Adolphus Joseph Lecaille (c. 1825–1908) was a Catholic priest. He was one of the pioneer priests in the Roman Catholic Dioese of Geraldton in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Early life

Adolphus Joseph Lecaille was born in Belgium. He expressed a

vocation A vocation () is an occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. People can be given information about a new occupation through student orientation. Though now often used in non-religious co ...

for the priesthood at an early age. Following his initial education in Belgium, he was then sent to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Italy, to attend the

Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide The Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide () was established in 1627 for the purpose of training missionaries to spread Catholicism around the world (the Latin term "''de propaganda fide''" means “for the propagation of the faith”). ...

, which trained missionaries to spread Catholicism through the world. There he studied mathematics, classics, philosophy and theology . He was ordained as a priest in 1856.

Religious life

Lecaille came to West Australia in 1858 when John Brady was Bishop of Perth and

Joseph Serra Joseph C. Serra (born August 8, 1940) is an American politician who served in the Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature ...

was coadjutor-bishop. After a year in Bunbury, Lecaille was appointed to the charge of Greenough, a district including the little port of

Geraldton Geraldton (Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

, and in 1859 he arrived upon the scene of his main lifework. He was constantly on the move through the various Greenough settlements, Geraldton and

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

, nor did he forget the scattered members of his flock far away in the lonely bush. It was before the development of the railways, and the bush tracks were very rough and difficult for any wheeled vehicles. Lecaille established churches and schools in: * Greenough (St. Peter's) * Bootenal * Dongarra (St Thomas') * Nabawa * Northampton * Geraldton *

Irwin Irwin may refer to: Places ;United States * Irwin, California * Irwin, Idaho * Irwin, Illinois * Irwin, Iowa * Irwin, Nebraska * Irwin, Ohio * Irwin, Pennsylvania * Irwin, South Carolina * Irwin County, Georgia * Irwin Township, Venango County, Pe ...

The first St. Peter's church at Greenough was opened in 1866 and cost £233. It has since been pulled down. At Geraldton the foundation stone of St Francis Xavier's Church was laid in 1870. This same stone was re-laid by Bishop Kelly in 1918 in the base of the north-west tower of the St Francis Xavier Cathedral. Lecaille was also responsible Following the discovery of gold near

Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repairs ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

in 1872 and the establishment and growth of sugar production during the 1870s, the Bishop of Brisbane, James Quinn petitioned the Roman Curia to create a

vicariate A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

in north Queensland to minister to Catholics in the region and to

evangelise In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...

the Aborigines. The

Vicariate Apostolic of Queensland The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cairns is a diocese of the Catholic Church located in the state of Queensland, Australia. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Brisbane. The diocese was erected as a vicariate apostolic in 1877 and w ...

was officially created on 27 January 1877 by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

. The Vicariate consisted of all the land in Queensland north of the line starting at Cape Hinchinbrook and then west to the border with

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

(now

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

). Lecaille was appointed the first Apostolic Pro-Vicar of the Queensland vicariate with Reverend Father Tarquin Tanganelli as the rector. Lecaille was to be based in

while Tanganelli was to be based at the

Hodgkinson Minerals Area The Hodgkinson Mineral Area was a mining area near the Hodgkinson River about west of Cairns in the present-day Shire of Mareeba in Queensland, Australia. It was the site of a gold rush in the 1870s. History Prospector James Venture Mulligan ...

to minister to the needs of the miners and establish churches there. Due to a breakdown in communication, the news of the new Vicariate does not appear to have reached Australia until the arrival of Tanganelli and two other Italian priests in November 1877 to serve in the Vicariate. Lecaille (who was then based in

) did not take up his appointment in Queensland but remains recorded as holding the position from February to November 1877. As the years went by, the Catholic population in the Geraldton area grew in numbers and other priests were sent to assist. The

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

then decided to excise this northern area from the Perth Diocese and created the Diocese Geraldton on 30 January 1898. It needed a pioneering bishop and, as Lecaille was a zealous archdeacon, he was offered the bishopric. Father Lecaille requested permission to decline the honour. He was getting old and worn out by his long years of work.

Later life

Soon after the appointment of

William Bernard Kelly William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

as bishop, Lecaille journeyed down to Perth to undertake less arduous duties. He was chaplain to the Order of the Good Shepherd and at the Loretto Convent on

Adelaide Terrace Adelaide Terrace is a major arterial road through the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. It runs parallel to the Swan River, linking St Georges Terrace with The Causeway. Route description Adelaide Terrace's eastern end is ...

. Then he became ill and spent the last two years of his life being cared for by the Sisters at St John of God Hospital. Lecaille died on Thursday 7 May 1908 aged 83 years. He was buried on Saturday 9 May 1908 in the grounds of St Joseph's Orphanage. A Requiem Mass was held for him in Geraldton. In recognition of Lecaille's commitment and contribution to the Geraldton Diocese, on Friday 8 June 1936 the Bishop of Geraldton,

James O'Collins Sir James Patrick O'Collins (31 March 1892 − 25 November 1983), an Australian suffragan bishop, was the fifth Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ballarat, serving for over 29 years. Born in , Victoria, O'Collins was ordained as a priest ...

, exhumed Lecaille's remains from the graveyard at St Joseph's Orphanage and transferred them to Geraldton to be interred in a new mortuary chapel of St Francis Xavier's Cathedral. This chapel was built under the supervision of Dean

John Hawes John Cyril Hawes (7 September 1876 – 26 June 1956) was an architect and priest. Hawes was known for designing and constructing church buildings in England, Western Australia and The Bahamas. He served as a priest in the Church of England befo ...

as its architect. The Bishop directed that Holy Mass should be celebrated there once a month for the souls of those buried in the Catholic portion of the cemetery at Utakarra, then about out of the city. The mortuary chapel is on the interior. It is built of stone with a vaulted roof.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lecaille, Adolphus Joseph 19th-century Australian Roman Catholic priests 19th-century Belgian Roman Catholic priests 1908 deaths Roman Catholic bishops of Cairns Year of birth uncertain