee, Pye, Miles, Abell, Camalier, Smith, Plowden, Freeman, Maddox, Greenwell, Floyd, Drurj', Mudd, Hamilton, Clark, PajTie, Brock, Walton, DojTie, Darnall. During the American Revolution, Catholics, with very rare excep- tions, sided with the patriots; Marj-land's best Catholic names are to be found on the rolls of the Conti- nental army, both as officers and privates. The most prominent and influential citizen of Marj'land during this epoch was Charles Carroll of Carrollton, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. .\t this time only Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Delaware had removed the disabilities against Catholics. The National Convention (Philadelphia, 1787) granted religious liberty to all. (McSherry, Hist, of Maryland, Baltimore," 1882; Scharf, Hist, of Maryland, Baltimore, 1879.)
II. Americ.^jv Period. — Such were the conditions in Maryland when the first bishop was appointed. Speaking of this period in 1790 Bishop Carroll said "it is surprising that there remained even so much as there was of true religion. In general Catholics were regular and unoffensive in their conduct, such, I mean, as were natives of the country" — but he com- plains bitterly of the injury to the Faith caused by those Catholics who came to the colony about this
time (Shea, Life of Archbishop Carroll, 49). In fact
the Church began to recover from this scandal only
forty years after. Catholic Americans were subject
spiritually to English Catholic superiors (the arch-
priests), until 6 September, 1665, when Innocent XI
appointed Dr. John Leyburn, Vicar-Apostolic of all
Enc;land. The British Colonies in America remained
under the jurisdiction of Dr. Leyburn and his succes-
sors. Bishops Gitford, Petre, Challoner, and Talbot,
until the appointment of Dr. Carroll. After the
Revolution it was plain that the United States
could not conveniently remain subject in spirituals
to a superior in England. A meeting was called
at Whitemarsh (27 June, 1783) by the Rev. John
Lewis, Vicar-General of the Vicar Apostolic of
London. This meeting was attended by the Revs.
John Carroll, John Ashton, Charles Sewell, Ber-
nard Diderick, Sylvester Boarman, and Leonard
Neale. It resulted in a petition asking for the
appointment of the Rev. John Lewis as Superior,
with quasi-episcopal faculties. At this time the
French Minister to the United States schemed to
make the missions of the United States subject to
France. Benjamin Franklin, United States repre-
sentative to France, ignorant of the true state of
affairs, at first supported this intrigue. Congress,
however, informed Franklin that the project was one
"■nnthout the jurisdiction and power of Congress,
who have no authority to permit or refuse it". The
American priests then presented a memorial to Pius
VI. As a result the appointment of the Rev. John
Carroll as Superior of the missions of the United
States, with power to administer confirmation, was
ratified (9 June, 1784). He received the decree
appointing him Prefect Apostolic 26 November, 1784.
At this time, there were, according to Dr. Carroll,
15,800 Catholics in ilaryland (of whom 3,000 were
neg^roes); 7,000 Catholics in Pennsylvania; 200 in
Virginia; 1,.500 in New York. In 1782 the total
population of Maryland was 254,000. There were
nineteen priests in Maryland and five in Pennsylvania.
Dr. Carroll made his first visitation in Marj-land in
1785, and administered confirmation. About this
time he took up his residence in Baltimore, where
the Rev. Charles Sewell was pastor. In 1788, the
clergy petitioned Pius VI for the appointment of a
bishop. Their request was granted. They were per-
mitted to determine whether the bishop should be
merely titular, or should have a see in the United
States — and to choose the place for, as well as to elect
the occupant of the see.
Election of Bishop Carroll. — Twenty-four priests assembled at Whitemarsh. Twenty-three voted for Dr. Carroll, who was, accordingl)% appointed first Bishop of Baltimore, subject to the Roman Congre- gation of the Propaganda. Dr. Carroll was conse- crated in the chapel of Lulworth Castle, England, 15 August, 1790, the consecrator being the Right Rev. Charles Walmesley, Senior Vicar Apostolic of England. Before leaving England, Dr. Carroll arranged with the Sulpician Fathers to establish an ecclesiastical seminary in Baltimore at their own expense. Accordingly, the superior, the Rev. Francis Nagot with three priests and five seminarians arrived at Baltimore in July, 1791. The "One Mile Tavern" and four acres of land were purchased and on 18 July, St. Mary's Seminary was opened.
(a) Progress of Catholicism. — The next year the Revs. J. B. David and B. J. Flaget, afterwards Bishops of Bardstown (LouisviUe), Kentucky, with Mr. Stephen Badin who was the first priest ordained in Baltimore (1793), arrived. In 1787, the Rev. Jo- seph Mosley died leaving about 600 communicants on the Eastern Shore, where he had laboured twenty-two years. At this time there was only one other priest stationed there. The next year the veteran John Lewis died, being the last of the Superiors of the origi-
