Arnold Damen, S.J. (1815–1890) was a Dutch

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

missionary who is noted for bringing Jesuit education to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Biography

Damen was born in Leur,

North Brabant North Brabant ( ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, Dutch Brabant or Hollandic Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to ...

(The Netherlands) on March 20, 1815, and joined the Jesuit missions in North America under Pierre-Jean De Smet. He trained at St. Stanislaus Novitiate in Florissant, Missouri, and was ordained in 1844. His first job was teaching at St. Louis University, but in 1847 he was appointed pastor of the college church of St. Francis Xavier in St. Louis. In 1857 he was sent to establish the first Jesuit presence in Chicago, where he founded St. Ignatius College Prep, as well as the institution that would become Loyola University. He died at Creighton College in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, on January 1, 1890. He is the namesake of Damen Avenue in Chicago.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Damen, Arnold 1815 births 1890 deaths 19th-century Dutch Jesuits Jesuit missionaries in the United States Saint Louis University faculty University and college founders Presidents of Loyola University Chicago