J.A.M. Pelamourgues
Encyclopedia
Jean-Antoine-Marie Pelamourgues (1807–1875) was a French missionary who was one of the first Roman Catholic priests to serve in the Diocese of Dubuque
in the state of Iowa
. He served as the first pastor
of St. Anthony's Church
in Davenport, Iowa
from 1839-1868.
, in the Department of Aveyron
, France
. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Rodez
.
After Bishop Mathias Loras
was consecrated as the first bishop of Dubuque in Mobile, Alabama
in 1837 he set sail for Europe to recruit priests for his new diocese. While in France he recruited two priests, Joseph Crétin
and Pelamourgues, as well as four seminarians: Augustin Ravoux
, Lucien Galtier
, James Causse, and Remigius Petiot. They made a difficult voyage of 54 days across the Atlantic Ocean
in the Autumn of 1838. They attributed their safe passage to the intercession of St. Cessianus, whose relics had been given to Loras by Pope
Gregory XVI while he was in Rome
. The priests had celebrated Mass at an altar constructed over the relics. The saint’s relics are now under the altar in St. Raphael’s Cathedral in Dubuque.
After they landed in New York
, Pelamourgues and the seminarians went to St. Mary's Seminary
at Baltimore
to learn English, while Loras and Crétin proceeded to St. Louis
to wait out the winter. In the spring the Rev. Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli
, OP, the only priest serving the Dubuque Diocese, traveled to St. Louis and escorted Loras and the others to Dubuque.
. Father Pelamourgues accompanied him on the journey. On the way back to Dubuque they visited the villages of the Sioux
tribes along the way. Pelamourgues stayed in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
for a month befored he was recalled.
In September 1839 Father Pelamourgues was assigned the first pastor of St. Anthony’s Church in Davenport. Until 1846 he also regularly visited Muscatine
, Burlington
, Iowa City, Columbus Junction
, DeWitt
and Lyons
, which is the north side of present day Clinton
. He also took pastoral responsibility for the people in Stephenson, Illinois, which was across the Mississippi River
from Davenport. The town is now the city of Rock Island
.
Bishop Loras desired the conversion of the Native American peoples of his diocese to Christianity
. He gave various priests the pastoral responsibility for a particular tribe. Father Pelamourgues was given the care of the Sac (or Sauk) and Fox
tribes. Father Pelamourgues was not successful in this part of his mission. However, there is one story that illustrates that his failure was not from want of trying. When he was visiting Burlington, he was told of a Native American in Agency City
. He immediately set out to attend the dying man but was stopped by a guard who informed him that if he entered the tribe’s reservation he would be imprisoned. Father Pelamourgues determined that his responsibility was to the dying man and so he continued on. He was taken prisoner for two or three days until General Joseph M. Street
returned.
Davenport had a small French community and a larger, and growing, Irish community. Pelamourgues was aware that his ability to speak English was minimal at best, and so he studied so as to be able to both read and speak English fluently. When German immigrants started moving to Davenport he started to learn that language as well. He also taught English to other new priests to the diocese.
When Pelamourgues first arrived at St. Anthony’s, the church building was used for various community functions as it was the largest structure in the small town. He resided in the gallery of the church, which was separated from the rest of the space by rough boards. Eventually a residence was created for him on the main floor of the building.
As soon as Father Pelamourgues arrived in Davenport he started a school at St. Anthony’s, and he served as its first teacher. It was the first school established in the small town. Classes were taught in the church proper itself with a curtain pulled across the altar area. He had an addition built onto the building in 1843, and he convinced the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
to open a school in Davenport. Financial difficulties forced the sisters to leave after a year. They returned in 1855 to establish Immaculate Conception Academy, and to teach the girls at St. Anthony’s School. Pelamourgues also desired brothers to teach the boys, but declined Bishop Loras' offer to send French Brothers. He said a French pastor was all an Irish community could handle. He continued to teach the boys. He was known as a strict disciplinarian, and believed it was important to teach his students a trade. His most prominent pupil was John Forrest Dillon
who would go to become the chief justice
of the Iowa Supreme Court, and a United States District Court
judge appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant
.
In 1850 Pope Pius IX established the Diocese of St. Paul
, and Father Crétin was appointed as its first bishop. Pelamourgues was assigned by Bishop Loras to replace Crétin as vicar general
of the Diocese of Dubuque. After Bishop Crétin's death seven years later, Father Pelamourgues was chosen to succeed him in St. Paul. Pelamourgues was dismayed by the appointment and when he received his letter of appointment he responded to the Holy See
with a letter declining the office. His reasons were accepted and Pelamourgues remained in Davenport. In 1865 when Loras' successor, Bishop Clement Smyth
died, Pelamourgues served as administrator of the Dubuque Diocese. He was on the list of names that was sent to the Holy See
to replace Smyth. Father Pelamourgues was also an early promoter of Davenport being named a see city when the question arose concerning the division of the Dubuque Diocese.
In 1850 plans were being drawn up to construct a new church at St. Anthony’s. It was a simple structure built of stone in the Greek Revival style. The building was 84 by 44 feet and completed in 1853. St. Anthony’s was never a wealthy community in the years that Pelamourgues was pastor, and so it took time to carry out the building project. Pelamourgues himself left Davenport and traveled to his native France in 1852 to visit his ailing father.
As Davenport continued to grow so did St. Anthony’s, and there were needs that Father Pelamourgues could not accomplish on his own. German immigrants began to settle in Davenport, and so he helped to establish St. Kunigunda
parish to serve their pastoral needs in 1855. The following year he and Antoine LeClaire were instrumental in establishing St. Margaret’s on the bluff to the east of downtown and St. Anthony’s lost its long time parishioner and benefactor. While he helped establish St. Kunigunda he was opposed to a church that was only for German speaking people. When the German pastor, Rev. Michael Flammang, refused to serve the needs of the Irish who settled in the westend, Pelamourgues threateneed to build a new church under his nose. In 1867 Pelamourgues established St. Mary’s
parish on the Catholic cemetery property in the west end, two blocks from St. Kunigunda. He served both St. Anthony's and St. Mary's as pastor until a resident pastor was assigned to St. Mary’s in 1868.
came to Davenport raising money for a new school in DeWitt
. She saw the conditions at the county poorhouse, and was asked to take over care of the sick and poor. Through his attorney, Father Pelamourgues assisted Mother Borromeo in acquiring the property where the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary had initially established a girl's school at the end of Marquette Street for Mercy Hospital. Pelamourgues lived out his remaining days in Rodez and died there in 1875.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the northeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States. It includes all the Iowa counties north of Polk, Jasper, Poweshiek, Iowa, Johnson, Cedar, and Clinton counties. ...
in the state of Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. He served as the first pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of St. Anthony's Church
St. Anthony's Catholic Church (Davenport, Iowa)
Saint Anthony's Catholic Church is a parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport. The church is located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, at the corner of 4th and Main Streets. It is the first church congregation organized in the city of Davenport and the second, after St. Raphael's...
in Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
from 1839-1868.
Early Life & Ministry
Pelamourgues was born in the city of RodezRodez
Rodez is a town and commune in southern France, in the Aveyron department, of which it is the capital. Its inhabitants are called Ruthénois.-History:Existing from at least the 5th century BC, Rodez was founded by the Celts...
, in the Department of Aveyron
Aveyron
Aveyron is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.- History :Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Rodez
Roman Catholic Diocese of Rodez
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rodez is an diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The Episcopal seat rests in Rodez. The diocese corresponds exactly to the Department of Aveyron ....
.
After Bishop Mathias Loras
Mathias Loras
Bishop Mathias Loras was an immigrant French priest to the United States who later became the first bishop of the Dubuque Diocese in what would become the state of Iowa.-Early Life & Ministry:...
was consecrated as the first bishop of Dubuque in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
in 1837 he set sail for Europe to recruit priests for his new diocese. While in France he recruited two priests, Joseph Crétin
Joseph Crétin
Joseph Crétin was the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Saint Paul, Minnesota. Cretin Avenue in St. Paul, Cretin-Derham Hall High School, and Cretin Hall at the University of St. Thomas are named for him....
and Pelamourgues, as well as four seminarians: Augustin Ravoux
Augustin Ravoux
Augustin Ravoux was a French Jesuit priest and missionary who served in the area preceding Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, in Minnesota....
, Lucien Galtier
Lucien Galtier
Lucien Galtier was the first Roman Catholic priest who served in Minnesota. While he was a native of France, the place of his birth is uncertain and even the year, some sources claiming 1811 but his tomb bearing the date December 17, 1812. In the 1830s, people were settling across the Minnesota...
, James Causse, and Remigius Petiot. They made a difficult voyage of 54 days across the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
in the Autumn of 1838. They attributed their safe passage to the intercession of St. Cessianus, whose relics had been given to Loras by Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
Gregory XVI while he was in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. The priests had celebrated Mass at an altar constructed over the relics. The saint’s relics are now under the altar in St. Raphael’s Cathedral in Dubuque.
After they landed in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Pelamourgues and the seminarians went to St. Mary's Seminary
St. Mary's Seminary and University
St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Roman Catholic seminary in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States of America.-History:...
at Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
to learn English, while Loras and Crétin proceeded to St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
to wait out the winter. In the spring the Rev. Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli
Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli
Father Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli, O.P. was a pioneer Italian Catholic missionary who helped bring the church to the Iowa-Illinois-Wisconsin tri-state area. He founded a number of parishes in the area, and was the architect for a number of parish buildings.-Background:Father Mazzuchelli was born...
, OP, the only priest serving the Dubuque Diocese, traveled to St. Louis and escorted Loras and the others to Dubuque.
Pastor in Davenport
Bishop Loras went to Davenport, Iowa to make a pastoral visit and to dedicate St. Anthony's Church on May 23, 1839. While he was there the parishioners pleaded with the bishop for a parish priest. In July of the same year the bishop made a pastoral visit to the area around Fort Snelling in present day St. Paul, MinnesotaMinnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. Father Pelamourgues accompanied him on the journey. On the way back to Dubuque they visited the villages of the Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
tribes along the way. Pelamourgues stayed in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,911 at the 2010 census. Its Zip Code is 53821....
for a month befored he was recalled.
In September 1839 Father Pelamourgues was assigned the first pastor of St. Anthony’s Church in Davenport. Until 1846 he also regularly visited Muscatine
Muscatine, Iowa
Muscatine is a city in Muscatine County, Iowa, United States. The population was 22,886 in the 2010 census, an increase from 22,697 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Muscatine County...
, Burlington
Burlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,663 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and...
, Iowa City, Columbus Junction
Columbus Junction, Iowa
Columbus Junction is a city in Louisa County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,900 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Muscatine Micropolitan Statistical Area....
, DeWitt
DeWitt, Iowa
DeWitt is a city in Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,049 at the 2000 census. DeWitt was named after DeWitt Clinton , an early American politician who served as United States Senator and 7th Governor of New York.-Geography:...
and Lyons
St. Irenaeus Catholic Church (Clinton, Iowa)
Saint Irenaeus Church is a former parish of the Diocese of Davenport. The church was founded in the town of Lyons, which now the north side of Clinton, Iowa, United States. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2010....
, which is the north side of present day Clinton
Clinton, Iowa
Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 26231as of 2010. Clinton, along with DeWitt, Iowa , was named in honor of the seventh governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton. Clinton is the principal city of the Clinton Micropolitan Statistical...
. He also took pastoral responsibility for the people in Stephenson, Illinois, which was across the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
from Davenport. The town is now the city of Rock Island
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 40,884 at the 2010 census. Located on the Mississippi River, it is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Moline, East Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities...
.
Bishop Loras desired the conversion of the Native American peoples of his diocese to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. He gave various priests the pastoral responsibility for a particular tribe. Father Pelamourgues was given the care of the Sac (or Sauk) and Fox
Meskwaki
The Meskwaki are a Native American people often known to outsiders as the Fox tribe. They have often been closely linked to the Sauk people. In their own language, the Meskwaki call themselves Meshkwahkihaki, which means "the Red-Earths." Historically their homelands were in the Great Lakes region...
tribes. Father Pelamourgues was not successful in this part of his mission. However, there is one story that illustrates that his failure was not from want of trying. When he was visiting Burlington, he was told of a Native American in Agency City
Agency, Iowa
Agency is a city in Wapello County, Iowa, United States. The population was 622 at the 2000 census. It is the historic site of an Indian trading post and the grave of Chief Wapello.-History:...
. He immediately set out to attend the dying man but was stopped by a guard who informed him that if he entered the tribe’s reservation he would be imprisoned. Father Pelamourgues determined that his responsibility was to the dying man and so he continued on. He was taken prisoner for two or three days until General Joseph M. Street
Joseph M. Street
General Joseph Montfort Street was a 19th-century American pioneer, trader and US Army officer. During the 1820s and 1830s, he was also a U.S. Indian Agent to the Winnebago and later to the Sauk and Fox tribes after the Black Hawk War. His eldest son was Joseph H.D...
returned.
Davenport had a small French community and a larger, and growing, Irish community. Pelamourgues was aware that his ability to speak English was minimal at best, and so he studied so as to be able to both read and speak English fluently. When German immigrants started moving to Davenport he started to learn that language as well. He also taught English to other new priests to the diocese.
When Pelamourgues first arrived at St. Anthony’s, the church building was used for various community functions as it was the largest structure in the small town. He resided in the gallery of the church, which was separated from the rest of the space by rough boards. Eventually a residence was created for him on the main floor of the building.
As soon as Father Pelamourgues arrived in Davenport he started a school at St. Anthony’s, and he served as its first teacher. It was the first school established in the small town. Classes were taught in the church proper itself with a curtain pulled across the altar area. He had an addition built onto the building in 1843, and he convinced the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known by their initials BVM, is a Roman Catholic religious order founded in the United States by Mother Mary Frances Clarke. BVM Sisters work in twenty-five U.S...
to open a school in Davenport. Financial difficulties forced the sisters to leave after a year. They returned in 1855 to establish Immaculate Conception Academy, and to teach the girls at St. Anthony’s School. Pelamourgues also desired brothers to teach the boys, but declined Bishop Loras' offer to send French Brothers. He said a French pastor was all an Irish community could handle. He continued to teach the boys. He was known as a strict disciplinarian, and believed it was important to teach his students a trade. His most prominent pupil was John Forrest Dillon
John Forrest Dillon
John Forrest Dillon was an American jurist who served on both federal and Iowa state courts, and who authored a highly influential treatise on the power of states over municipal governments.-Early life and career:...
who would go to become the chief justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
of the Iowa Supreme Court, and a United States District Court
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
judge appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
.
In 1850 Pope Pius IX established the Diocese of St. Paul
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. It is led by the prelature of an archbishop which administers the archdiocese from the cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis...
, and Father Crétin was appointed as its first bishop. Pelamourgues was assigned by Bishop Loras to replace Crétin as vicar general
Vicar general
A vicar general is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ordinary executive power over the entire diocese and, thus, is the highest official in a diocese or other particular...
of the Diocese of Dubuque. After Bishop Crétin's death seven years later, Father Pelamourgues was chosen to succeed him in St. Paul. Pelamourgues was dismayed by the appointment and when he received his letter of appointment he responded to the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
with a letter declining the office. His reasons were accepted and Pelamourgues remained in Davenport. In 1865 when Loras' successor, Bishop Clement Smyth
Clement Smyth
Timothy Clement Smyth, OCSO was an Irish born 19th century bishop of the Catholic Church in the United States. He served as the second leader of the Diocese of Dubuque following the death of Bishop Mathias Loras....
died, Pelamourgues served as administrator of the Dubuque Diocese. He was on the list of names that was sent to the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
to replace Smyth. Father Pelamourgues was also an early promoter of Davenport being named a see city when the question arose concerning the division of the Dubuque Diocese.
In 1850 plans were being drawn up to construct a new church at St. Anthony’s. It was a simple structure built of stone in the Greek Revival style. The building was 84 by 44 feet and completed in 1853. St. Anthony’s was never a wealthy community in the years that Pelamourgues was pastor, and so it took time to carry out the building project. Pelamourgues himself left Davenport and traveled to his native France in 1852 to visit his ailing father.
As Davenport continued to grow so did St. Anthony’s, and there were needs that Father Pelamourgues could not accomplish on his own. German immigrants began to settle in Davenport, and so he helped to establish St. Kunigunda
St. Joseph's Catholic Church (Davenport, Iowa)
Saint Joseph Catholic Church is a former parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport. The church is located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, at the corner of Marquette and W. 6th Streets. It is listed on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties and on the National Register of...
parish to serve their pastoral needs in 1855. The following year he and Antoine LeClaire were instrumental in establishing St. Margaret’s on the bluff to the east of downtown and St. Anthony’s lost its long time parishioner and benefactor. While he helped establish St. Kunigunda he was opposed to a church that was only for German speaking people. When the German pastor, Rev. Michael Flammang, refused to serve the needs of the Irish who settled in the westend, Pelamourgues threateneed to build a new church under his nose. In 1867 Pelamourgues established St. Mary’s
St. Mary's Catholic Church (Davenport, Iowa)
Saint Mary's Catholic Church is a parish of the Diocese of Davenport. The church is located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, at the corner of Fillmore and W. 6th Streets. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church Complex...
parish on the Catholic cemetery property in the west end, two blocks from St. Kunigunda. He served both St. Anthony's and St. Mary's as pastor until a resident pastor was assigned to St. Mary’s in 1868.
Later life
In 1868 Pelamourgues visited his native France, but circumstances arose that prevented his return to Davenport. He was involved in establishing one more institution in the city, however. In 1869 Mother Mary Borromeo Johnson of the Sisters of MercySisters of Mercy
The Religious Order of the Sisters of Mercy is an order of Catholic women founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin, Ireland, in 1831. , the order has about 10,000 members worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations....
came to Davenport raising money for a new school in DeWitt
DeWitt, Iowa
DeWitt is a city in Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,049 at the 2000 census. DeWitt was named after DeWitt Clinton , an early American politician who served as United States Senator and 7th Governor of New York.-Geography:...
. She saw the conditions at the county poorhouse, and was asked to take over care of the sick and poor. Through his attorney, Father Pelamourgues assisted Mother Borromeo in acquiring the property where the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary had initially established a girl's school at the end of Marquette Street for Mercy Hospital. Pelamourgues lived out his remaining days in Rodez and died there in 1875.