Maryland has been the cradle of the Roman Catholic Church in America, as
well as of the Methodist and the Presbyterian. The centenary of the
consecration of John Carroll, as the first Roman Catholic bishop in the
United States, occurred little more than a year ago. A few months after
Bishop Carroll's consecration, he received from the Superior of the
Order of St. Sulpice an offer to found a seminary in Baltimore for the
education of priests. This offer was accepted and, on July 10, 1791,
four Sulpician priests arrived in Baltimore. They soon bought a house
known as "One Mile Tavern" with four acres of land and there they opened
_St. Mary's Seminary_, on the first Sunday in October, 1791. The
Seminary still occupies the same site, at the corner of Paca and St.
Mary's Streets. The number of the candidates for the priesthood, who
entered the Seminary, was disappointing from its smallness and, in order
to procure clerics, an Academy was opened in the rooms of the Seminary,
on August 20, 1799. This was presided over by Rev. Wm. Du Bourg, and
proved so successful, as to demand a separate building. Accordingly, the
corner-stone of St. Mary's College was laid on April 10, 1800. At Bishop
Carroll's request, no American boys were admitted for a time and only
Spaniards and French were received. In 1803, however, the College was
opened to all day scholars or boarders, without reference to birth or
religion. This step roused some opposition and many communications upon
the subject appeared in the newspapers, which were afterwards collected
in pamphlet form.
The students soon became numerous and the institution grew to such an
extent that, in January, 1805, it was chartered as St. Mary's
University. On August 13, 1806, the first class was graduated; in that
year there were 106 students. New buildings were erected and a superb
botanical garden was laid out. The chapel, built soon after the
incorporation, was said to be the most beautiful in the United States.
The Rev. William Du Bourg, the President, was a man of great ability and
the reputation of the College rapidly spread. Many prominent men, Roman
Catholics and Protestants, were graduated from St. Mary's; but the
Sulpicians felt that their vocation was to educate young men exclusively
for the priesthood, and not for secular life, and they finally closed
St. Mary's College in 1852, in order to devote all their energies to the
Theological Seminary, which has continued its prosperous career to this
present day.[47]
A second Roman Catholic College was formed by the Sulpicians in 1807 at
Emmittsburg, Frederick County. It was begun by Rev. John Dubois and was
soon chartered as _Mount Saint Mary's College_. The exercises were
first held in a log house with a handful of pupils, who increased to 80
within five years. With the growth of the institution came the demand
for larger accommodations. Better buildings were erected and a large
stone edifice was undertaken in 1823. When nearly ready for occupancy,
it was destroyed by fire; but Father Dubois did not despair and, aided
by the people of the vicinity, at once began a new building. In 1826 he
was appointed Bishop of New York, and in the same year, the connection
of the College with the Sulpician order was terminated. Although
originally intended chiefly as a place for the education of clerics, Mt.
St. Mary's has ever kept in view the preparation of students for a
secular life, and many of its graduates have been distinguished in
State, as well as in Church. In 1838, Rev. John McCaffrey, D.D., became
president, and under his able control, the College prospered until
1871. During this period, the jubilee of the institution was celebrated
with great ceremony in 1858. The Civil War injured the College greatly
and the declaration of peace found it burdened with a heavy load of
debt. For twenty years the struggle went on and it was doubtful all the
time, whether the College could survive. Finally Dr. William Bryne, at
his leaving the presidency in 1884, was able to report that the
institution was placed on a firm financial basis as to the future, and
that the debt had been reduced to $65,000. The present President, Rev.
Edward P. Allen, has still further diminished the debt by more than half
and the attendance has been largely increased through his efficient
administration.
A third Roman Catholic College is _St. Charles's_, situated in
Howard County, near Ellicott City. It is situated on land given by
Charles Carroll of Carroll ton, and was chartered on February 3,
1830,[48] its name being taken from that of its founder and of the great
Archbishop of Milan.[49] The institution was placed under the control of
the Society of St. Sulpice and was established "exclusively for the
education of pious young men of the Catholic persuasion for the ministry
of the Gospel." The corner-stone was laid by the venerable Charles
Carroll, on July 11, 1831; but, for want of funds to carry on the work
successfully, the institution was not opened until the fall of 1848. The
first President, Rev. O.L. Jenkins, began the institution with four
pupils, and at his death in 1869, the number had grown to 140. Since the
closing of St. Mary's College in 1852, St. Charles's has been used by
the Sulpicians as preparatory to St. Mary's Seminary.
To supply the want of a college, to which Baltimore boys of Roman
Catholic families could go without leaving home, _Loyola College_
was opened in September, 1852. It is under the control of the Jesuits
and has confined itself to receiving day scholars.
The fifth and last Roman Catholic College, _Rock Hill_, was
chartered in 1865.[50] It is situated near Ellicott City, as is St.
Charles's, and is under the supervision of the Brothers of the Christian
Schools. It prepares youth for the various duties and occupations of
life with great thoroughness, and has ever been noted especially for the
attention paid to the development of the body as well as the mind of its
pupils.