Bishop Schrembs Defends the Church

In 1914, the first bishop of Toledo, Bishop Joseph Schrembs, gave a series of four lectures to refute common criticisms of the Church.  The lectures were printed in a booklet, which you can access HERE.

Cathedral's Cleveland Cousin

A color postcard of the former St. Agnes church in Cleveland, which shared with Toledo's Rosary Cathedral the architectural designs of John T. Comes and artwork of Felix Lieftuchter.  The church was torn down in 1975 after a devastating fire.

Another view of the interior HERE.

UPDATE: another photo on Churches of Ohio Facebook site:  click HERE.

The Cassidy Home in Sandusky

Before any Catholic churches were built in Sandusky, the Cassidy family opened their home for services.  Read the full story at the Sandusky History blog HERE.

St. Joseph, Tiffin Documentary

A short documentary about the 1934 fire at Tiffin St. Joseph church and its rebuilding will premiere at the parish on Sunday, April 10 at 12:45 pm.  Soon you will be able to watch it online, or purchase DVDs.  Click HERE for full details. 

Mother Angelica's Ohio Roots

Mother Angelica of EWTN passed away on Easter Sunday; the Cleveland Plain Dealer has some interesting background HERE.

Mother's roots in Canton:  click HERE.

Fostoria native Bishop Robert Baker of Birmingham will lead a vigil service for Mother on March 31.  Schedule HERE.

1986: Live at the Sports Arena:  Mother Angelica.

For St. Joseph's Day

 

"The Second Dream of St. Joseph" by artist Daniel Mitsui.

Most Blessed Sacrament, Toledo

Above is a photo of the interior of Most Blessed Sacrament in Toledo, when it was built in 1954.  It looks a bit stark in black and white, but does not appear so in person.  Parish website is HERE.

Pioneer Priests from Ireland

The Irish American Archives Society in Cleveland has produced an online publication, "Pioneer Irish Priests of the Early Cleveland Catholic Diocese."  As the territory of the Diocese of Toledo was once part of the Cleveland Diocese, many of these priests served in parishes in Northwest Ohio. Also included are several immigrant priests from other nations.  You can view the publication HERE.  (If you view it through a browser, some of the content does not show up properly.  If you download the PDF, it should be OK.)

Historic Photos from Sandusky

The Sandusky Library has launched a local history archive, "Past Perfect," with many photos online.  If you do a keyword search for "Catholic", you'll see photos from the area parishes.  Or hit the "Random Images" button if you want to kill a few hours...  Click HERE.

Fr. William F. Murphy, Sandusky

Over at the Sandusky History blog, you can read about Fr. William F. Murphy, pastor of Ss. Peter & Paul parish from 1905 - 1942.  One noteworthy event was the marriage of Knute Rockne to Bonnie Skiles, pictured above.  For full article, click HERE.

St. John, Delphos

Some great photos of St. John's church in Delphos at the website of Anthony Fabro; click HERE to see (and be sure to click on the photos to see the full detail.)  Sound clips of St. John's pipe organ too!

Divine Mercy: In Search of The Original Image

A Soft Little Voice

Many patients and visitors of Mercy Hospital in Tiffin will remember Sister Mary Agnes Procopio, small in stature and voice, but full of caring.  Her obituary is HERE.

St. Joseph, Monroeville

Early 1900s

St. Mary, Kirby

Early 1900s

Sad News

The brother of Toledo's Bishop Daniel Thomas has passed away after a battle with cancer.  Details HERE.  Full obituary HERE.

St. Barbara, Cloverdale

St. Barbara church in Cloverdale was destroyed by a tornado in 2013, but parishioners have rebuilt.  Dedication took place December 19.  You can see more photos and coverage at their Facebook page HERE.

All Around the Diocese

As Bishop Daniel Thomas visits parishes throughout the diocese, there are many fine photos of churches posted on his Facebook page -- including Edgerton, Mansfield and Norwalk recently.  Click HERE to see.

Fr. M.J. Smith

A reader of this blog from Canberra, Australia, wrote with information about Fr. M.J. Smith, a native of Ireland who served as a chaplain in the Australian Army, then came to the Diocese of Toledo.  Above is his obituary in the June 2, 1949 Toledo Blade.  More information in a previous post -- HERE.

Link to his military record HERE.

Toledo Photo Series

The Lorain County Sacred Landmarks Initiative has a series of photos of Toledo churches on its Facebook page -- Click HERE to see them.