Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions Native American Records, Native American Missions and Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions History - Archives

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BUREAU OF CATHOLIC INDIAN MISSIONS RECORDS -- BUREAU OF CATHOLIC INDIAN MISSIONS

The Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions was created in 1874 and as the Office of the Commissioner for Catholic Indian Missions. Its purpose was to protect, promote, and administer the Native American mission interests of the Catholic Church in the United States. In so doing, it promoted fundraising for and served as an advocate for Catholic Native American missions and Native American social and cultural issues in general.

Notable People: Officers and personnel of the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions.

Notable Events: Notable events regarding the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions and Catholic evangelization of Native Americans in the present-day United States.

Notable Missions and Parishes: Notable Native American Catholic missions and parishes in the present-day United States.

U.S. Bishops' Agent for Catholic Indian Missions

1873-1874

General Charles Ewing (1835-1883)

Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions

Commissioners

1874-1883	General Charles Ewing (1835-1883)
1883-1884	Lieutenant John Mullen (1830-1909)

Executive Directors

Biographies: Click on names (also in Series 14-1, Box 91; Series 17 contains related interviews of Monsignor Lenz and Assistant Director Reverend Zeurn, S.J.). Portraits: The Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions Digital Image Collection includes portraits of the first five directors.
	Introduction
1874-1884	Reverend John Baptist A. Brouillet (1813-1884)
1885-1901	Reverend Joseph A. Stephan (1822-1901)
1901-1921	Monsignor William H. Ketcham (1868-1921)
1921-1935	Monsignor William M. Hughes (1880-1939)
1935-1976	Reverend John B. Tennelly, S.S. (1890-1981)
1976-2007	Monsignor Paul A. Lenz (1925-)*
2007-present	Reverend Wayne C. Paysse

*Vice-Postulator of the Canonization Cause of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, 2006-present; Office of the Vice-Postulator relocated to the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions.

Assistant or Associate Directors

1905-1913	Reverend Charles Warren Currier (1857-1918)
1921	Reverend William Quinn
1981-1985, 1995-2001*	Reverend Theodore (Ted) F. Zeurn, S.J. (1921-2007)

*Legislative Assistant, 1995-2001

Presidents of the Board of Directors/Committee of Prelates

1884-1896 Bishop Martin Marty, O.S.B. (1834-1896)

1896-1921 Cardinal James Gibbons (1834-1921)

1921-1951 Cardinal Denis J. Dougherty (1865-1951)

1951-1967 Cardinal Francis J. Spellman (1889-1967)

1967-1988 Cardinal John J. Kroll (1910-1996)

1988-1989 Archbishop William D. Borders (1913-)

1989-2000 Cardinal John J. O'Conner (1920-2000)

2000-2003 Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua (1923-)

2003-present Cardinal William H. Keeler (1931-)

Editor, The Indian Sentinel

1920s Inno McGill

Evangelizers

ca. 1910s [Nicholas (Nick)] Black Elk (Oglala) (1863-1950)

1920s Reverend Albert Neghanquet (Potawatomi)

1920s Reverend Philip B. Gordon (Ojibwa)

Lecturers

1901-1920s? Reverend Henry G. Ganss

1910-1916 Monsignor William M. Hughes (1880-1939)

1921-1925 Reverend William Huffer

1922-1926 Reverend John S. Woods

1924-1925 Reverend William Flynn

Secretaries

1928 Reverend John S. Woods

1920s Charles S. Lusk

Treasurers

Before 1920-1925 Reverend Edward R. Dyer, S.S. (1854-1925)

1926-1935 Reverend John B. Tennelly, S.S. (1890-1981)