March 24, 1989 The Message -- for Catholics of Southwestern Indiana 11
Catholic school tradition
i.ooking at early years of Catholic education in southern Indiana
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TRADITION
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By FR. RAYMOND L. KUPER
Director of Catholic Education
This is the second article in a
series written by Father Kuper
on the history of Catholic
education in Indiana. Historical
material is derived from the "
"History of Catholic Education
in Indiana" written by Sister
Mary Salesia Godecker, O.S.B.
1824 introduced a marked
change in the small town of
Vincennes, which had between
1,000 and 1,500 residents. Four
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth,
Ky., arrived and assumed the
educational responsibilities of
establishing an academy and a
day school in Vincennes. In
1826, the superior, Sister Har-
riet Gardener, died during an
epidemic.
In 1830, these sisters opened
an academy and day school at
St. Peter Church, Montgomery.
They also opened a school in
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St. Mary Church, Daviess Coun-
ty. Life in the frontier was ex-
tremely difficult and they were
often deprived for months of
Mass and the sacraments. In
1834, the year they were re-
called to Nazareth, Vincennes
became the thirteenth diocese
in the United States.
The new diocese included all
of the state of Indiana and the
eastern half of Illinois; there
were three priests and one
bishop, Bishop Simon William
Gabriel Brute de Remur.
In July of 1835, Bishop Brute
set out for France to recruit men
and women as well as the finan-
cial means to develop his new
diocese. Before he left, he per-
suaded the Sisters of Charity to
return and reopen their school
and academy at Vincennes. He
said, "Without schools,
religion can never be firmly
established."
In those days, aside from the
Catholic schools, the only
education available was
through private schools or from
teachers who circulating to
families who could afford to
employ them.
Upon his return from France,
Bishop Brute was able to fund
two free schools, one for boys
and one for girls. This was the
start of free school education in
the state. Public schools were
not organized until 1850 under
the Indiana constitution.
In Vincennes, Bishop Brute
also founded an ecclesiastical
seminary, a college for secular
students, an academy for young
ladies and an orphan asylum. It
was his plan that this system,
which was complete from
elementary through collegiate
for both sexes, would serve as a
model for the rest of the
diocese. The academy, elemen-
tary schools and orphan asylum
were operated by the Sisters of
Nazareth until 1838 when the
Sisters of Charity from
Emmittsburg, Md., took over.
In 1841, a school was opened
at St. Joseph Church in Vander-
burgh County; in 1845 a school
was opened for St. Joseph
parish in Jasper. In 1847,
schools were opened at St.
Wendel and St. Philip. St.
Celestine opened its school
doors in 1850. Most of these
schools continued to operate,
some as parochial schools and
others becoming public
school.s.
Bishop Brute died on June 26,
1839. His successor, the vicar
general of the diocese, Father
Celestin de la Hailandiere, was
in France soliciting helpers and
aid for the fledging Vincennes
Diocese. He was consecrated a
bishop and successor on
August 18, 1839, Shortly
thereafter, he returned to
Vincennes to take charge of his
diocese. However, before he left
France, he succeeded in obtain-
ing a group from the Order of
Rudists to take charge of St.
Gabriel's College in Vincennes.
More significantly, he obtained
the promise of a community of
l-'eace
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direction of Mother Theodore
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In September 1841, Father
Sorin of the Congregation of the
Holy Cross arrived in Vincen-
nes with six brothers. They set-
tled in Montgomery.
Father Stephen Bodin, the
first priest ordained in the
United States, had purchased a
section of land near the village
of South Bend. In 1836, Father
Bodin gave the title to the
Bishop of Vincennes, who gave
it to the Holy Cross congrega-
tion. They moved there in 1842
and in 1843 layed the cor-
nerstone of the first college
building of the future Notre
Dame University. In 1854, a
cholera epidemic almost ex-
tinguished Notre Dame. In
1879, a fire consumed almost
the entire campus, but it im-
mediately grew from the ashes
to become the world class in-
stitution it is today.
Next week: The Diocese of
Vincennes is divided.
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THANKS TO THE SACRED Heart of
Jesus, St. Jude and the Blessed
Mother for prayers answered.
D.A.R.
THANK YOU INFANT JESUS of
prayer, Sacred Heart, Holy Spirit,
Blessed Mother, St. Jude and St.
Joseph for favors granted.
MAY THE SACRED HEART OF
JESUS be adorned, glorified, loved
and preserved throughout the world,
now and forever. Sacred Heart of
Jesus, pray for us. St. Jude, worker of
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i D.A.R.
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