1 - Canonical Visitation Report for 1945

1

Canonical Visitation Report for 1945

9 pp; typescript

Canoncial visitation report compiled by Fr. Stephen Murtagh OFM Cap. for the Irish Capuchin custody in the United States. The report includes extensive commentary on the spiritual, physical and financial condition of various churches and friaries in Oregon, California, and Delaware. Father Murtagh acknowledges a long-standing lack of a definite growth plan, noting that early friars struggled in poor, isolated missions and frequently used surplus funds to travel back to Ireland rather than expanding local foundations. The report lists past setbacks, including a failed attempt to establish a Seraphic School (St. Anthony’s College) in Mendocino and the slow progress of turning the custody into a regular Capuchin Province. To overcome these challenges, the Definitory approved a long-term plan to build a new Seraphic School, establish formal monasteries in Bend (Oregon), Ukiah, and Burlingame (California), and acquire a new parish in Los Angeles to help finance these projects.

ISAD(G) 2nd edition