John Stephen Michaud (November 24, 1843 – December 22, 1908) was an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He served as bishop of the

Diocese of Burlington The Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington ( la, Dioecesis Burlingtonensis) is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States, comprising the entire state of Vermont. The Diocese of Burlington was canonically e ...

in Vermont from 1899 until his death in 1908.

Biography

Early life

John Michaud was born on November 24, 1843, in Burlington,

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, to Stephen and Catherine (née Rogan) Michaud. He attended a

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

run by Reverend Jeremiah O'Callaghan, the first resident priest of Vermont, and served as an

altar boy An altar server is a lay assistant to a member of the clergy during a Christian liturgy. An altar server attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying, ringing the altar bell, helps bring up the gifts, brings up the book ...

to Bishop Louis De Goesbriand. Michaud worked for several lumber companies in Burlington. Michaud later studied at the Bryant and Stratton Commercial College campus in Vermont. In September 1865, he entered the College of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec. Returning to the United States, Michaud attended Holy Cross College in Worcester,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

, earning a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree in 1870. He then went to Saint Joseph's Provincial Seminary in

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

, New York.

Priesthood

Michaud was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

to the priesthood for the Diocese of Burlington by Bishop Edgar Wadhams on June 7, 1873. He then served in Newport, Albany, Barton and Lowell, all in Vermont, where he established their first Catholic churches. After recovering from

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

, Michaud fulfilled other pastoral assignments during the 1870's. Michaud returned to Burlington in 1879 to build the St. Joseph's Orphanage, completed in 1883. Michaud also performed pastoral work for Vermont parishes in Bennington, North Bennington, Fairfield, Underhill and

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. He was later named

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of St. Stephen's Parish in

Winooski, Vermont Winooski is a city in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Located on the Winooski River, as of the 2020 U.S. census the municipal population was 7,997. The city is the most densely populated municipality in northern New England, an area co ...

. After a sabbatical to Europe, he returned to Vermont in 1885 to become pastor of St. Frances de Sales ParishSt. Frances de Sales Church
in Bennington.

Bishop of Burlington

On May 4, 1892, Michaud was appointed coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Burlington and

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Modra'' by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

on June 29, 1892, from Archbishop John Williams, with Bishops Denis Bradley and

Henry Gabriels Henry Gabriels (October 6 1838 – April 23 1921) was a Belgian-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Ogdensburg in Northern New York from 1892 until his death in 1921. Biography Early life Henry Gab ...

serving as co-consecrators. He automatically became the second bishop of Burlington upon Bishop De Goesbriand death on November 3, 1899. During his tenure, Michaud completed the

Cathedral Church A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

, built the Fanny Allen Hospital in Burlington and staffed it with the Religious Hospitalers of St. Joseph. The

Sisters of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...

of Providence opened another new hospital in St. Johnsbury, Vermont; the Loretto Home for the Aged in Rutland, Vermont, was served by the

Sisters of St. Joseph The Sisters of St. Joseph, also known as the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, abbreviated CSJ or SSJ, is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women founded in Le Puy-en-Velay, France, in 1650. This congregation, named for S ...

. In 1904, Michaud invited the Society of Saint Edmund to establish

Saint Michael's College Saint Michael's College (St. Mikes or Saint Michael's) is a private Roman Catholic college in Colchester, Vermont. Saint Michael's was founded in 1904 by the Society of Saint Edmund. It grants Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees ...

in Colchester, Vermont. In 1905, the

Daughters of Charity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Daughters of Charity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (''Filles de la Charité du Sacré-Coeur de Jésus''; F.C.S.C.J.) is a congregation established on 18 December 1823 in France by Jean-Maurice Catroux (3 October 1794 – 16 April 1863) and Rose Gi ...

came to Newport, where they opened a mission to serve as teachers, nurses and catechists for the

Northeast Kingdom The Northeast Kingdom (also, locally, "The Kingdom" and abbreviated NEK) is the northeast corner of the U.S. state of Vermont, approximately comprising Essex, Orleans and Caledonia counties and having a population at the 2010 census of 64,764. ...

region of the state.

Death

John Michaud died on December 22, 1908, in New York City at age 63. He is buried at Resurrection Park in South Burlington. During his tenure, Michaud expanded the number of churches in the diocese from 72 to 94. There were 75,000 Catholics, 102 priests, 286 religious sisters, and 20 parochial schools serving some 7000 students.

References