The Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario (french: Diocèse de Sault-Sainte-Marie, la, Dioecesis Sanctae Mariae Ormensis) was decreed on September 16, 1904 and is formed by the southern portions of the districts of

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

, Algoma, Sudbury and Nipissing. The area has a long history within the Roman Catholic Church. The

Recollets The Recollects (french: Récollets) were a French reform branch of the Friars Minor, a Franciscan order. Denoted by their gray habits and pointed hoods, the Recollects took vows of poverty and devoted their lives to prayer, penance, and spiri ...

were the first missionaries in the Nipissing region around 1622. A number of

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

entered the area in 1641; Father

Claude Pijart Claude may refer to: __NOTOC__ People and fictional characters * Claude (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Claude (surname), a list of people * Claude Lorrain (c. 1600–1682), French landscape painter, draughtsman and etcher ...

, being the leading missionary of that group. Their three missions were abandoned after a number of years, but Father

Claude-Jean Allouez Claude Jean Allouez (June 6, 1622 – August 28, 1689) was a Jesuit missionary and French explorer of North America. He established a number of missions among the indigenous people living near Lake Superior. Biography Allouez was born in Saint ...

found converts still adhering to their faith in 1667. In 1668 the mission of Sault Sainte Marie was founded by the Jesuits and used as a base for expeditions to adjacent areas. Priests who appear in historical accounts of the time include Frs.

Gabriel Druillettes Gabriel Druillettes S.J. (also spelled Dreuillettes, Drouillettes, Drouillet, Droulletes, Drueillettes, Druilletes; 29 September 1610 – 8 April 1681) was a French Jesuit priest in New France who was an explorer, missionary to First Nations pe ...

, Louis André,

Henri Nouvel Henri Nouvel (1621 or 1624 in Pezenas, Herault (France) – between October 1701 and October 1702 at the St. Francis Xavier Mission near Baie des Puants) was a Jesuit priest who spent forty years as a missionary to Native American communities ...

, and Pierre Bailloquet. Little further expansion took place until about 1836 when Rev. Proulx began an expansion which reached Fort William in 1849. Expansion after this point was rapid with hospitals and schools added to the parishes, churches and missions that marked this growth.

History

The Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie was formally established by

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio 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 modernist interpretations of C ...

on September 16, 1904 and four days later, on September 20, Reverend David Joseph Scollard, then pastor of Saint Mary on the Lake Parish in North Bay, Ontario was appointed its first bishop. At this time the new diocese extended west from Callander, Ontario for 800 miles, reaching almost to the Manitoba border. The Catholic population of the new diocese in 1904 was approximately 34,000 with 64 parishes and 35 priests, of which only 7 were diocesan clergy. During the episcopacy of the second bishop, Ralph Hubert Dignan (1935-1958), the western end of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie was separated on August 26, 1952 to form the Diocese of Port Arthur, now known as the Diocese of Thunder Bay. Alexander Carter (1958-1985) was the third Diocesan Bishop, and was succeeded by Marcel Gervais (1985-1989), who subsequently became the Archbishop of Ottawa. On January 12, 1990, Jean-Louis Plouffe was installed as the fifth Ordinary of the Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie. On November 12, 2015, Marcel Damphousse was appointed as the sixth Bishop of Sault Ste. Marie. Jean-Louis Plouffe has retired and is now Emeritus Bishop of the Diocese. On October 22, 2020, Thomas Dowd was appointed as the seventh Bishop of Sault Ste. Marie. He was formally installed as bishop on December 17, 2020 at 2:00pm EST at the Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption in North Bay, Ontario.

Cathedrals

The official diocesan cathedral is the Precious Blood Cathedral in Sault Ste. Marie, although the

Pro-Cathedral of the Assumption The Pro-cathedral of the Assumption ('Pro' meaning ‘in place of’) is a historical Catholic church in the city of North Bay, Ontario. The white limestone building, built in 1905, speaks to the history of the city as well as a strong faith commu ...

in North Bay serves as the bishop's parish. The diocese's administrative offices are located in Sudbury.

Bishops

David Joseph Scollard David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

- September 20, 1904 - September 7, 1934 *

Ralph Dignan Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

- December 22, 1934 - November 22, 1958 *

Alexander Carter Alexander Carter (16 April 1909 – 17 February 2002) was a Canadian bishop, who served as head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario from 1958 to 1985. Biography Born in Montreal, Quebec, the brother of Cardinal Gera ...

- November 22, 1958 - May 3, 1985 *

Marcel Gervais Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian ...

- May 3, 1985 - May 13, 1989 (appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Ottawa, Ontario) * Jean-Louis Plouffe - December 2, 1989 – January 13, 2016 *

Marcel Damphousse Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian s ...

- January 13, 2016 - May 6, 2020 (appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Ottawa-Cornwall, Ontario) * Thomas Dowd - December 17, 2020 - present

Coadjutor bishop

(1956-1958)

Auxiliary bishops

* Joseph Adolphe Proulx (1965-1967), appointed Bishop of Alexandria in Ontario *

Gérard Dionne Gérard Dionne (19 June 1919 – 13 May 2020) was a Canadian Bishop 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 ...

(1975-1983), appointed Bishop of Edmundston, New Brunswick * Bernard Francis Pappin (1975-1998) * Jean-Louis Plouffe (1986-1989), appointed Bishop here *

Paul-André Durocher Paul-André Durocher (born May 28, 1954) is a Canadian bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. Life and career Paul-André Durocher was born in Windsor, Ontario, on May 28, 1954. He was ordained a priest for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Timmins, On ...

(1997-2002), appointed Bishop of Alexandria-Cornwall, Ontario (now Archbishop of Gatineau) * Robert Harris (2002-2007), appointed Bishop of Saint John, New Brunswick *

Brian Joseph Dunn Brian Joseph Dunn (born 1955) is a Canadian prelate of the Catholic Church who is Archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth, Halifax-Yarmouth. He was Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish, Bishop of Antigonish from 2010 to 2019 ...

(2008-2009), appointed Bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia * Noël Simard (2008-2011), appointed Bishop of Valleyfield, Québec

Other priest of this diocese who became bishop

* Robert Ovide Bourgon, appointed Bishop of Hearst, Ontario in 2016

References

External links

''Catholic Encyclopedia''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sault Sainte Marie Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Kingston, Canada Christian organizations established in 1904 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century 1904 establishments in Ontario