A Look at Who We Were 120 Years Ago.
ACatholicMission.org is working on an interesting project with St. Paul native Randy Dunavan. Randy was a member of the class of 1971. After graduating from high school he studied in the seminary at Warrenton, Missouri and Neosho County Junior College; and served a hitch in the United States Navy. He eventually ended up in Texas were he had a long career in sales with an automotive and motor-sports company. Now retired, he can spend more time on his life-long interest — history and genealogy. [1]
ACatholicMission.org is working on an interesting project with St. Paul native Randy Dunavan. Randy was a member of the class of 1971. After graduating from high school he studied in the seminary at Warrenton, Missouri and Neosho County Junior College; and served a hitch in the United States Navy. He eventually ended up in Texas were he had a long career in sales with an automotive and motor-sports company. Now retired, he can spend more time on his life-long interest — history and genealogy. [1]
Photo - R. Brogan
The project is "Who's Behind the Window." In part, it examines a period around the turn of the 20th century when there were many improvements being made at St. Francis de Heironymo Catholic Church. [2] One of the improvements was replacing most of the clear glass windows with stained glass. At the time Father Boniface [3] asked parishioners to assist by paying for several windows in the outer walls of the building. Such a donation would help the parish, and would "...leave a monument indelibly burnt in the glass to go down to generations yet to come."
The end product of Who's Behind the Window will be a book about the migration of Catholics from Maryland into central Kentucky and other areas, and then into Osage Mission. Many of these people were our ancestors. The book will feature very detailed profiles of each of the families or persons named on the St. Francis windows. Names that are revealed from this study Go Well Beyond Those On The Windows Themselves. They are St. Paul's earliest residents and hundreds of familiar families are represented in the book. Some samples of the content will also be summarized on this website.
Below is a sketch of the church floor plan with numerical reference keys to some brief 1900 demographics shown in the table that follows. What becomes clear is that in 1900, nearly everyone in St. Paul was from somewhere else. Many of our early residents and ancestors were immigrants.
The end product of Who's Behind the Window will be a book about the migration of Catholics from Maryland into central Kentucky and other areas, and then into Osage Mission. Many of these people were our ancestors. The book will feature very detailed profiles of each of the families or persons named on the St. Francis windows. Names that are revealed from this study Go Well Beyond Those On The Windows Themselves. They are St. Paul's earliest residents and hundreds of familiar families are represented in the book. Some samples of the content will also be summarized on this website.
Below is a sketch of the church floor plan with numerical reference keys to some brief 1900 demographics shown in the table that follows. What becomes clear is that in 1900, nearly everyone in St. Paul was from somewhere else. Many of our early residents and ancestors were immigrants.
St. Francis Floorplan. No Sacristy Wall or Altars Shown (R. Brogan)
Window |
Name |
Progenitor |
Location |
1 |
Thomas P. Carroll Ellen Sexton Carroll |
1st Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland |
2 |
W.W. O'Bryan & W.E. O'Bryan William Wuyts O'Bryan Grace Emily May William Edward O'Bryan Margaret Pauline Casey |
6th Generation 2nd Generation 7th Generation 3rd Generation |
Ireland England Ireland Ireland |
3 |
James Owens & Family James J. Owens Mary Lillian Abell |
7th Generation 9th Generation |
England England |
4 |
C.P. Hentzen 1st Wife: Caroline Delster 2nd Wife: Margaret O'Grady |
2nd Generation 2nd Generation 2nd Generation |
Germany Germany Ireland |
5 |
Dr. MacNamara & Family James J. "Jack" McNamara Mary J. Confer McNamara |
2nd Generation 5th Generation |
Ireland Germany |
6 |
Mary & Thomas Fitzsimmons Thomas Fitzsimmons Mary Bloomer Fitzsimmons |
2nd Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland |
7 |
T.K. Joyce - Parents of Thomas Joyce Catherine C. Long Joyce |
1st Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland |
8 |
J.E. Sevart & Family Joseph Elias Sevart Anna Rosane Balfay Sevart |
2nd Generation 1st Generation |
Alsace-Lorraine Austria |
9 |
Rev. John Schoenmakers, Mem. Restored by John & Jane Farran John Farran Jane O'Kane Farran |
1st Generation 1st Generation 1st Generation |
Holland Ireland Ireland |
10 |
Patrick Diskin, L. & M. George Patrick Diskin Mary Ann George Diskin |
2nd Generation 3rd Generation |
Ireland Belgium |
11 |
J. A. Johnston & Family John Aloysius Johnston Teresa E. Speake Johnston |
5th Generation 7th Generation |
Scotland England |
12 |
Peter & Jacob Bonifas Peter Bonifas Margaret Jung Bonifas Jacob Bonifas |
1st Generation 1st Generation 1st Generation |
Luxembourg Germany Luxembourg |
13 |
Mr. & Mrs. Patrick Keeting Patrick Keeting Mary Margarette Mason Keeting |
1st Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland |
14 |
John Butler |
1st Generation |
Ireland |
15 |
Mr. & Mrs. Gutting Joseph Gutting Resile "Rosa" Gutting |
1st Generation 1st Generation |
Bavaria Germany |
16 |
Outside Door With Rosette |
N/A |
N/A |
17 |
Michael A. Barnes 1st Wife: Ann Shelly Barnes 2nd Wife: Ellen S. Mayne Barnes |
1st Generation 1st Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland Ireland |
18 |
Henry Miles O'Bryan (& Scar [4]) 1st W: Susan Emily Hagan O'Bryan 2nd W: Sarah Elizabeth Newton O'Bryan |
5th Generation 6th Generation 6th Generation |
Ireland Ireland England |
19 |
John & Bridget McCarthy John B. McCarthy Bridget Hackett McCarthy |
1st Generation 1st Generation |
Ireland Ireland |
|
In summary, here are some totals:
Ireland ..................... 23 England .................... 4 Germany .................. 5 Alsace-Lorraine ....... 1 Austria ...................... 1 Holland ..................... 1 Luxembourg ............ 1 Scotland ................... 1 Belgium .................... 1 Bavaria ..................... 1 |
Vertical Divider
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The information show here is not a scientific assessment of the area population at the time. But it does provide insight into the parish and city demographics in 1900. Perhaps as important as nationality is the fact that only one of these people had been here very long. The town of St. Paul (Osage Mission) was barely thirty years old. Father Schoenmakers arrived in 1847 and founded the mission, our parish and the town. The others were relative newcomers.
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Some Background and Reference Information:
1. Randy is serious about genealogy and has been at it for more than thirty years. He started chasing Dunavan family history in the late 1980's when research involved physical visits to libraries, church offices, cemeteries, etc. Today, research methods have improved significantly with on-line research sources and databases. His own personal database includes nearly 270,000 individuals and that number increases almost daily. Nearly all of those names have connections with St. Paul that reach across the world, especially Europe; and reach back into 14th Century Europe. He has written 37 publications many of which are in the reference shelves of our local Graves library and the Osage Mission - Neosho County Museum.
Why the interest? One answer might be; he comes from very interesting bloodlines. For example: Members of the Jarboe side of his family were among the founders of Westport, now Kansas City. When the Lorettos came to Osage Mission in 1847 ... "Father Schoenmakers provided a comfortable two horse lumber wagon, and placed them under the care of Mr. Jarboe, a Kansas City merchant, who very kindly acted as their conductor." (from Father Ponziglione's memoirs, Chapter XII).
More about Randy as the project progresses, but I think folks in southeast Kansas and other locations will find his work interesting.
2. St. Francis Church was dedicated in 1884, but there was still work to do. The church had taken more than thirteen years to complete, largely because of funding. After the Passionists assumed control of the parish in 1893, they began to plan several improvements, many of which were completing the original project. For some background on the overall building project, follow THIS LINK.
1. Randy is serious about genealogy and has been at it for more than thirty years. He started chasing Dunavan family history in the late 1980's when research involved physical visits to libraries, church offices, cemeteries, etc. Today, research methods have improved significantly with on-line research sources and databases. His own personal database includes nearly 270,000 individuals and that number increases almost daily. Nearly all of those names have connections with St. Paul that reach across the world, especially Europe; and reach back into 14th Century Europe. He has written 37 publications many of which are in the reference shelves of our local Graves library and the Osage Mission - Neosho County Museum.
Why the interest? One answer might be; he comes from very interesting bloodlines. For example: Members of the Jarboe side of his family were among the founders of Westport, now Kansas City. When the Lorettos came to Osage Mission in 1847 ... "Father Schoenmakers provided a comfortable two horse lumber wagon, and placed them under the care of Mr. Jarboe, a Kansas City merchant, who very kindly acted as their conductor." (from Father Ponziglione's memoirs, Chapter XII).
More about Randy as the project progresses, but I think folks in southeast Kansas and other locations will find his work interesting.
2. St. Francis Church was dedicated in 1884, but there was still work to do. The church had taken more than thirteen years to complete, largely because of funding. After the Passionists assumed control of the parish in 1893, they began to plan several improvements, many of which were completing the original project. For some background on the overall building project, follow THIS LINK.
Father Boniface (Shared by KSweenmom)
3. As it turns out, Father Bonifas Sotter should be regarded as "The Man Behind the Windows." When you look at news articles it appears as though the entire project, from start-to-installation, only took three months to complete. In fact, Father Bonifas probably started the early stages of the project with some knowledge of stained glass. His nephew George William Sotter was a renowned stained glass artist.
More about Fr. Bonifas later.
More about Fr. Bonifas later.
The Monastery Window Scar. (Photo - R. Brogan)
4. The Henry Miles O'Bryan window was moved. It was originally on the west wall of the church at the northwest corner. When the Passionist monastery was built in 1912, that window opening was used as an entrance to the first floor sacristy and the second floor of the church. A new O'Bryan window was added to the north wall of the sacristy. That window appears to be the upper part of what was the original 70" wide x 18' tall window.
When the monastery was razed, the original opening was filled with masonry leaving a "scar" of sorts. Think for a moment about relocating that window in a stone building with nearly two-foot thick walls.
When the monastery was razed, the original opening was filled with masonry leaving a "scar" of sorts. Think for a moment about relocating that window in a stone building with nearly two-foot thick walls.
