In the 1850s, more than 150,000 Germans had come to the United States, and many were trickling into southern Indiana. Early in the 1880s and throughout that decade many German Catholic farmers came from the parishes in southern Indiana and settled in the vicinity of Owensboro.
A frantic knocking echoes through the Fitzgerald house one summer morning in 1863. The door swings open to reveal a priest standing on the stoop with his hands earnestly pressing something to his chest.
In November, the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC) gathered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The event is highly praised for its ability to ignite enthusiasm and draw young Catholics closer to Christ.
Around this time of year, it seems like we can hardly cram in any more celebrations before the year’s end. Multiple Thanksgivings give way to Christmas parties with friends, family, and coworkers. However, on a “cold and drizzly” December evening, 41 years ago, the Diocese of Owensboro was happy to add an additional celebration to the holiday season.
The archives gets a lot of questions about cemeteries. Most of the questions are for genealogical purposes. However, cemeteries have much more to tell us than just who is buried there.
It’s October and you know what that means; this month we celebrate a holiday that many proudly claim as their favorite.
Earlier this year, the Office of the Bishop contacted the archives with a request. The office inquired about the possibility of using the chalice of our first bishop, Bishop Francis R. Cotton’s, for the Chrism Mass.
My first article for this new printing cycle of The Western Kentucky Catholic, following its summer break, will be an update of the archives and a look forward into possible artifacts to be featured in upcoming articles. This should give readers some information on the plans of the archives for the coming months.
In my article last month, I relayed the story of an archived letter from Germany to Mother Laurine Sheeran, OSU. The letter was dated 1947 and its writer thanked the mother superior for sending him several religious items to the post-war country.
It will never cease to amaze me how badly history wants her stories to be discovered.