Clackamas County OR Archives History - Books .....St. John's Church 1928 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/or/orfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Ila Wakley iwakley@msn.com September 13, 2009, 2:54 am Book Title: History Of The Columbia River Valley From The Dalles To The Sea, Vol. II, Pages 547-550 St. John's church of Oregon City is the oldest of any denomination in continuous use north of the California missions on the Pacific coast. The history of St. John's parish, therefore, reaches back to the beginning of the Catholic church in the Pacific northwest. Being the cradle of the archdiocese, the church stands out preeminently as a chief historical monument in this northwest country. In view of these facts, it is interesting to trace the history of St. John's parish and review its records from the advent of the first missionaries to the present time. The great mission of Oregon was founded November 24, 1838, on the arrival of Fathers Blanchet and Demers at Fort Vancouver. By briefs of December 1, 1843, it was erected into a vicariate apostolic, and on July 24, 1846, it became an ecclesiastical province with Oregon City as its metropolis and St. John's church, the first Cathedral church of the archdiocese of Oregon City. In October, 1842, Father Blanchet was accompanied by Dr. John McLoughlin to Oregon City, where they selected a site for a Catholic church. Dr. McLoughlin was the donor of the lots on which stand today the church and parochial school. Early in 1843 Rev. Modeste Demers was appointed the first pastor of the Oregon City congregation and went to reside in that town, where he remained until the end of April, 1845. For his lodging Father Demers rented a small house in which he held divine services on Sundays and holy days. It was there he celebrated the holy sacrifice of the mass for the first time at Oregon City, March 3, 1843. Parish records tell us that these services were well attended, even by Protestants, the majority of parishioners being, of course, the native Indians. On December 5, 1844, Monsignor Blanchet sailed for Europe, having appointed Father Demers his vicar general and administrator of the apostolic vicariate of Oregon. The Oregon City church was erected during his absence. Rev. P. DeVos, S. J., the successor of Father Demers, administered the affairs of the mission and church from May, 1845, to April, 1847. It was he who, duly authorized by ecclesiastical authority, on Septuagesima Sunday, February 8, 1846, blessed and dedicated the first church under the patronage of St. John the Evangelist. The names of Dr. John McLoughlin -— benefactor of the mission and "governor" of Oregon -— and of Walter Pomeroy, architect of the church which had been erected by him in 1845, are listed with those who were present at the dedication ceremonies. Mr. Pomeroy was a convert to the faith. The original church, a sixty by thirty foot structure (including the sanctuary), was built in the form of a cross at an approximate cost of twenty- five thousand dollars. Dr. John McLoughlin, chief benefactor of the mission, contributed six thousand dollars of this sum, and in addition, one thousand dollars for the building of a parsonage and support of a resident priest. To that great Catholic layman the Church of Oregon is infinitely indebted, for had he not given his charitable assistance, it would have been impossible to erect a Catholic church or support a resident priest. This is all the more evident from the fact that the average collection per Sunday then approximated only from five to six dollars. It is a well known fact, too, that Monsignor Blanchet obtained substantial help from the Society of the Propagation of the Faith -— a society established in France in the '30s of the last century -— to which the whole northwest church has reasons to be particularly grateful. Aid was also received from the Leopoldine Society of Bavaria. St. John's church has been twice enlarged. It was lengthened to ninety- five feet in 1902 and widened to fifty-four feet in 1913, thereby nearly doubling the seating capacity. The rededication took place August 17, 1913. The original church of 1845 still stands enlarged to its present dimensions and enhanced interiorly with devotional decorations. The lumber used for the ceiling of the original building was brought from Canada around Cape Horn. The rest of the lumber was obtained from native forests, beams of which, hewn twenty-four inches in diameter, may still be seen in the basement of the church. The total cost of both improvements amounted to nine thousand dollars. A parochial residence costing three thousand, two hundred dollars was completed in 1902 and in 1907 the McLoughlin Institute was added as the crowning feature of the educational system of the parish. This institution is the outgrowth of St. John's parochial and high schools and is named in honor of Dr. John McLoughlin, popularly known as the "Father of Oregon." In 1915 the church property was further improved by the erection of a residence for the Sisters. Although composed chiefly of working people, St. John's parish is noted for its generosity and in the annual archdiocesan subscriptions is among the first on every list. During the life of Archbishop Blanchet he often officiated at Oregon City while the pastors were sent on missions. Many other priests also officiated temporarily. Herewith are recorded the names of the pastors from the establishment of the mission in 1842 to the present: Rev. Modeste Demers -------------------------------------- ‘42 to ‘45 Rev. P. DeVos, S. J. ------------------------------------- '45 to ‘47 Rev. G. LeClare ------------------------------------------ ’47 to ‘50 Rev. C. Mesplie ------------------------------------------ ’47 to ‘50 Rev. James Croke ----------------------------------------- ’50 to ‘52 Rev. M. Accolti ------------------------------------------ ’52 to ‘53 Rev. M. C. Reilly ---------------------------------------- ’53 to ‘55 Rev. P. Mackin ------------------------------------------- ’55 to ‘59 Rev. A. J. Croquet --------------------------------------- ’59 to ‘60 Rev. T. P. Pauline --------------------------------------- ’56 to ‘63 Rev. Z. Vermeersch --------------------------------------- ’63 to ‘67 Rev. L. Dieleman ----------------------------------------- ’63 to ‘67 Rev. Father Piette --------------------------------------- ’63 to ‘67 Rev. E. P. Cazeau ---------------------------------------- ‘67 to ‘68 Rev. A. J. Glorieux (later bishop of Idaho) -------------- ’68 to ‘69 Rev. C. Delahanty ---------------------------------------- ’69 to ‘70 Rev. Julius De Craene ------------------------------------ ’70 to ‘72 Rev. L. Goens -------------------------------------------- ’72 to ‘75 Rev. G. B. VanLin ---------------------------------------- ’75 to ‘76 Rev. Patrick Gibney -------------------------------------- ’76 to ‘77 Rev. J. S. White ----------------------------------------- ’77 to ‘79 Rev. P. Mackin ------------------------------------------- ’79 to ‘80 Rev G. C. Thibeau ---------------------------------------- ’80 to ‘81 Rev. L. Gouden ------------------------------------------- ’81 to ‘83 Rev. James Rauw (later vicar general of the archdiocese) - ’83 to ‘88 Mgr. A. Hillebrand (present vicar general and pastor)----- ‘88 At first one might wonder that in forty years so many changes were made in regard to the pastors in charge of the parish. It must be borne in mind that in those days priests were often sent from Portland to hold services here; and that, up to 1885, Oregon City represented only a small community and, consequently only a small congregation; and that very few Catholic farmers had settled in the immediate neighborhood of the city. With the advent of the woolen mill in the early '60s the congregation grew to some extent. The building of the locks in 1871 brought additional families to the city. Then, with the establishment of the paper mills, the congregation increased so rapidly that the present pastor upon his arrival in 1888 found it expedient to give his attention exclusively to the city parish, whereas the spiritual jurisdiction of his predecessors, and even his own in the beginning, covered the entire territory of Clackamas county. The first members of the parish, as stated above, consisted chiefly of the Indians of the missions. Besides these, old church records mention the following names: Dr. John McLoughlin, Daniel Harvey, his son-in-law, Frank Wilde, Captain James O'Neill, J. N. Banker, Mr. Summers, James Smith, Harry Lambert, Michael O'Loughlin, Lawrence Burns, the wife of Dr. Barclay, Thomas Thornton, Frank Packett and John Klinger. Of the early pioneers of the mission, their descendants form not a small contingent of the parish today -— namely the McDonald, Chambers, Porter, Glennon, Armstrong, Meyer, Friederich, Gleason, P. Mooney-Summers, Thomas Mooney and Kelly families, upon whose whole- hearted financial support the present pastor can invariably rely. Oregon City is literally a polyglot parish, composed mainly of English, Irish, German, French, Polish, Slavonian, Slovanian and Lithuanian speaking nations; and the church membership is now about fourteen hundred souls. February 8, 1896, marked the fiftieth anniversary of the dedication of St. John's church -— an event which was fittingly commemorated with solemn high mass, a sermon by the Most Rev. Archbishop Gross, and solemn benediction. The church was filled with clergy from various parts of the diocese, friends from distant cities, members of the congregation, the children of the parochial school, and the Meade Grand Army Post of Oregon City. In the evening there was an elaborate entertainment, representing the best talent of the parish. Mr. Joseph Rice spoke in behalf of the congregation; Mayor H. Straight stressed the importance of freedom of worship; Miss Fannie Porter outlined the history of the parish; Commander Williams of the Grand Army of the Republic gave praise to the work of the Catholic Sisterhoods in the war; and His Grace the Most Rev. Archbishop Gross brought the memorable day to a happy conclusion by final words of approval and congratulation. For the men the parish has established the Catholic Knights of America and the Knights of Columbus. These two great Catholic lay societies include a large number of men in the parish today, who annually approach the holy table in a body on Easter Sunday -— a most edifying and inspiring spectacle. St. John's is also justly proud of its Ladies' McLoughlin Club, a live-wire organization unselfishly devoted to the material upbuilding of the parish. Special credit is due the ladies who in the summer of 1925 sponsored the movement for the interior decoration of the church. By means of bazaars and other social activities they succeeded in raising a sum of twelve hundred dollars for this purpose. The Altar Society is a distinct organization in which the ladies are also actively interested. The most precious object of historic veneration in connection with St. John's church is the last resting place of the remains of Dr. John McLoughlin and his wife, Margaret McLoughlin, who died three years after her husband. For many years the graves of Dr. McLoughlin and his wife were in the open churchyard -— the first Catholic cemetery -— alongside the original church, but in 1915, when the last addition was built to the church, the whole cemetery was covered. The headstones of both graves, however, are now enshrined in the walls of the church building, immediately above which there is a baptismal chapel containing a stained glass window with a fine figure of Dr. McLoughlin as a Knight of St. Gregory. This window was a gift to the church from P. F. Morey, first president of the Portland Railway, Light & Power Company. On Dr. McLoughlin’s tombstone is inscribed this epitaph: “Father of Oregon and Founder of this City." He died in 1857, twelve years after the erection of the church. Before this humble marble slab one may see many a tourist pausing in reverent silence to recall in retrospect the life and deeds of this great historic figure. St. John's parish has the unique record of being the first, and perhaps the only Catholic congregation on the Pacific coast, to hold special memorial services for the Grand Army of the Republic and the Women's Relief Corps. These two venerable associations have several times during the past years chosen St. John's church as their special meeting-place on Memorial Sunday -— the last occasion being in May, 1926. When the Most Rev. Archbishop Howard paid his first official visit to the cradle of the archdiocese it was a most significant occasion, for by a happy coincidence it marked the eightieth anniversary of the founding of this great northwestern province and of the dedication of an humble parochial church as the first cathedral church of the archdiocese of Oregon City. In the evening of His Grace's visit the Alumni Association of McLoughlin Institute presented a musical program and addresses were made by leading laymen of the congregation and prominent residents of Oregon City. Representing the congregation were: William L. Mulvey and the late James Brady, who were followed by Hon. Joseph E. Hedges, Dr. Hugh S. Mount, and E. E. Brodie, ex- minister to Siam, on behalf of the city. Additional Comments: The S. J. 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