RAPPE, LOUIS AMADEUS | Encyclopedia of Cleveland History | Case Western Reserve University (2024)
RAPPE, LOUIS AMADEUS (2 Feb. 1801-8 Sept. 1877), first bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland, was born in Audrehem, France, to Eloi and Marie-Antoinette Noel Rappe. He studied at the college of Boulogne-sur-Mer and seminary at Arras, and was ordained in 1829. Rappe was a parish priest before becoming chaplain of the Ursuline nuns at Boulogne-sur-Mer, where he met Cincinnati bishop John B. Purcell, who was recruiting priests for Ohio. Rappe arrived in America in 1840, and Purcell named him pastor of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Toledo. Rappe established a school and academy and became an advocate of the Total Abstinence Movement (see FATHER MATHEW TOTAL ABSTINENCE SOCIETY). On 23 Apr. 1847, Pope Pius IX established the new Diocese of Cleveland, and Rappe was consecrated bishop of the diocese on 10 Oct. 1847 in Cincinnati.
In Cleveland, Rappe began work on ST. JOHN CATHEDRAL, created new congregations for Irish and German groups, and made trips to Europe to recruited priests and nuns. The Ursulines from Boulogne-sur-Mer came to teach, and the Daughters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary opened 2 orphanages for girls: ST. MARY'S (1851) and ST. JOSEPH'S (1863). Rappe organized the SISTERS OF CHARITY OF ST. AUGUSTINE, who opened the first general hospital in Cleveland, ST. VINCENT CHARITY, in 1857. Concerned about priestly training, Rappe began St. Francis de Sales Seminary, which became ST. MARY SEMINARY. Rappe resigned in 1870 and spent his last years as a missionary in Vermont and Canada, dying at St. Albans, Vt. He was buried in St. John Cathedral in Cleveland.
The Federal Government asked the states nicely to give up claims to their western territory. Most did, and Connecticut gave up most of its Ohio land in 1786, but held onto a chunk west of Pennsylvania that sat on Lake Erie and included the Cuyahoga River Valley. This was called the Connecticut Western Reserve.
A "city of cooperation," it became famous for confrontation politics. Cleveland's past is filled with soaring achievements, such as the building of the iron, steel, and oil industries, and a great transportation network of railroads and waterways.
Throughout the years, Cleveland has amassed a long list of nicknames including the Forest City, C-Town, the Cleve, Sixth City, North Coast, Mistake on the Lake, Comeback City, the Plum City, and the Rock and Roll Capital of the World.
Known as "The Forest City" among many other nicknames, Cleveland serves as the center of the Cleveland Metroparks nature reserve system. The city's major league professional sports teams include the Cleveland Browns (NFL), the Cleveland Cavaliers (NBA), and the Cleveland Guardians (MLB).
The Indians part of the Cleveland Indians name can be considered offensive to Native Americans so they agreed to change the name. They had thousands of options to go with but they went with Guardians due to the 8 sculptures on the Hope Memorial Bridge being referred to as the Guardians of Traffic.
The western boundary veers more than four degrees from a meridian to maintain the 120-mile width, due to convergence. Connecticut gave up western land claims following the American Revolutionary War in exchange for federal assumption of its debt, as did several other states.
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