Our History

History of the Province

Cumberland Memories - Our Other Mother

(Part 5) - Our Other Mother

When the Westphalian commissariate joined the Bavarian one in 1881, its identity was swallowed up. It would be a mistake, however, to assume the Westphalian friars themselves were lost in the process or became second-class citizens. They constituted a group equal in size and talent to the Bavarian friars and were immediately put into positions of responsibility.

The commissariate's 1881 status, drawn up at Altoetting in September, clearly shows this. In the copy which follows, the Westphalians have been put into boldface.

Clearly it was a double foundation on which the Province of St. Augustine was erected in August of 1882, and both groups supported the future growth of the Province.

At the first provincial chapter, Franz Wolff, who would later succeed Hyazinth Epp as minister, quickly rose to the fore as Second Definitor. Two other Westphalians, Anton Schuermann and Gregor Autsch became delegates to the general chapter.

Perhaps during the provincial chapter this latter office seemed purely honorary, as no general chapter had been held for 27 years. Nevertheless one was called in 1884, and Anton and Gregor joined Hyazinth Epp as the province's first representatives at a general chapter, thus participating in the election of the legendary Bernard of Andermatt as general minister.

During the province's first five years, the Westphalians continued to have a healthy influence on provincial growth. They were heavily involved in the formation programs, and they obviously encouraged candidates to come to the province from Westphalia. Men such as Bros. Colonat Weckmann (1864-95), Raymond Kruez (1862-90), Fridolin Schmitz (1860-1936), the very saintly Fabian Larkamp (1860-1936), Ludger Grube (1861-1923), Guy Hochgeschurz (1864-1915), Hugo Naderhoff (1859-1937), and Frs. Joseph Leonissa Tragesser (1870-1949) and Boniface Weckmann (1880-1967), all of whom served the Pennsylvania province generously for the rest of their lives.

The Westphalian minister also continued to send professed friars to the Pennsylvania province. At the time of the 1881 union, he sent Bros. Otto Hackefort and Donatus Vaegs, and in 1884 Frs. Gregor N. Schneiders, Johann M. Bleyler, and Bernard Koch.

Had the Kultukampf lasted longer, most of the Westphalian province might have ended up in the U.S., and coverages of early history of the Pennsylvania province would have emphasized more the actual contribution of the Westphalians. By the time the friars found the leisure to start writing history, however, the situation had changed abruptly.

After much pressure was brought to bear upon it, the Prussian government modified its repressive May Laws, and in 1887 allowed the Capuchins and other religious orders to reopen their friaries and their novitiates. The new Westphalian minister, Alfons Neissen (1838-95), thus found himself faced with the task of pulling the province back together.

At the time of the suppression in 1875, the Westphalian province had only 67 friars. Now that he had to repeople the friaries of the province, Alfons was able to find a grand total of 30 friars living in Germany - 14 priests and 16 lay brothers. Eight of the friars had died, two had gone to missions in India, another six friars were living in neighboring provinces, and a few had left the order. The real concentration of his friars was in the Pennsylvania province, which by then had increased its numbers to almost 90 friars. (Linden 128) .

Back in 1881, Alfon's predecessor had promised not to recall any men from America as long as they were needed to staff the friaries then in existence. Faced with such a formidable task, however, Alfons wrote to the friars in America and, as Hyazinth Epp put it, "demanded not too politely that they return." (Epp 1887 n. 8)

As he had recently taken on new apostolates in Wheeling and Canal Dover, Hyazinth was understandably miffed and appealed to the contract made at Altoetting in 1881 by Bonifatius and his definitory. The appeal, however, according to Hyazinth, "was given small regard and less support by the Most Rev. Father General, who explained that the Altoetting agreement should be interpreted to the benefit of both parties and that therefore in each individual case recourse should be had to him."

In justice to Alfons, it has to be noted that the Westphalians had promised to leave their friars in America only as long as they were needed to maintain the friaries existing in 1881. By 1887, the province was 24 men larger, and new friaries had been started at Wheeling and Dover. The loss to the Pennsylvania province no doubt caused some hardships for those who remained, but within five years Hyazinth had recouped whatever loss in personnel he suffered from the returns to Germany. The return of the friars was, on the other hand, a matter of life or death to the Westphalian province.

On August 16, 1887, Frs. Andreas and Johann Maria and Bros. Wendelin, Homobonus, Alexius, and Gottfried left for the fatherland. Frs. Jakob and IIdefons and Bros. Valentin and Seraphin followed in 1888. Throughout the next 16 years a steady trickle of Westphalians returned to their Mother province: Frs. Gregor N., Dominikus, Franz, Lukas, Pius, and Martin, and Bros. Donatus and Stanislaus.

Nevertheless the return from the diaspora was far from complete, and five priests and three brothers spent the remainder of their lives in the Pennsylvania province. Anton Maria died at Herman in 1887; Maurus at Victoria in 1892; Bernard at Peoria the same year; Otto, Didakus, and Gregor Maria at Pittsburgh in 1893, 1900, and 1902; and Aegidius at Catharine in 1908. The last of the Cumberland pioneers in America, Bro. Donulus Baulich, died at Hays in 1936.

It was rather fitting that the first foreign missionaries of the Pennsylvania province, who left for China in 1922, labored in the Apostolic Vicariate of East Kansu, a mission committed to Bishop Salvator Walleser, O.F.M. Cap., and his confreres of the Westphalian province. As of Dec. 31, 1973, the Pennsylvania province had 321 men, and the Rhine-Westphalian province stood at 252.

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Fr. Gregory Autsch, OFM Cap

Fr. Raymond Kreuz, OFM Cap

Fr. Fridolin Schmitz, OFM Cap

Br. Fabian Larkamp, OFM Cap