View source for Samuel Mazzuchelli

{{Short description|Italian Catholic missionary}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2011}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type = priest
| honorific-prefix = [[Venerable]]
| name = Samuel Mazzuchelli
| honorific-suffix = [[Dominican Order|OP]]
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| image = FRMazzuchelli.jpg
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| other_post = <!---------- Orders ---------->
| ordination = September 5, 1830
| ordained_by = [[Edward Fenwick]]
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| birth_name = Carlo Gaetano Samuele Mazzuchelli
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1806|11|04}}
| birth_place = [[Milan]], [[Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)|French Kingdom of Italy]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1864|02|23|1806|11|04}}
| death_place = [[Benton, Wisconsin]], [[United States]]
| buried = St. Patrick's Cemetery, Benton, Wisconsin, United States
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'''Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli''', [[Order of Preachers|OP]] (November 4, 1806 – February 23, 1864) was a pioneer Italian [[Dominican Order|Dominican friar]] and Catholic missionary priest who helped bring the Church to the [[Iowa]]-[[Illinois]]-[[Wisconsin]] tri-state area. He founded several parishes in the area and was the architect for several parish buildings. Additionally, Mazzuchelli established several schools throughout the region, some of which have developed into local Catholic colleges. As part of this effort, he founded the [[Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters]].

==Life==
===Early life===
[[File:MazzuchelliHwySign.jpg|thumbnail|right|Fr. Mazzuchelli historical marker]]

He was born '''Carlo Gaetano Samuele Mazzuchelli''' on November 4, 1806, in [[Milan]]—then under French control, the 16th of 17 children of a prominent family. At the age of 17, he entered the Dominican Order, which was still recovering from the devastation wrought on the Catholic Church institutions in Italy under the [[French Revolutionary Army]].<ref>[https://www.sinsinawa.org/mazzuchelli/mazzuchelli.html "Father Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP", Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa]</ref> After his period of [[novitiate]], when he changed his name to '''Friar Samuel''', he went to [[Rome]] to prepare for [[Holy Orders|ordination]]. He was ordained a [[subdeacon]] in 1827 in the [[Archbasilica of St. John Lateran|Lateran Basilica]], around which time he was recruited to serve in new [[Diocese of Cincinnati]], still missionary territory for the Church.

After spending some time in France to perfect his French, in 1828, Mazzuchelli set out for the United States, where he arrived in Cincinnati and was welcomed by the bishop, fellow Dominican friar, [[Edward Fenwick]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.crisismagazine.com/2013/the-apostle-of-the-upper-midwest-samuel-mazzuchelli|journal=Crisis Magazine|first=Christopher|last=Check|date=July 1, 2013|title=The Apostle of the Upper Midwest: Samuel Mazzuchelli}}</ref>

===Missionary priest===
After obtaining a [[dispensation (canon law)|dispensation]] from the [[Holy See]] due to his being underage, Mazzuchelli was ordained a priest by Fenwick on September 5, 1830.<ref name="CathHerald">{{cite news 
  | last = Uhler
  | first = Mary C.
  | title = Cause for sainthood moves forward
  |work=Catholic Herald
  | date = August 28, 2008 
  | url = http://madisoncatholicherald.org/2008-08-28/local-state.html#1
  | access-date =February 26, 2009}}</ref> Shortly after that, he was sent to serve at [[Sainte Anne Church (Mackinac Island)|Sainte Anne Church]] on [[Mackinac Island]] and later in northern Wisconsin, After about five years there,  Mazzuchelli arrived in the Dubuque area. During his time, he faced a number of challenges, such as hostility from other Christian denominations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.steanneschurch.org/history.htm|title=Ste. Anne Catholic Church - History|publisher=|access-date=January 9, 2016}}</ref>

While in what would later become [[Dubuque, Iowa]], he reorganized the parish and named it [[St. Raphael's Cathedral (Dubuque)|Saint Raphael]], which later became the Cathedral parish when the [[Archdiocese of Dubuque|Dubuque Diocese]] was formed in 1837. He assisted [[Bishop Mathias Loras]] during the first few years after the founding of the [[diocese]]. He worked extensively in what would eventually become the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison|Diocese of Madison]], Wisconsin. There he founded over 30 parishes and designed and built over 20 church buildings and several civic buildings.<ref name="CathHerald"/> Three of those parishes were named after the three [[Archangel]]s: Saint Raphael's in Dubuque, [[Saint Michael's Catholic Church (Galena, Illinois)|St. Michael's]] in [[Galena, Illinois]], and Saint Gabriel's in [[Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin]]. In 1846, he founded [[Sinsinawa Mound College]]. 

In May 1843 Mazzuchelli accompanied Bishop Loras to the [[Provincial Councils of Baltimore|Provincial Council of Bishops]] in Baltimore. After the sessions ended, he was advised to return to Italy to restore his weakened health. He sailed to Europe, going home to Milan and his welcoming family after an absence of 22 years.<ref>[http://uipress.lib.uiowa.edu/bdi/DetailsPage.aspx?id=259 McGreal, Mary Nona. "Samuel Mazzuchelli", ''The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa'']</ref> While there he recruited missionaries, raised funds, and wrote a memoir full of details of frontier life.

Upon his return, he founded the [[Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters]] in 1847. In 1848, he founded [[St. Clara Female Academy]] (now [[Dominican University (Illinois)|Dominican University]]), a [[frontier]] school for young women, which he entrusted to the Dominican Sisters.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZooUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA349 "Early Education in Wisconsin", ''Report and Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin...'', Volume 5, p. 349]</ref> 

Many remembered Mazzuchelli as a kind and gentlemanly priest. He was able to break down the cultural barriers that existed and appeal to many different ethnic groups. The Irish he ministered to called him "Father Matthew Kelly."<ref>[http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=14817&term_type_id=2&term_type_text=places&letter=F "Term: Father Samuel Mazzuchelli"] ''Dictionary of Wisconsin History''</ref> He died of a severe case of pneumonia, on February 23, 1864, after attending a sick call.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=1555&keyword=mazzuchelli|title=Mazzuchelli, Samuel Charles 1806 – 1864|publisher=|access-date=January 9, 2016}}</ref> Mazzuchelli was buried at St. Patrick's Cemetery in Benton.<ref name=Lafayette/>

==Veneration==
[[File:FrMazzuchelliGraveJune03.jpg|thumbnail|left|180px|Fr. Mazzuchelli's grave in [[Benton, Wisconsin]]]]
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli stained glass window.jpg|thumb|right|Stained glass window of Fr. Mazzuchelli at [[St. Raphael's Cathedral (Dubuque, Iowa)|St. Raphael's Cathedral]]]] -->
The cause for elevating him to [[Sainthood]] started in 1964 when [[William Patrick O'Connor]], the first [[Diocese of Madison|Bishop of Madison]], established a Diocesan Historical Commission to determine if documents available were sufficient for the Church to proceed with initial steps required in the process of beatification. The process progressed and was accepted by the Holy See for further investigation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sinsinawa.org/mazzuchelli/tribunal_closes.html|work=Sinsinawa Dominicans|title=Mazzuchelli Cause Continues|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160210063344/http://www.sinsinawa.org/mazzuchelli/tribunal_closes.html|archive-date=February 10, 2016|df=mdy-all}}</ref> In 1993, [[Pope John Paul II]] declared Mazzuchelli [[Venerable]].<ref name=Lafayette/>

In August 2008, an official inquiry into a presumed miracle performed through the intercession of Mazzuchelli was completed in the [[Diocese of Madison]]. Robert Uselmann, a resident of Monona, Wisconsin, had gone to Sinsinawa Mound with his family in 2001 to pray for Mazzuchelli's intercession in curing him of cancer. While there, he prayed with the Sisters, using Mazzuchelli's penance chain. Uselmann later discovered that a cancerous tumor had disappeared from his lung.<ref name="CathHerald"/>

[[Robert C. Morlino]], Bishop of the Diocese of Madison, opened a diocesan tribunal at the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters' request, which concluded its investigation and sent the results to Rome. 

==Legacy==
In 2006 a new middle school built by the Holy Family Catholic School System in Dubuque was named after Mazzuchelli. The school opened for the 2006–2007 academic year.<ref>[http://www.sinsinawa.org/Mazzuchelli/Mazzuchelli_News/MazzMiddleSchool.html Middle School Named in Honor of Fr. Mazzuchelli] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929162848/http://www.sinsinawa.org/Mazzuchelli/Mazzuchelli_News/MazzMiddleSchool.html |date=September 29, 2007 }} Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters website</ref>

===Parishes founded by Fr. Mazzuchelli===
<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sinsinawa.org/mazzuchelli/builder_church.html | title=Builder of the Church }}</ref>

''This list is incomplete. You can help by adding to it.''

{| class="wikitable" width=100%
!width=30%| Parish 
!width=15%| Location
!width=10%| Year
!width=20%| Ecclesiastical territory
!width=25%| Photo
|-
| St. John the Evangelist Church
| [[Green Bay, Wisconsin]]
| 1831<ref>[https://madisondiocese.org/75-who-was-the-venerable-samuel-mazzuchelli "Who was the Venerable Samuel Mazzuchelli?", Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison]</ref>
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay|Diocese of Green Bay]]
| 
|-
| [[Saint Michael's Catholic Church (Galena, Illinois)|St. Michael's Church]]
| [[Galena, Illinois]]
| 1832
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockford|Diocese of Rockford]]
| {{center|[[File:StMichaelsGalena.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[St. Raphael's Cathedral (Dubuque, Iowa)|St. Raphael's Cathedral]]
| [[Dubuque, Iowa]]
| 1833, 1835<ref name=Gallagher>{{cite book|last=Gallagher, BVM|first=Mary Kevin |title=Seed/Harvest: A History of the Archdiocese of Dubuque|year=1987|publisher=Archdiocese of Dubuque Press|location=Dubuque, Iowa|page=7}}</ref>
| [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque|Archdiocese of Dubuque]]
| {{center|[[File:St Raphael Dubuque 4855a.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[Shullsburg, Wisconsin#St. Matthews Church and Parish|St. Matthews Church]]
| [[Shullsburg, Wisconsin]]
| 1835
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison|Diocese of Madison]]
| {{center|[[File:St. Matthews Shullsburg.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[St. Anthony's Catholic Church (Davenport, Iowa)|St. Anthony's Church]]
| [[Davenport, Iowa]]
| 1837<ref name=Schmidt>{{cite book|last=Schmidt|first=Madeleine M.|title=Seasons of Growth: History of the Diocese of Davenport|year=1981|publisher=Diocese of Davenport|location=Davenport, Iowa|page=33}}</ref>
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport|Diocese of Davenport]]
| {{center|[[File:St. Anthony's Church - Davenport, Iowa 01.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[St. Paul's Catholic Church (Burlington, Iowa)|St. Paul's Church]]
| [[Burlington, Iowa]]
| 1839{{sfn|Schmidt|1981|page=63}}
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport|Diocese of Davenport]]
| {{center|[[File:St Paul Catholic Church - Burlington Iowa.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[St. Patrick's Church (Garryowen, Iowa)|St. Patrick's Church]]
| [[Garryowen, Iowa]]
| 1840<ref name=studies>{{cite journal|author=Sr. Mary Gilbert Kelly, OP|title=Irish Catholic Colonies and Colonization Projects in United States, 1795–1860: Part II|jstor=30097893|journal=Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review|date=September 1940|volume=29|number=115|publisher=Irish Province of the Society of Jesus|pages=447–449}}</ref>
| [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque|Archdiocese of Dubuque]]
| {{center|[[File:St. Patrick's Church.JPG|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[St. Mary's Church and Rectory (Iowa City, Iowa)|St. Mary's Church]]
| [[Iowa City, Iowa]]
| 1840{{sfn|Schmidt|1981|page=76}}
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport|Diocese of Davenport]]
| {{center|[[File:Saint Mary's Church - Iowa City.JPG|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| St. Mathias Church
| [[Muscatine, Iowa]]
| 1842{{sfn|Schmidt|1981|page=38}}
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport|Diocese of Davenport]]
| [[File:Old Saint Mathias Church - Muscatine, Iowa.JPG|frameless|80x80px]]<small>Church built in [[Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin]], floated down the Mississippi River to Muscatine.</small>
|-
| [[Saint Augustine Church (New Diggings, Wisconsin)|St. Augustine Church]]
| [[New Diggings, Wisconsin]]
| 1844
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison|Diocese of Madison]]
| {{center|[[File:Saint Augustine Church (Side).jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
| [[Saint Patrick's Church (Benton, Wisconsin)|St. Patrick's Church]]
| [[Benton, Wisconsin]]
| 1852<ref name=Lafayette>[https://www.lafayettecountywi.org/explore/page/st-patricks-rectory-and-father-mazzuchellis-gravesite-museum "St. Patrick's Rectory and Father Mazzuchelli's Gravesite & Museum", Lafayette County]</ref>
| [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison|Diocese of Madison]]
| {{center|[[File:StPatricksBentonWisJune2003.jpg|frameless|80x80px]]}}
|-
|}

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

== Further reading==
* Mazzuchelli, Samuel. ''The Memoirs of Father Samuel Mazzuchelli, O.P.'' Chicago: Priory Press, 1967.
* McGreal, Mary Nona. ''Samuel Mazzuchelli: American Dominican, Journeyman, Preacher, Pastor, Teacher''. Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 2005.

==External links==
{{wikiquote|Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli}}
{{commons}}

* [http://www.encyclopediadubuque.org/index.php?title=MAZZUCHELLI,_Samuel Samuel Mazzuchelli] at ''Encyclopedia Dubuque''
* [http://www.crisismagazine.com/2013/the-apostle-of-the-upper-midwest-samuel-mazzuchelli The Apostle of the Upper Midwest: Samuel Mazzuchelli]
* [http://www.madisoncatholicherald.org/seeingwithjesuseyes/3841-2013-2-07-lange.html Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli: an inspiration in the Year of Faith]

{{Dominican Order}}
{{Canonization}}
{{Subject bar |portal1= Biography |portal2= Christianity |portal3= United States }}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mazzuchelli, Samuel}}
[[Category:1806 births]]
[[Category:1864 deaths]]
[[Category:Italian Dominicans]]
[[Category:Religious leaders from Milan]]
[[Category:Religious leaders from Wisconsin]]
[[Category:People from Lafayette County, Wisconsin]]
[[Category:People from Dubuque, Iowa]]
[[Category:Venerated Dominicans]]
[[Category:19th-century venerated Christians]]
[[Category:Italian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:American Dominicans]]
[[Category:Catholics from Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Catholics from Iowa]]
[[Category:American venerated Catholics]]
[[Category:19th-century American Roman Catholic priests]]