Carl H. Meinberg (January 11, 1889 – April 15, 1975) was a 20th-century

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

priest in the

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who served as the seventh president of St. Ambrose College in

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

, from 1937 to 1940. He is included by the Diocese of Davenport on a list of credibly accused abusers for the alleged abuse of at least four minors.

Biography

Meinberg was born on January 11, 1889, in

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk people, Sauk chief K ...

. He was educated at St. Francis School and St. Peter’s High School, both in Keokuk, and St. Ambrose College. He went on to St. Mary’s Seminary in

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. He was ordained on May 30, 1914, at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Davenport by Bishop James Davis. He holds a

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from

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

. He also did graduate work at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

and the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. He became a member to the faculty at St. Ambrose College after his ordination to the priesthood. In his early years, Meinberg served as the head of the

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, and was also the director of the

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

and the

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. He taught in the departments of

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and

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, and eventually became the head of the

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department and the campus spiritual director before becoming president. He served as the college president from November 1937 until February 1940. In 1939

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

named Meinberg a Domestic Prelate, upon the nomination of Bishop Henry Rohlman. After leaving the presidency, Msgr. Meinberg became the

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of St. Mary’s Church in

Iowa City Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's fifth-most populous city. The Iowa City metropolitan area, which enc ...

. His predecessor at St. Mary’s was Msgr. A.J. Schulte, the first president of St. Ambrose. During his 27 years as pastor the

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

and

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

were renovated, and the church was redecorated. The parish celebrated its centennial in 1941. St. Mary’s High School merged with St. Patrick’s High School, upon the directive of Bishop Ralph L. Hayes, and created Regina High School. He also served as dean of the Iowa City Deanery. Msgr. Meinberg retired in August 1967 to St. Ambrose College. He died there on April 15, 1975, at the age of 86. He had two funerals one in Christ the King Chapel at St. Ambrose and one at St. Mary’s. He was buried in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Iowa City.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meinburg, Carl 1889 births 1975 deaths St. Ambrose University faculty Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport Catholic University of America alumni Presidents of St. Ambrose University People from Keokuk, Iowa People from Davenport, Iowa American Roman Catholic priests Religious leaders from Iowa Catholics from Iowa 20th-century American academics