A Catholic Mission
  • Home
    • About
    • Contact
  • Our Story
    • 1. The Stage is Set
    • 2. The Osages Enter Kansas.
    • 3. Earliest Commerce
    • 4. Earliest Protestant Missions
    • 5. The Catholic Osage Mission >
      • 5A. The Mission Complex
      • 5B. The Osage Manual Labor Schools
      • 5C. A Beacon on The Plains ...
    • 6. Progress and Tragedy
    • 7. The Missionary Trails >
      • 7A. Missions, Stations, Churches
    • 8. A Dangerous Balance - The Civil War >
      • 8A. Confederate Officers Massacred
    • 9. The Osage Leave Kansas >
      • 9A. The Missionaries Did Not Abuse the Osage.
      • 9B. Fr. Schoenmakers Speech
    • 10. A Very Unique Community is Born >
      • 10A. A Church Raising
    • 11. Regional Boarding Schools >
      • 11A. St. Francis Institution for Boys
      • 11B. St. Ann's Academy for Girls
    • 12. Transitions
    • 13. The Passionists Era Begins
    • 14. Citizen Lawmen - The A.H.T.A. >
      • A.H.T.A. Chanute - October 1914
    • 15. The Passionist Influence is Expanded
    • 16. The Schools Today >
      • 16..1 Champions & Records
  • Characters
    • The Osages
    • The Missionaries >
      • Father John Schoenmakers >
        • Father Schoenmakers' Windows
      • Fr. John Bax >
        • Father John Bax II
      • Mother Bridget Hayden
      • Fr. Paul Ponziglione >
        • Father Paul's Memoir >
          • Index - Father Paul's Memoir >
            • Dedication & Introduction
            • IX. Construction & Acceptance of Mission Buildings.
            • X. Fr. Schoenmakers Arrives at Osage Mission
            • XI. Miss Lucille St. Pierre Came to the Neosho
            • XII. Progress of the Schools
            • XIII. Origin and Development of the Roman Catholic Church in Kansas
            • XXVII - Winds of War
            • XXVIII — Fr. Schoenmakers Return
            • Chapter XLII - Farming Issues, Death Of Father Colleton
            • Chapter XLIX - Includes The Death of Fr. Schoenmakers
            • Chapter L — Dedication of the New Church
            • Conclusion
            • Appendix I — Copy of a letter to Sister M. Coaina Mongrain about the coming of the Sisters of Loretto at Osage Mission
            • Appendix 6 — A Sketch of my Biography
            • Appendix 7 - Letter to W. W. Graves
      • Father Philip Colleton
      • Brother John Sheehan
    • W. W. Graves
    • 17 Sisters
    • 17 Sisters II - Fr. Fox's Sermon
    • Who's Behind the Window >
      • Who We Were 120 Years Ago
      • 1. The Thomas Carroll Window
      • 2. The W.W. O'Bryan Window
      • 3. The Jas. Owens & Family Window
      • 4. The C.P & C.J. Hentzen Windows
      • 5. The Dr. McNamara & Family Window
      • 6. The Fitzsimmons & Family Window
      • 7. The Parents of T.K. Joyce Window
      • 8. J.E. Sevart & Family Window
      • 9. The Rev. John Schoenmakers S.J. Window
      • 10. The Patrick Diskin and L&M George Window
      • 11. The J.A. Johnston & Family Window
      • 12. The Peter & Jacob Bonifas Windows
      • 13. The Mr & Mrs. Patrick Keeting Window
      • 14. The John Butler Window
      • 15. The Mr. & Mrs. Gutting Window
      • 16. Rosette Window Above Doors
      • 17. The Michael A. Barnes Window
      • 18. The Henry M. O'Bryan Window
      • 19. The John and Bridget McCarthy Window
      • The Sodality Windows
    • The Church Women's Bonfire (Graves)
    • Beechwood
    • John and Margaret Naudier
    • Fr. Tom McKernan - The Poet Priest of Kansas
    • The Dimond Family and Estate Sale
    • Dear Sister >
      • Friend Gertrude
    • A Year and a Day — Passionist Memories.
    • Mary Elizabeth Lease
    • K of C Council 760 - The Early Days
    • Our Hometown Boys
    • SPHS Class of 1956
  • Places
    • The Great American Desert
    • St. Francis Catholic Church
    • St. Francis de Heironymo Catholic Church Grounds
    • St. Paul - 135 Years Ago
    • St. Paul - 1890's as a Scale Model.
    • St. Paul - The Booming 60's
    • Osage Mission as a Statewide History Finalist
    • St. Francis Cemetery
    • Hope Cemetery
    • The Basement Chapel
    • World War I Museum Display
    • St. Paul Middle School >
      • Some Great Folks!
    • Ladore
    • St. Boniface, Scipio KS
    • Road Trip - Father Emil Kapaun
    • Exchange State Bank Robbery!
  • Thoughts ...
  • Links
  • Link Page

Thoughts 'n Things

Past and Present Day St. Paul, Southern Kansas and The Four - State Region.

Cathedral Commons Display.

4/25/2022

 
Picture
Diocese History Display, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Wichita.
"But being old or even first does not, in itself, make a place "historic."  It is what was done during its time, that can make the place historical.  With that in mind, the Osage Catholic Mission was a very historic and important place."

We have been to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, in Wichita, twice lately.  When there, I tend to gravitate toward the Cathedral Commons area that connects the main Church with the auditorium, offices and other facilities.  I know what is there.

As you walk down a sloped entry into the commons there are two nicely done displays on the history of the Wichita Diocese.  When you consider that reading material, or historical displays, are usually read from top-left to right; we here in St. Paul, Kansas are well represented at top-left.  At the upper-left corner of the first display are two panels that discuss the first Catholic Parish in the Diocese of Wichita — Saint Francis de Hieronymo at St. Paul.  That first panel shows a photograph of our current church and explains that the original mission was established by the Jesuits and Sisters of Loretto in 1847.  It also explains that our current "new" church was built during the period of 1872 to 1884.
Picture
But being old or even first does not, in itself, make a place "historic."  It is what was done during its time, that can make the place historic.  With that in mind, the Osage Catholic Mission was a very historical and important place.  That is where the second panel comes into play.
Picture
The second panel shows a picture of Father Paul Mary Ponziglione.  Father Paul, an Italian Nobleman by birth, was one of Osage Mission's most recognizable trail-riding missionaries.  The panel describes his far-reaching missionary work; and the work he did to bring the first Catholic Church into Wichita.  But this is just a hint as to the role of the Osage Catholic Mission.

When the mission was established in 1847, the Jesuits had two important roles:
  1. Establish and run the Osage schools under a contract with the Government.  This role is generally well understood.
  2. Spread the Roman Catholic Faith in the area south of the Santa Fe Trail.  This role is less understood, but Jesuit missionaries like Father Ponziglione, Father Philip Colleton, and others did a very good job.
These priests said Masses and heard confessions in private homes, railroad warehouses, army barracks, and even from the backs of wagons.  In spreading the faith to the large number of immigrant Catholics who were flooding the plains, they provided an important service in starting many settlements in Southern Kansas, Eastern Missouri, Oklahoma, and Northwest Arkansas, and Father Colleton made some excursions into Colorado.  Smart new town founders and entrepreneurs knew well that their new settlements needed two essential features to attract settlers — churches, and schools.

Priests like Father Ponziglione and Colleton started, and even built, several small churches in the region.  In some cases, they even helped start Catholic schools.  Father Colleton, in particular, provided literature and books needed to educate young Catholics and adults in the southeast corner of Kansas.

If you would like to understand more about the wide-reaching missionary work of the Osage Mission Jesuits, follow these two links:
  • The Missionary Trails from Osage Mission
  • Missions—Mission Stations—Churches
Both of these links will open in a separate page or window.

    Thoughts 'n Things

    Some 'Thoughts' and short articles about past and present-day St. Paul and the Southern Kansas - 4 State Region.


    Archives

    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    June 2021
    February 2021
    September 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    October 2017
    September 2017

    Categories

    All
    1847
    1900 Downtown Fire
    Annals Of Osage Mission
    April 28
    Beacon On The Plains
    BIG FISH!
    Cathedral Display
    Cooney & Strecker Weddings
    Early Schools
    Eureka Kansas
    Faces - Class Of 1932
    Fake News
    Four Phases Of History
    Gazetteer Of Catholic Places
    Girl's School Opens
    Good For Greenbush
    Graves Library
    Greenbush Days 2020
    Informal Historical Society
    Jacksonville - Deliberation
    Kansas Day
    Links To Our Past
    Making Do
    Meeker School - 1906
    New Town Of Walnut
    O'Brien .. O'Bryan .. HUH?
    Old Log Church
    Pilgrimage Of The Plains
    Sacred Heart Larned And Fr. Colleton
    Sesquicentennial Again!
    Sobering Thought!
    Someone's Home.
    Sports Complex
    St. Francis At 135 Years!
    St. Francis Windows
    The Civil War
    The Swan Song
    We Are Important!
    What IS That Word???
    W.W. Graves

    RSS Feed

Picture
Home
Story
​Characters
​Places
About
Contact

acatholicmission.org is a privately hosted website.  We hope that our site will educate and entertain those who are interested in the fascinating Osage Mission - St.  Paul - Neosho County Kansas story.  Ours is a regional story that crosses state lines, ethnic groups, faiths and a variety of frontier and post-frontier interests.  Enjoy.

acatholicmission.org Copyright © 2016 - 2023. All rights reserved.
(See copyright note on Contact page.)
  • Home
    • About
    • Contact
  • Our Story
    • 1. The Stage is Set
    • 2. The Osages Enter Kansas.
    • 3. Earliest Commerce
    • 4. Earliest Protestant Missions
    • 5. The Catholic Osage Mission >
      • 5A. The Mission Complex
      • 5B. The Osage Manual Labor Schools
      • 5C. A Beacon on The Plains ...
    • 6. Progress and Tragedy
    • 7. The Missionary Trails >
      • 7A. Missions, Stations, Churches
    • 8. A Dangerous Balance - The Civil War >
      • 8A. Confederate Officers Massacred
    • 9. The Osage Leave Kansas >
      • 9A. The Missionaries Did Not Abuse the Osage.
      • 9B. Fr. Schoenmakers Speech
    • 10. A Very Unique Community is Born >
      • 10A. A Church Raising
    • 11. Regional Boarding Schools >
      • 11A. St. Francis Institution for Boys
      • 11B. St. Ann's Academy for Girls
    • 12. Transitions
    • 13. The Passionists Era Begins
    • 14. Citizen Lawmen - The A.H.T.A. >
      • A.H.T.A. Chanute - October 1914
    • 15. The Passionist Influence is Expanded
    • 16. The Schools Today >
      • 16..1 Champions & Records
  • Characters
    • The Osages
    • The Missionaries >
      • Father John Schoenmakers >
        • Father Schoenmakers' Windows
      • Fr. John Bax >
        • Father John Bax II
      • Mother Bridget Hayden
      • Fr. Paul Ponziglione >
        • Father Paul's Memoir >
          • Index - Father Paul's Memoir >
            • Dedication & Introduction
            • IX. Construction & Acceptance of Mission Buildings.
            • X. Fr. Schoenmakers Arrives at Osage Mission
            • XI. Miss Lucille St. Pierre Came to the Neosho
            • XII. Progress of the Schools
            • XIII. Origin and Development of the Roman Catholic Church in Kansas
            • XXVII - Winds of War
            • XXVIII — Fr. Schoenmakers Return
            • Chapter XLII - Farming Issues, Death Of Father Colleton
            • Chapter XLIX - Includes The Death of Fr. Schoenmakers
            • Chapter L — Dedication of the New Church
            • Conclusion
            • Appendix I — Copy of a letter to Sister M. Coaina Mongrain about the coming of the Sisters of Loretto at Osage Mission
            • Appendix 6 — A Sketch of my Biography
            • Appendix 7 - Letter to W. W. Graves
      • Father Philip Colleton
      • Brother John Sheehan
    • W. W. Graves
    • 17 Sisters
    • 17 Sisters II - Fr. Fox's Sermon
    • Who's Behind the Window >
      • Who We Were 120 Years Ago
      • 1. The Thomas Carroll Window
      • 2. The W.W. O'Bryan Window
      • 3. The Jas. Owens & Family Window
      • 4. The C.P & C.J. Hentzen Windows
      • 5. The Dr. McNamara & Family Window
      • 6. The Fitzsimmons & Family Window
      • 7. The Parents of T.K. Joyce Window
      • 8. J.E. Sevart & Family Window
      • 9. The Rev. John Schoenmakers S.J. Window
      • 10. The Patrick Diskin and L&M George Window
      • 11. The J.A. Johnston & Family Window
      • 12. The Peter & Jacob Bonifas Windows
      • 13. The Mr & Mrs. Patrick Keeting Window
      • 14. The John Butler Window
      • 15. The Mr. & Mrs. Gutting Window
      • 16. Rosette Window Above Doors
      • 17. The Michael A. Barnes Window
      • 18. The Henry M. O'Bryan Window
      • 19. The John and Bridget McCarthy Window
      • The Sodality Windows
    • The Church Women's Bonfire (Graves)
    • Beechwood
    • John and Margaret Naudier
    • Fr. Tom McKernan - The Poet Priest of Kansas
    • The Dimond Family and Estate Sale
    • Dear Sister >
      • Friend Gertrude
    • A Year and a Day — Passionist Memories.
    • Mary Elizabeth Lease
    • K of C Council 760 - The Early Days
    • Our Hometown Boys
    • SPHS Class of 1956
  • Places
    • The Great American Desert
    • St. Francis Catholic Church
    • St. Francis de Heironymo Catholic Church Grounds
    • St. Paul - 135 Years Ago
    • St. Paul - 1890's as a Scale Model.
    • St. Paul - The Booming 60's
    • Osage Mission as a Statewide History Finalist
    • St. Francis Cemetery
    • Hope Cemetery
    • The Basement Chapel
    • World War I Museum Display
    • St. Paul Middle School >
      • Some Great Folks!
    • Ladore
    • St. Boniface, Scipio KS
    • Road Trip - Father Emil Kapaun
    • Exchange State Bank Robbery!
  • Thoughts ...
  • Links
  • Link Page