Person Of Interest

Henry Moeller is installed as the fourth archbishop of Cincinnati. The first Cincinnati native to lead the Church in Cincinnati, Henry Moeller was a strong proponent of Catholic education and addressing the social needs of the poor.

Daniel Rudd, a Black Catholic and former slave, establishes the American Catholic Tribune, a Catholic newspaper for African Americans. The newspaper invites the Black community to examine the Catholic Church and see Her as worthy of belief.

With the death of Archbishop Purcell, Bishop Elder is appointed archbishop of Cincinnati. Archbishop Elder works to increase oversight of his priests, parishes and schools. During his tenure, Archbishop Elder established 32 new parishes and missions, and the archdiocese grew to include 200,000 Catholics, almost 300 priests, 180 churches, and over 100 Catholic schools.

Thirty-three-year-old Father John B. Purcell, a teacher at the seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, is named the second bishop of Cincinnati. During his 50-year episcopate, he would build more than 100 parishes, schools, orphanages and hospitals and earn a reputation as a leading bishop in the United States.

Bishop Fenwick dies of cholera while visiting parishes in northern Ohio. His body was initially buried in Wooster, Ohio, then brought down to Cincinnati.