Edward Fenwick
Encyclopedia
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
) - d. September 26, 1832, Wooster, Ohio
Wooster, Ohio
Wooster is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio approximately SSW of Cleveland and SW of Akron. Wooster is noted as the location of The College of Wooster...
) was born on the Patuxent river, Maryland (then a colony) to Colonel Ignatius Fenwick and Sarah Taney. Colonel Fenwick was a military figure of the American Revolution and one of the early Catholic families of Maryland; he was educated, aged 16, at the College of Bornheim, near Antwerp, Belgium.
Upon completion of his studies he entered the Dominican Order
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
and entered the seminary at Bornheim as a theological student. After ordination he became a professor at the Dominican College. Belgium being invaded during the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, Fenwick was initially imprisoned under threat of death, but later released upon proof of his American citizenship. After release from prison he travelled to England and entered a convent of the Dominican Order
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
.
He returned to the United States anxious to establish the Dominican Order. He was received by Bishop John Carroll, who suggested that Fr. Fenwick and the Dominicans who accompanied him should evangelize the vast regions of the United States west of the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
, including the territories acquired in the 1803 Louisiana Purchase
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America of of France's claim to the territory of Louisiana in 1803. The U.S...
.
In 1805, Fr. Fenwick traversed the entire Mississippi Valley looking for a central location to continue his missionary work. The other three Dominican priests were Samuel Thomas Wilson, a Master of Sacred Theology, Robert Antoninus Angier, a Lectorate in Sacred Theology and Preacher General, and William Raymond Tuite.
Fr. Fenwick selected a site in Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 10,916. Its county seat is Springfield. The county is named for George Washington. Washington County was the first county formed in the Commonwealth of Kentucky when it reached statehood...
, near Springfield, Kentucky
Springfield, Kentucky
Springfield is a city in and county seat of Washington County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,634 at the 2000 census. It was established in 1793 and probably named for springs in the area.-Geography:...
. Construction of a priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
and a church began almost immediately and was first inhabited in December 1806 but not completed until 1807. St. Rose Priory
St. Rose Priory
St. Rose Priory, a house of the Dominican Order, was the location of the first Catholic educational institution west of the Allegheny Mountains....
church was dedicated December 25, 1809. Saint Thomas of Aquinas College was added later, completed in 1812. St. Rose Priory was the first Catholic educational institution west of the Alleghenies. The first Bishop of the new (in 1808) Diocese of Bardstown, Benedict Joseph Flaget
Benedict Joseph Flaget
Benedict Joseph Flaget was a U.S. bishop. He served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bardstown between 1808 and 1839, then as bishop of the Diocese of Louisville between 1839 and 1850 when the See was transferred to Louisville in 1839.-Education and Call to Ministry:At...
, used the priory until the Bardstown St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral was built.
On January 13, 1822, Edward Dominic Fenwick was consecrated as the first Bishop of the new Diocese of Cincinnati. The consecration was celebrated at Saint Rose Church as there was no cathedral in Cincinnati. He went to Europe in 1823 to raise funding for the new diocese and returned in 1826 with resources to begin the construction of the cathedral, parochial schools, and to found the convents of the Sisters of Charity
Sisters of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity as part of their name. The rule of Saint Vincent for the Daughters of Charity has been adopted and adapted by at least sixty founders of religious orders around the world in the subsequent centuries....
and of the Dominican
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
nuns.
In 1829 Bishop Fenwick established the St. Francis Xavier Seminary. This was the third oldest Catholic seminary in the United States and the oldest Catholic seminary west of the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. The Athenaeum of Ohio-Mount St. Mary Seminary claims its roots through the St. Francis Xavier Seminary and is located in Cincinnati.
In 1831 Bishop Fenwick initiated publication of The Catholic Telegraph diocesan newspaper. The weekly newspaper was carried by stage and riverboat to areas within the diocese's government, as well as to cities in Kentucky, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Maryland and the District of Columbia. The Catholic Telegraph is still in existence today as the oldest continuously-published Catholic newspaper in the United States.
Also in 1831, Bishop Fenwick founded The Athenaeum, which later evolved into Xavier University
Xavier University (Cincinnati)
Xavier University is a co-educational Jesuit university in the United States located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The University is the sixth-oldest Catholic university in the nation and has an undergraduate enrollment of about 4,000 students and graduate enrollment of 2,600 students. Xavier is primarily...
and St. Xavier High School.
After the college was established he returned to missionary work, visiting the Indian tribes in the Northwestern territory. Stricken by cholera he died in Wooster, Ohio
Wooster, Ohio
Wooster is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio approximately SSW of Cleveland and SW of Akron. Wooster is noted as the location of The College of Wooster...
on September 26, 1832, aged 64.
Several schools are named in his honor:
- Bishop Fenwick High SchoolBishop Fenwick High School (Peabody, Massachusetts)Bishop Fenwick High School is a private Roman Catholic high school in Peabody, Massachusetts. While located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, the school is operated independently and with the blessing of the Archdiocese...
, Peabody, MassachusettsPeabody, MassachusettsPeabody is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population is about 53,000. Peabody is located in Boston's North Shore suburban area.- History :... - Bishop Fenwick High SchoolBishop Fenwick High School (Franklin, Ohio)Bishop Fenwick High School is a parochial high school in Middletown, Ohio, USA. While it is in the city limits of Middletown, it has a Franklin mailing address.-History:...
, Franklin Township, OhioFranklin Township, OhioFranklin Township, Ohio may refer to:*Franklin Township, Adams County, Ohio*Franklin Township, Brown County, Ohio*Franklin Township, Clermont County, Ohio*Franklin Township, Columbiana County, Ohio*Franklin Township, Coshocton County, Ohio... - Fenwick High SchoolFenwick High SchoolFenwick High School is a private university-preparatory school located in Oak Park, Illinois, founded in 1929 as part of the Province of St. Albert the Great . It is the only school operated and staffed by the Catholic Order of Dominican friars in the United States. It is named in honor of...
, Oak Park, IllinoisOak Park, IllinoisOak Park, Illinois is a suburb bordering the west side of the city of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is the twenty-fifth largest municipality in Illinois. Oak Park has easy access to downtown Chicago due to public transportation such as the Chicago 'L' Blue and Green lines,... - Fenwick High School, Lancaster, OhioLancaster, OhioLancaster is a city in Fairfield County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 38,780. It is located near the Hocking River, approximately southeast of Columbus, Ohio. It is the county seat of Fairfield County...
(now the William V. Fisher Catholic High School) - Bishop Fenwick Middle School, Zanesville, OhioZanesville, OhioZanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 25,586 at the 2000 census.Zanesville was named after Ebenezer Zane, who had constructed Zane's Trace, a pioneer road through present-day Ohio...
Chronology
- August 19, 1768 - Born in Maryland Colony
- December 24, 1784 - Entered Holy Cross College, Bornheim, Belgium
- September 4, 1788 - Entered the Order of the Dominicans
- March 26, 1790 - Professed a Friar Preacher at Bornheim
- March 24, 1792 - Ordained Subdeacon at Ghent, France
- June 2, 1792 - Ordained a Deacon
- February 23, 1793 - Ordination as priest (date probable)
- Spring, 1794 - Put in charge of convent at Borheim
- 1795 - Joined college at Carshalton, Surrey, England (date approximate)
- November 11, 1800 - Entered Woburn Lodge for theological studies
- June 21, 1802 - Made procurator of the convent at Surrey, England
- September, 1804 - Sailed from London to return to America
- Spring, 1805 - Visited Kentucky to investigate founding a college or school
- June 22, 1805 - Appointed Superior of the Province of United States (Dominican)
- July, 1806 - Returned to Kentucky, purchased acreage near Springfield, KentuckySpringfield, KentuckySpringfield is a city in and county seat of Washington County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,634 at the 2000 census. It was established in 1793 and probably named for springs in the area.-Geography:...
to construct convent, college and church known as St. Rose. - October, 1807 - Petitioned for and was released from superiorship of the newly created Dominican Province of the United States (began mission work).
- 1807 to 1821 - Devoted time to missionary work, traveling throughout Kentucky and Ohio ministering to the Catholics.
- December 6, 1818 - Blessed first church in Ohio, at Somerset, Ohio (dedicated to St. Joseph).
- April 12, 1819 - Mass celebrated at Christ Church, Cincinnati for the first time (Christ Church was the first church in Cincinnati).
- June 19, 1821 - Appointed by Rome to the see of Cincinnati.
- January 13, 1822 - Consecrated Bishop at St. Rose Church, Springfield, KentuckySpringfield, KentuckySpringfield is a city in and county seat of Washington County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,634 at the 2000 census. It was established in 1793 and probably named for springs in the area.-Geography:...
, by Bishop Benedict Joseph Flaget, became first Bishop of Cincinnati and Ohio. - March 23, 1822 - Bishop Fenwick arrives in Cincinnati on horseback.
- December 5, 1822 - Christ Church, having been moved and reconstructed, is opened and services held. The church is now known as St. Peter.
- May 30, 1823 - Bishop Fenwick leaves for Rome, his trip expenses paid for by laymen in Cincinnati.
- August 6, 1823 - Arrives at Bordeaux, France.
- September 26, 1823 - Arrives at Rome, two days before election of Pope Leo XIIPope Leo XIIPope Leo XII , born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiore Girolamo Nicola Sermattei della Genga, was Pope from 1823 to 1829.-Life:...
. - October 6, 1823 - Is received in audience of Leo XII. Receives financial assistance, ecclesiastical articles, and 12 paintings.
- March 29, 1824 - Returns to Cincinnati.
- December 17, 1826 - Cathedral dedicated in honor of St. Peter.
- May 11, 1829 - Fenwick opens St. Francis Xavier Seminary.
- May 14, 1830 - Cornerstone laid for church dedicated to St. Francis Xavier.
- October, 1831 - Establishes The Athenaeum.
- October, 1831 - Establishes The Catholic Telegraph, oldest diocesan newspaper in America.
- September, 1832 - Died at Wooster, OhioWooster, OhioWooster is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio approximately SSW of Cleveland and SW of Akron. Wooster is noted as the location of The College of Wooster...