BUREAU OF CATHOLIC INDIAN MISSIONS RECORDS

THE CATHOLIC NEGRO-AMERICAN MISSION BOARD (THE CATHOLIC BOARD FOR MISSION WORK AMONG THE COLORED PEOPLE)

HISTORICAL NOTE/SCOPE AND CONTENT

Records of the three affiliated Catholic institutions of the Mission House or Black and Indian Mission Office -- the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions, the Black and Indian Mission Collection (formally known as the Commission for the Catholic Missions among the Colored People and the Indians) and The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board (formerly The Catholic Board for Mission Work among the Colored People). The records of these organizations document Catholic evangelization in the United States and dependent territories.

Gift of the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions, 1977-[ongoing]. Processed by Philip C. Bantin, 1977-1986, and Mark G. Thiel, CA (Certified Archivist), 1986-[ongoing]. Selected series microfilmed, 1980-[ongoing]. De Rancé, Incorporated (Milwaukee), provided generous support for the initial acquisition and processing of records, 1976-1980.

See e-Archives for select materials available online.

Restrictions: Restricted records are described below in the Scope and Content Notes. Access to these records requires permission in writing from the Black and Indian Mission Office, 2021 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20006-4207. Phone: (202) 331-8542. Newsletter: The Sentinel. Website: Black and Indian Mission Office. In addition, the researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of these records. Consult an archivist for further information. 

Historical Note

1565 Black Catholics from Spain and the Caribbean were involved in the settlement of Saint Augustine, Florida.
1738 Free Black Catholics settled Santa Teresa de Mose, Florida.
1781 Many Black and Indian Catholics from Mexico were involved in the settlement of Los Angeles, California.
1785 Father John Carroll, the Prefect Apostolic of the United States, wrote to the Vatican about his pastoral concerns for Black Catholics, many of who then resided in Maryland.
1875-1900 Bishop James Augustine Healy (1830-1900) served as Bishop of Portland in Maine and became the first African-American Catholic bishop in the United States.
1793 Black Catholics from Haiti settled Fells Point, Maryland, near Baltimore.
1829 Elizabeth Lange and others began religious life in Baltimore as the Oblate Sisters of Providence, which became the first Black community of women religious in the United States.
1871 The Josephites arrived in Baltimore.
1887 The Commission for the Catholic Missions among the Colored People and the Indians (now known as the Black and Indian Mission Collection) held its first annual Lenten appeal to support African American and Native American evangelization in the United States.
1889 Black Catholics held their first lay congress in Washington, D.C. Subsequent lay congresses were held almost annually during the 1890s. An 1893 congress in Chicago cited practices of racism and segregation in the United States with such practices in some U.S. Catholic churches as well.
1891 Saint Katharine Drexel founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored People, which focused on evangelizing African Americans and Native Americans in the United States.
1904, January Archbishop Diomede Falconio, O.F.M., the apostolic delegate of Pope Pius X, received a letter from Cardinal Girolamo Maria Gotti, O.D.C., the cardinal prefect of the Congregation of the Propaganda, commanding the Church in the United States to cease unchristian practices of racism and discrimination found in some U.S. Catholic institutions. At this time, the Catholic Church still regarded the United States as a mission territory, which gave Propaganda special jurisdiction over the U.S. Church.
1905 At their annual meeting, Cardinal Gotti's letter prompted the U.S. archbishops to discuss the annual Lenten collection . They concluded that it did not provide adequate funding for Black evangelization and that a special organization should be established to provide additional support.
1907 The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board was established in New York City as the "Catholic Board for Mission Work Among the Colored People" to provide a second funding stream for mission work in the black community.
1922?- The Catholic Board raised funds through its publications, Our Colored Missions, 1922?-1974?, and Educating in Faith, 1974-.
1970 The Catholic Board was renamed The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board.
1980 The Catholic Board relocated to Washington, D.C., where since then it shared staff and facilities with the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions and the Commission for the Catholic Missions among the Colored People and the Indians (now known as the Black and Indian Mission Collection) and the common office been known as the Mission House or Black and Indian Mission Office.
1980 Marquette University became the repository for the Catholic Board archives.
1988 Mother Katharine Drexel, S.B.S., was beatified.
2000 Mother Katharine Drexel, S.B.S., was declared Saint Katharine Drexel.
2008-[ongoing] The common offices of the three affiliated agencies became known as the Black and Indian Mission Office and as the Mission House.
2008-[ongoing] The Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions and The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board jointly sponsored the Monsignor Paul A. Lenz Art Contest for students in Catholic schools and/or Catholic religious education programs funded by these agencies.
2009-2010 The Black and Indian Mission Office established the National Advisory Council on Catholic Missions among Black and Native American Peoples, a board comprised of lay Catholics.

Executive Directors

1907-1925 Reverend John E. Burke (1852-1925); obituary: Our Colored Harvest, 13(1925):4:1-2.
1925-1962 Reverend Edward C. Kramer (-1962); obituary: "Quartermaster for Christ", Society of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, 80(1968):2:14-17.
1962-1980 Reverend Benjamin M. Horton, S.S.J.
1980-2007 Monsignor Paul A. Lenz (1925-)
2007-present Reverend W. Carroll Paysse

Presidents of the Board of Directors

1907-1922 Unidentified
1922-1925 Archbishop John W. Shaw (1863-1934), Archbishop of New Orleans
1925-1938 Cardinal Patrick J. Hayes (1867-1938), Archbishop of New York
1938-1940 Unidentified
1940-1968 Cardinal Francis J. Spellman (1889-1967), Archbishop of New York
1968-1980 Cardinal Terrence J. Cooke (1921-1983), Archbishop of New York
1980-2000 Cardinal John J. O'Conner (1920-2000), Archbishop of New York
2000-2003 Cardinal Anthony J. Bevilacqua (1923-), Archbishop of Philadelphia, Retired
2003-2007 Cardinal William H. Keeler (1931-), Archbishop of Baltimore, Retired
2007-2009 Cardinal Edward M. Egan (1932-), Archbishop of New York, Retired
2009-2011 Archbishop Edward O'Brien (1939-), Archbishop of Baltimore
2011-present Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan (1950-), Archbishop of New York

Scope and Content

The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board, Series 1-3 Correspondence Charters, and By Laws:

Reverend John E. Burke: Includes the charter from the administration of Father Burke, the first director.

Reverend Edward C. Kramer: Includes charters, certificates, and related correspondence from the administration of Father Kramer, the second director.

Reverend Benjamin M. Horton, S.S.J.: Includes charters, certificates, and related correspondence from the administration of Father Horton, the third director.

Monsignor Paul A. Lenz: The correspondence from the administration of Monsignor Lenz, the fourth director, is arranged chronologically and there under divided into general correspondence, surveys on the financial needs of Black Catholic schools (1980), and grant-related correspondence (begins in 1981). The general correspondence includes charters, affidavits, and bequests.

Series 3-1 Restrictions: Records created before 1985 are restricted for 25 years after their date of creation. For more information, please consult the archives staff.

The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board, Photography: The photography of the Catholic Board was transferred to series 9-2 under the Commission for the Catholic Missions among the Colored People and the Indians. Within the container list of that series, the Catholic Board photography is so noted as originating from it. Portraits of Catholic Board personnel also involved with the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions are filed in series 9-1 (black & white prints) and 9-3 (color prints) and then under "District of Columbia, Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions".

The Catholic Negro-American Mission Board, Series 18, Publications: This series includes the periodicals, Our Colored Mission and Educating in Faith, and general publications, such as appeal letters, calendars, list of very needy Black schools, and survey and grant forms.

The New York Public Library produced the microfilm of both periodicals.

Marqcat, the online catalog of the Marquette University Libraries, provides bibliographic records for the publication titles in this series, which are so noted with a call number in the descriptive inventory.

Black and Indian Mission Office and Related Institutions

Black and Indian Mission Office > Catholic Negro-American Mission Board: Reverend W. Carroll Paysse, Executive Director, 2021 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20006-4207. Phone: (202) 331-8542. Newsletter: Educating in Faith. Website: Black and Indian Mission Office

The National Black Catholic Congress: 320 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201. Phone (410) 547-8496. Newsletter: Black Catholic Newsletter. Website: The National Black Catholic Congress.

U.S. Catholic Conference of Catholic Bishops > Cultural Diversity in the Church