Norwich bulletin., 1922-12-21

~-@~0 the members Of some of the pioneer Catholic families of Nrwhrh to recalling the early days of that parish. as well as to reminding present worshippers in the elegant new edifice of local Catholic his tory antedating that epoch.
 The town of Norwich. as history re-
 cords, was settled. by a company from Saybrook, in 1659 One of the first ship i masters to gain dock privileges in Nor wich was Captain Joseph Kelley, pre-
 sumabfy a sailorman of Irish descent, | who ffourished in 1715.
 Of the 300 Acadians who were forcibly |
 landed in New London Jan. Fist. 1756. 1s were aDportioned to the town of Nor
 wich Several of the old families of the i
 town have a strain of Acad1an blood. The holy sacrifice of the mass was pre- | sumabIy celebrated in Norwich about |
 that time. for it Is matter of record
 that in 1767 Captain Richard Leffngweli 1 l "carried 24O French and their priest from Norwich to Quebec" During 17S1.' the French army. while i on it's way fromS NewT,ortt, R. l., to the
 Hudson, to join Washington's forces. en- can1oed at,Lebanon. 10 miles north from
 Norwich, and the Abbe Robin celebrated
 mass for the soldiers sNEre- as he did
 shortly afterwards when they had ad- vanced to the flats east of Hartford. | Nov, 14th. f793, a Norwich paper notes | that on a certain Friday evening of that
 month, MT. John Thayer, Catholic mis- sionary, delivered before a large audi ence at the Rev Joseph Strong's meeting
 house-the former Second Congregational l church now the Community house-"a learned and ingenious discourse in which he undertook to prove that the Catholic church was the only church of Christ"
 He preached there the following Sunday 1 evening also. Father Thayer. history re-
 cords had been Congregational minister 1 in Boston had been converted while on l visit to Rome. and having been ordained
 a priest of the Roman Catholic church. ne | had oouae home with the sanguine cI-
 pectatiom of bringing New England into the C4ta0lic fold.
 A pioneer Catholic Of Norwich vas
 Edward Murphy. who did not die until 1924. The first recorded visit of priest to minister to all the people was in 1886, i when Father Fitton. then located in Hartford. baptized a child II months old, the date being May 18th. It was Father Fitton's custom, when. about to visit
 town. to send word beforehand so that the Catholics of the surrounding towns
 and villages might avail themselves of
 the longed-for opportunity of going to
 confession. assisting at the offering of
 the mass, and receiving holy communion. He generally said the mass in some pri-
 vate house or public hall.
 The transfer of Father Fhton from
 Hartford to Worcester, in 1887, was con- | temporaneous with the opening of work | on the Norwich and Worcester railroad. which work brought many men of Irish :, birth or descent to Norwich Conse- . ouently Father F'itton began coming I oAf Toa ra 5 at places most convenient for assembling 7 the workmen. As the men began to lo-
 cate permanently in Norwich and Greene : ville bringing their families and estab- ! fishing homes. Father Fitton resolved to ] build a church for them
 ' He selected a site then midway be. . tween the two places laying the founda- ! ton Of the old St. Mary's church early fl in 1s44 and saying mass in the new . structure. which lie called St. Mary's on a | Christmas day of that year. There were 7 250 persons in the congregation. it is re-
 Co. ded.
 Early the following year, Father 1Fitton
 relinquished the care of the missions of Eastern Connecticut, Rev. John Brady, of ; Hartford, taking them, in charge. Father Brady came to Norwich for the first time , in May, 1845, and the first baptism here was recorded by him the following Aug T ' ust.c--. =. , 1:2In 1S4S, Norwich was taken from the ' jurisdiction of Hartford, Bishop Tyler 5 himself coming from Providence at inter- 5 ValS for few months, to minister to the = people at St. Mary's
 h r During November, 1s4s, the Jesuits oi . Holy Cross college. Worcester, assumed O charged of, the Norwich -h~>siop, Father e Logan coming until May, 1850, and Fath.
 CT Blenkinsop attending to the charge d from that time till August, 1851.
 e In the same year, Rev. Daniel Kelley s was appointed the first resident pastor
 He remained with St. Mary's people fol
 fifteen years,S meanwhile raising thu
 church, also enlarging the structure sev
 eral times. In August, 1866, he exchang E ed parishes with Rev. Peter Kelley, O l. Providence. r. The Catholics of Norwich and Greene t-I vile had meanwhile increased to the mum lef Der of 5000, so the project to build t. new and larger church was undertaken
 Soon after his coming to Norwich, there d fore, Father Peter Kelly purchased tw r. lots on Church street, about the site o " the present Cassidy block, at a cost Q l. $10000, Ground was broken for neJ To church on St. Patrick's day. March 1Ttt IT 1867, but this site was not favored b, Is the people as a whole and was later aban a- doned and sold
 n, EdztcE 1ASl1J was <SUCCcSQCu, .r 27th, 1887, by Rev Bernard Tuiiy, wh I'd was transferred after few months. Rev pE Michael Terney; later bishop of the dio V. cese- of Hartford took charge, temporar ,' fly, until the formal appointment, Jar a. 28th, 1868, of Rev. Daniel MriIlin, Fathe "a MuIlin had served as a chaplain durin " the Civil war and was noted for his vigo {. and ability.
 o- He finally secured, at cost of $17,O0t = the present beautiful lot on Rroadwa1 ., Norwich, where St. PatrickSss magnificer
 church stands Ground for the ne' :, church was broken St Parick's da, l. 1s7o,.' by Very Rev James Hughes, vicar = general of the diocese of Hartford Th M cornerstone was laid July 18th, 1873, b .s Bishop Mcfarland, and the dedicatfo took place Sept. 2Sth. 1873, Cardinal Gil
 bons preaching in the morning and Bisho 9s fShanahan in the evening As general .s known, the entire church property, su St. Patricl's was consecrated free froi
 all debt and encumbrance about eigl v. years ago. the rectory-6ormerfy tt so Goodwin residence-the $43,oo0 paris ao school finely appointed convent, hon
 of, the Sisters of Mercy. who teach in th ,.es' school, other buildings and portion . on the estate of the Jonathan Pope Ramil ae <, constituting the present parish plan ne complete in every respecL and estimate ,,s eonservattweay at value of over half IT naill4on.
 q The separation of St. Mary's pari. =: from St PatricA's over twenty years as {, Twas recalled at. the time of the recel ln' Mafy.s. The local Catholic parishes no AS own property worth over one million ar
 a half, and the annual income of u a nFTasDeroa1s and constantly e1oSvfr