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John Hughes (archbishop)
Encyclopedia
John Joseph Hughes was an Irish
-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church
. He was the fourth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York
, serving between 1842 and his death in 1864.
A native of Ireland
, Hughes was born and raised in the south of County Tyrone
. Hughes came to the United States
in 1817, and became a priest
in 1826 and a bishop
in 1838. A figure of national prominence, he exercised great moral and social influence, and presided over a period of explosive growth for Catholicism in New York. He was regarded as "the best known, if not exactly the best loved, Catholic bishop in the country." He also became known as "Dagger John" for his practice of signing his name with a dagger-like cross, as well as for his aggressive personality.
, part of the Province
of Ulster
in the north of Ireland
. He was the third of seven children of Patrick and Margaret (née McKenna) Hughes. In reference to the anti-Catholic penal laws
of Ireland, he later observed that, prior to his baptism
, he had lived the first five days of his life on terms of "social and civil equality with the most favored subjects of the British Empire
." He and his family suffered religious persecution in their native land; his late sister was denied a Catholic burial conducted by a priest, and Hughes himself was nearly attacked by a group of Orangemen
when he was about fifteen. He was sent with his elder brothers to a day school
in Augher
, and afterwards attended a grammar school
in Aughnacloy.
His father, a poor but respectable tenant farmer
, was forced to withdraw Hughes from school and set him to work one of his farms. However, being disinclined to farm life, he was placed as an apprentice to Roger Toland, the gardener
at Favour Royal, to study horticulture
. In 1816, his father emigrated to the United States
in 1816 and settled in Chambersburg
, Pennsylvania
. Hughes joined his father in Chambersburg the following year. He made several unsuccessful applications to Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg
, Maryland
, where he was eventually hired by Father John Dubois
as a gardener. During this time, he befriended Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton
, who was favorably impressed by Hughes and persuaded Dubois to reconsider his admission. Hughes was subsequently admitted as a regular student of Mount St. Mary's in September 1820. In addition to his studies, he continued to supervise the garden, and served as a tutor in Latin
and mathematics
as well as prefect over the other students.
, Hughes resolved to attach himself to the Diocese of Philadelphia
, then governed by Bishop Henry Conwell
. Bishop Conwell, while performing a visitation of his diocese, met Hughes at his parents' home in Chambersburg and invited him to accompany him on the remainder of his visitation. On October 15, 1826, Hughes was ordained
to the priesthood
by Bishop Conwell at St. Joseph's Church in Philadelphia.
His first assignment was as a curate
at St. Augustine's Church
in Philadelphia, where he assisted Father Michael Hurley in hearing confessions, preaching sermons, and other parochial duties. Later that year he was sent to serve as a missionary
in Bedford
, where he secured the conversions of several Protestants
. In January 1827, he was recalled to Philadelphia and named pastor
of St. Joseph's Church. He laboured afterwards at St. Mary's whose trustees were in open revolt against the bishop, and were subdued by Father Hughes only when he built St. Joseph's church, 1832, then considered one of the finest in the country. Previous to this, in 1829, he founded St. John's Orphan Asylum. About this period he was engaged in a religious controversy with Rev. John A. Brekenridge, a distinguished Presbyterian clergyman, with the result that Father Hughes's remarkable ability attracted widespread attention and admiration. His name was mentioned for the vacant see of Cincinnati and for the Coadjutorship of Philadelphia.
of Basileopolis. He succeeded to the bishopric of the diocese of New York on December 20, 1842 and became an archbishop
on July 19, 1850, when the diocese was elevated to the status of archdiocese.
Hughes, influenced by the reactionary stance of Pope Pius IX, was a staunch opponent of Abolitionism
and the Free Soil movement. In 1850 he delivered an address entitled "The Decline of Protestantism and Its Causes," in which he announced as the ambition of Roman Catholicism "to convert all Pagan nations, and all Protestant nations . . . Our mission [is] to convert the world—including the inhabitants of the United States—the people of the cities, and the people of the country . . . the Legislatures, the Senate, the Cabinet, the President, and all!"
He also campaigned actively on behalf of Irish immigrants, and attempted to secure state support for religious schools. He protested against the United States Government for using the King James Bible in public schools, claiming that it was an attack on Catholic constitutional rights of double taxation, because Catholics would need to pay taxes for public school and also pay for the private school to send their children, to avoid the Protestant translation of the Bible. When he failed to secure state support, he founded an independent Catholic school system which was taken into the Catholic Church's core at the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, 1884, which mandated that all Parishes have a parochial school and that all Catholic children be sent to those schools.
He founded Manhattan College
, St. John's College (now Fordham University
), Fordham Prep, the Academy of Mount St. Vincent (now College of Mount Saint Vincent
)and Marymount College
. and began construction of St. Patrick's Cathedral
. He served until his death. He was originally buried in old St. Patrick's Cathedral
and was exhumed and reinterred in the crypt under the altar of the new cathedral. Hughes founded the Ultramontane newspaper the New York Freeman
.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. He was the fourth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York covers New York, Bronx, and Richmond counties in New York City , as well as Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties in New York state. There are 480 parishes...
, serving between 1842 and his death in 1864.
A native of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Hughes was born and raised in the south of County Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
. Hughes came to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1817, and became a priest
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
in 1826 and a bishop
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
in 1838. A figure of national prominence, he exercised great moral and social influence, and presided over a period of explosive growth for Catholicism in New York. He was regarded as "the best known, if not exactly the best loved, Catholic bishop in the country." He also became known as "Dagger John" for his practice of signing his name with a dagger-like cross, as well as for his aggressive personality.
Early life and education
John Hughes was born in Annaloghan, County TyroneCounty Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, part of the Province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
in the north of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. He was the third of seven children of Patrick and Margaret (née McKenna) Hughes. In reference to the anti-Catholic penal laws
Penal Laws (Ireland)
The term Penal Laws in Ireland were a series of laws imposed under English and later British rule that sought to discriminate against Roman Catholics and Protestant dissenters in favour of members of the established Church of Ireland....
of Ireland, he later observed that, prior to his baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
, he had lived the first five days of his life on terms of "social and civil equality with the most favored subjects of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
." He and his family suffered religious persecution in their native land; his late sister was denied a Catholic burial conducted by a priest, and Hughes himself was nearly attacked by a group of Orangemen
Orange Institution
The Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...
when he was about fifteen. He was sent with his elder brothers to a day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
in Augher
Augher
Augher is a small village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is 18 miles southwest of Dungannon, on the A4 Dungannon to Enniskillen road, halfway between Ballygawley and Clogher. The 2001 Census recorded a population of 399....
, and afterwards attended a grammar school
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
in Aughnacloy.
His father, a poor but respectable tenant farmer
Tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is one who resides on and farms land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management; while tenant farmers contribute their labor along with at times varying...
, was forced to withdraw Hughes from school and set him to work one of his farms. However, being disinclined to farm life, he was placed as an apprentice to Roger Toland, the gardener
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
at Favour Royal, to study horticulture
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
. In 1816, his father emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1816 and settled in Chambersburg
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Chambersburg is a borough in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is miles north of Maryland and the Mason-Dixon line and southwest of Harrisburg in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley. Chambersburg is the county seat of Franklin County...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. Hughes joined his father in Chambersburg the following year. He made several unsuccessful applications to Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg
Emmitsburg, Maryland
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 2,290 people, 811 households, and 553 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,992.9 people per square mile . There were 862 housing units at an average density of 750.2 per square mile...
, Maryland
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...
, where he was eventually hired by Father John Dubois
John Dubois
Bishop John DuBois was the third bishop of the Roman Catholic diocese of New York. He was the first presiding bishop to reside in the diocese....
as a gardener. During this time, he befriended Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton
Elizabeth Ann Seton
Saint Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton was the first native-born citizen of the United States to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church . She established Catholic communities in Emmitsburg, Maryland....
, who was favorably impressed by Hughes and persuaded Dubois to reconsider his admission. Hughes was subsequently admitted as a regular student of Mount St. Mary's in September 1820. In addition to his studies, he continued to supervise the garden, and served as a tutor in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
as well as prefect over the other students.
Priesthood
As a deaconDeacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
, Hughes resolved to attach himself to the Diocese of Philadelphia
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well as Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties. The diocese was...
, then governed by Bishop Henry Conwell
Henry Conwell
Henry Conwell was a Roman Catholic clergyman. A priest in Ireland for over forty years, he served as Bishop of Philadelphia between Henry Conwell was born in Moneymore, County Londonderry, and studied at the Irish College in Paris, where his family had founded a burse. He was ordained to the...
. Bishop Conwell, while performing a visitation of his diocese, met Hughes at his parents' home in Chambersburg and invited him to accompany him on the remainder of his visitation. On October 15, 1826, Hughes was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
by Bishop Conwell at St. Joseph's Church in Philadelphia.
His first assignment was as a curate
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
at St. Augustine's Church
St. Augustine Church, Philadelphia
St. Augustine Catholic Church, also called Olde St. Augustine's, is a historic Catholic church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Consecrated in 1848, the Palladian-style church was designed by Napoleon LeBrun. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.The church was...
in Philadelphia, where he assisted Father Michael Hurley in hearing confessions, preaching sermons, and other parochial duties. Later that year he was sent to serve as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
in Bedford
Bedford, Pennsylvania
Bedford is a borough in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, west of the State Capital, Harrisburg. It is the county seat of Bedford County. Bedford was established in the mid-18th century. Population counts follow: 1890, 2,242; 1900, 2,167; 1910, 2,385. The population was 3,141 at the 2000...
, where he secured the conversions of several Protestants
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. In January 1827, he was recalled to Philadelphia and named 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. Joseph's Church. He laboured afterwards at St. Mary's whose trustees were in open revolt against the bishop, and were subdued by Father Hughes only when he built St. Joseph's church, 1832, then considered one of the finest in the country. Previous to this, in 1829, he founded St. John's Orphan Asylum. About this period he was engaged in a religious controversy with Rev. John A. Brekenridge, a distinguished Presbyterian clergyman, with the result that Father Hughes's remarkable ability attracted widespread attention and admiration. His name was mentioned for the vacant see of Cincinnati and for the Coadjutorship of Philadelphia.
Episcopacy
He was consecrated bishop on January 7, 1838 with the titular seeTitular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
of Basileopolis. He succeeded to the bishopric of the diocese of New York on December 20, 1842 and became an archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
on July 19, 1850, when the diocese was elevated to the status of archdiocese.
Hughes, influenced by the reactionary stance of Pope Pius IX, was a staunch opponent of Abolitionism
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
and the Free Soil movement. In 1850 he delivered an address entitled "The Decline of Protestantism and Its Causes," in which he announced as the ambition of Roman Catholicism "to convert all Pagan nations, and all Protestant nations . . . Our mission [is] to convert the world—including the inhabitants of the United States—the people of the cities, and the people of the country . . . the Legislatures, the Senate, the Cabinet, the President, and all!"
He also campaigned actively on behalf of Irish immigrants, and attempted to secure state support for religious schools. He protested against the United States Government for using the King James Bible in public schools, claiming that it was an attack on Catholic constitutional rights of double taxation, because Catholics would need to pay taxes for public school and also pay for the private school to send their children, to avoid the Protestant translation of the Bible. When he failed to secure state support, he founded an independent Catholic school system which was taken into the Catholic Church's core at the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, 1884, which mandated that all Parishes have a parochial school and that all Catholic children be sent to those schools.
Manhattan College
Manhattan College is a Roman Catholic liberal arts college in the Lasallian tradition in New York City, United States. Despite the college's name, it is no longer located in Manhattan but in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, roughly 10 miles north of Midtown. Manhattan College offers...
, St. John's College (now Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
), Fordham Prep, the Academy of Mount St. Vincent (now College of Mount Saint Vincent
College of Mount Saint Vincent
For the university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, see Mount Saint Vincent University The College of Mount Saint Vincent is a Catholic liberal arts college located in the northeast corner of the Riverdale section of The Bronx, New York, adjacent to the Yonkers border. It is the northernmost location in...
)and Marymount College
Marymount College
"Marymount College" may refer to:* Marymount College, a Roman Catholic school located in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia* Marymount College, a Roman Catholic school located in Adelaide, South Australia...
. and began construction of St. Patrick's Cathedral
St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York
The Cathedral of St. Patrick is a decorated Neo-Gothic-style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States...
. He served until his death. He was originally buried in old St. Patrick's Cathedral
St. Patrick's Old Cathedral, New York
The Basilica of Saint Patrick's Old Cathedral, or Old St. Patrick's, is located at 260-264 Mulberry Street between Prince and Houston Streets in the Nolita neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, with the primary entrance currently located on Mott Street...
and was exhumed and reinterred in the crypt under the altar of the new cathedral. Hughes founded the Ultramontane newspaper the New York Freeman
New York Freeman
The New York Freeman formally the New-York freeman's journal and Catholic register, was an American Catholic newspaper. It was owned at its inception by Bishop John Hughes....
.