Roman Sources for the History of American Catholicism: A New Perspective

The guide I have been compiling aims to be a new research instrument for both established historians and graduate students who must draw on the Roman material for their researches. It will provide three key pieces of information: 1) contacts details of the archives, that is, their address, phone numbers, email addresses, websites, names of the current archivists, and modality of access; 2) a brief history of the archives and of the institutions associated with them; 3) a description of the holdings with special regard to American Catholicism, mentioning some exemplary documents.

Given the large number of archives which are in Rome and which I had to opportunity to visit during this year, it is rather difficult to emphasize which depository is more important rather than another. However, I would like to emphasize the wealth of material for the history of American Catholicism contained in the “minor” archives. By “minor” I mean archives which have been overlooked by the majority of the historians who instead have devoted their attention to the Vatican Secret Archives or to the Archives of Propaganda. 

One example of the potentialities offered by these “minor” archives is provided by the Abbey of St. Paul Outside the Walls. This preserves the correspondence of the Irish Benedictine Dom Bernard Smith (1812-92). He had a prominent role in Rome, where he acted as pontifical agent for a number of Australian, English, Irish, and North American bishops and clerics from the early 1840s until the late 1880s. Smith corresponded with the majority of the American bishops. His letters are literally a goldmine for reconstructing the development and expansion of the most prominent American dioceses. Beyond the members of the hierarchy, Smith also established links with influential lay people. One of them was Henry Seton (1839-1927), second son of William and Emily Seton and captain of the Unionist Army, who, at mid-July 1862, funneled to Smith a report on the Civil War from Virginia, stressing how “[t]his is a war to the death – no compromise.”[2]

The archives of St. Paul Outside the Walls also contain a bundle of letters written by Paolo Marella, an Italian cleric who worked as auditor at the apostolic delegation of Washington during the years from 1922 to 1933. One of his letter provides a very funny perspective that the Italian people had on the Americans during that period. Indeed, in a letter dated March 1922, Marella stated: “[I]t is full of Protestants of any sect. When I see the boys on the street I pity to think that the great majority of them are heretic,” and, “there is no noise as in Rome; cars rarely honk the horn, the traffic is regulated by the police.” (Researchers will have a chance to verify whether Marella's commentaries still apply to today’s Rome!) [3]

Other interesting material has been found in the archives of the Capuchins. These contain information on the history of the American provinces from the mid-nineteenth century to the early decades of the twentieth century. Beyond the traditional requests for financial support or permissions to found new convents, the documentation offers an insight into the impact of the Capuchins' activity among the American people. Of particular interest is a letter that, in 1917, James Malone, the Senator from Kansas, sent to Rome on the issue of the Capuchins' whiskers. Malone recounted that the Capuchins were seldom recognized or invited to participate in the public functions of the communities. According to him, the only reason for this was their beards, because “the appendage on their face, which the people refer to as hairy entanglements, are repulsive to the American idea of appearance.”[4]

Given the impressive amount of material which is in Rome, I could offer many more examples in order to emphasize how the “Roman” perspective is an essential avenue for understanding the transnational dimension of American Catholicism. At present I am completing my research on the archives and, at the same time, I am drafting the descriptions of the depositories examined. We intend for this guide to simplify access for historians to the archives of Rome, which will hopefully enrich the challenging and stimulating field of American Catholic Studies. Beyond being a new research tool, this guide might be used as platform for developing new projects in other areas, periods, and themes in Catholic history, thus demonstrating the global dimension of the material which is preserved in the “Eternal City.”

[1] Pierre Hurtubise, Luca Codignola, and Fernand Harvey eds., L'Amérique du Nord française dans les archives religieuses de Rome, 1600-1922 (Québec: Les Éditions de l'IQRC, 1999).

[2] Letter of Captain Henry Seton to Bernard Smith, 17 July 1862, Suffolk, Archivio Storico di s. Paolo [thereafter ASSP], serie Monaci dell'Ottocento, shelf no. 27, palchetto c, Smith II, 1862-1876, not foliated nor paginated.

[3] Paolo Marella to ?, March 1922, ASSP, shelf no. 19, palchetto c, Miscellanea, “E’ pieno di Protestanti di ogni setta. Quando vedo i ragazzi per le strade mi fa pena il pensare che gran parte di essi sono eretici. Non c’è qui il chiasso di Roma: gli automobili non suonano la tromba che raramente: il traffico è regolato dai poliziotti.”

[4] Letter of John Malone, senator of Kansas, to the Capuchins' Minister General, Herndon, Kansas, 16 August 1917, Archivio Generale dei Frati Minori Cappuccini, series G97, Provincia Pennsylvanica, Sectio XIII, not foliated nor paginated.