Henry Cosgrove
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Henry Cosgrove (December 19, 1834 – December 23, 1906) was a late 19th-century and early 20th-century
bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
of the
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in the
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. He served as the second bishop of
Diocese of Davenport The Diocese of Davenport () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction, or diocese, of the Roman Catholicism in the United States, Catholic Church for the southeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States. The current bishop of D ...
in
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
from 1884 to until his death in 1906.


Biography


Early life

Henry Cosgrove was born in
Williamsport, Pennsylvania Williamsport is a city in and the county seat of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 27,754. It is the principal city of the Williamsport Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a populati ...
, on December 19, 1834, to John and Bridget Cosgrove, both Irish immigrants The family moved to
Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania Hollidaysburg is a borough in and the county seat of Blair County in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located on the Juniata River, south of Altoona and is part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania, metropolitan statistical area. In 1900 ...
, and then to
Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region ...
, in 1845. He studied with Reverend Joseph Cretin, then
vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...
of the
Diocese of Dubuque The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Dubuque () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or archdiocese, of the Catholic Church in the northeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States. The Diocese of Dubuque was erected in 1837 and ...
, Cosgrove then attended St. Mary's Seminary in
Perry County, Missouri Perry County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,956. Its county seat is Perryville. The county was officially organized on November 16, 1820 (effectiv ...
, for the classics, and the seminary at
Carondelet, Missouri Carondelet is a neighborhood in the extreme southeastern part of St. Louis, Missouri. It was incorporated as an independent city in 1851 and was annexed by the City of St. Louis in 1870. The neighborhood had a population of 7,734 people as of ...
, for theology.


Priesthood


Diocese of Dubuque

Cosgrove was ordained a priest by Bishop
Clement Smyth Timothy Clement Smyth (February 24, 1810 – September 22, 1865) was an Irish born 19th century bishop of the Catholic Church in the United States. He served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Dubuque following the death of Mathias Loras. B ...
on August 27, 1857, for the Diocese of Dubuque. After his ordination, Cosgrove was assigned as an assistant pastor at St. Margaret's Parish in Davenport. He became pastor there in 1861. On May 2, 1873, an arsonist set a fire on the altar in St. Margaret's Church. During the confusion, Cosgrove took a blow to the head after running into a doorway. The fire damage was confined to the altar and the arsonist was never apprehended. In the early morning of March 31, 1878, three men broke into St. Margaret's Church. Their goal was to steal the collection from the
Forty Hours' Devotion Forty Hours' Devotion, in Italian called or , is a Roman Catholic liturgical action in which continuous prayer is made for forty hours before the Blessed Sacrament in solemn exposition. It often occurs in a succession of churches, with one fini ...
that was collected in the previous service. During the break in, one man shot at Cosgrove while he was in bed, missing him. The burglars fled the church without the collection. A $3,000 reward was offered for their capture. All three men were ultimately arrested, convicted and sent to
Anamosa State Penitentiary Anamosa State Penitentiary is a Medium/Maximum security penitentiary prison located in the Jones County, Iowa, Jones County community of Anamosa, Iowa – approximately northeast of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Building The building was commissioned in ...
in Anamosa, Iowa.


Diocese of Davenport

In 1881,
Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...
split the Diocese of Dubuque, creating a new Diocese of Davenport with Reverend John McMullen as its first bishop. Cosgrove was incardinated, or transferred, to the new diocese on June 4, 1881. St. Margaret's was elevated to a
cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...
and Cosgrove became the cathedral's
rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
. McMullen named him as the first
vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...
of the diocese. After the death of Bishop McMullen on July 4, 1883, the Vatican named Cosgrove as the diocesan administration. When the diocese sent a list of possible candidates for bishop to the Vatican, Cosgrove's name, despite being vicar general, was missing. This omission was allegedly the work of priests from
Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...
, who still wanted it to be the see city instead of Davenport. However, after Cosgrove's supporters learned of this maneuver, they persuaded the Vatican to wait on an appointment until it received a petition from the clergy that favored Cosgrove.


Bishop of Davenport

Cosgrove was appointed the second bishop of Davenport on July 11, 1884, by
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 ...
Leo XIII, and was consecrated in St. Margaret's Cathedral on September 14, 1884, by Archbishop
Patrick Feehan Patrick Augustine Feehan (August 28, 1829 – July 12, 1902), was an Irish-born American Catholic prelate who served as the first Archbishop of Chicago from 1880 until his death in 1902. He previously served as Bishop of Nashville from 1865 t ...
of Chicago. Bishops John Hennessy of Dubuque and
James O'Connor James O'Connor or O'Conner may refer to: Politics and law * James O'Connor (Louisiana politician) (1870–1941), U.S Representative from Louisiana * James F. O'Connor (1878–1945), U.S Representative from Montana * James Francis Thaddeus O'Connor ...
, the Vicar Apostolic of Nebraska, were the principal co-consecrators. Cosgrove was a friend of Archbishop
John Ireland John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian-American actor and film director. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia and raised in New York City, he came to prominence with film audiences for his supporting roles i ...
and was aligned with the more progressive wing of the American hierarchy. While the diocese had no newspaper at the time, the periodical ''Iowa Orphan's Friend'' reported on Cosgrove's activities and published his pastoral letters. It was sort of a "house organ" for the bishop. In 1884 Cosgrove attended the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, which established the
Baltimore Catechism ''A Catechism of Christian Doctrine, Prepared and Enjoined by Order of the Third Council of Baltimore'', or simply the ''Baltimore Catechism'', was the national Catholic catechism for children in the United States, based on Robert Bellarmine's 16 ...
. Deciding that St. Margaret's was no longer adequate as cathedral functions, Cosgrove constructed Sacred Heart Cathedral in 1891 to replace it. Cosgrove established St. Vincent's Home for orphans in 1895 in Davenport by the
Congregation of the Humility of Mary The Sisters of the Humility of Mary is a Roman Catholic religious congregation, founded at Dommartin-sous-Amance, France, in 1855. The community immigrated to the United States in 1864, and established themselves near New Bedford, Pennsylvania. Thi ...
in 1896. Cosgrove supported the national
Temperance Movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting Temperance (virtue), temperance or total abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and ...
and called for a moral crusade in the diocese, especially in Davenport. In 1903 he was quoted in the national media calling Davenport "the wicked city of its size in America" because of its notorious Bucktown District, an area of
speakeasies A speakeasy, also called a beer flat or blind pig or blind tiger, was an illicit establishment that sold alcoholic beverages. The term may also refer to a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. In the United State ...
and brothels that was close to St. Margaret's. On October 7, 1904, at Cosgrove's request, Pope
Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...
named Reverend James J. Davis as coadjutor bishop of the diocese. Cosgrove presided over the diocese's second
synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...
the same year


Death and legacy

Henry Cosgrove died of
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
on December 23, 1906, in Davenport at age 72. After his funeral, Cosgrove was interred in the cathedral crypt. His remains were later moved to Mt. Calvary Cemetery in Davenport when the diocese abandoned the crypt. Cosgrove was the first native born bishop of the United States appointed to a see west of the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
. Cosgrove Hall, a residence hall at
St. Ambrose University St. Ambrose University (SAU) is a private university, private Catholic university in Davenport, Iowa, United States. It was founded as a school of commerce for young men in 1882. History Foundation St. Ambrose was founded as a seminary and scho ...
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 ...
, is named in his honor.


References

Attribution * The entry cites: **Reuss, ''Biog. Encyc. of the Cath. Hierarchy of U.S.'' (Milwaukee, 1898); **''The Messenger'' (New York, Jan., 1907).


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cosgrove, Henry 1834 births 1906 deaths People from Williamsport, Pennsylvania Roman Catholic bishops of Davenport 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent Catholics from Pennsylvania