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Letter from Fr. Joseph Fenelon OFM Cap. to Fr. Peter Bowe OFM Cap., Provincial Minister, mainly referring to personnel appointments in the United States mission. He writes ‘I am sending Fr. Clement to Ukiah where Fr. Ambrose who has been ill is at present. Fr. Raphael has been hard pressed during the Lent as he was alone there since Fr. Urban went to hospital. I am sure the latter is out of hospital by this, but he will be unfit for work for some time, hence my sending of Clement there.

I brought Fr. Leo [Sheehan] to help us in the Los Angeles missions, he preaches fairly well, yet lacks energy and life. He however is anxious to be called upon again. In future it will be necessary to have a mission staff located in Watts in order to obviate the trouble I had to encounter from bringing men from the other houses where the men are all required’.

A note with dates and names tracking the arrival and assignment of Irish Capuchin friars to the United States from 1902 to 1926.

The Early Years (1902–1910):
• 1902–1908: Lists Luke (Fr. Luke Sheehan) in Aden, confirming his early mission work in Arabia before moving to America.
• 1910: Shows the initial arrival in Oregon with Luke and Casimir in Hermiston, and Leonard in Harrisburg.

Growth and Expansion (1911–1915):
• 1911: Records Benignus in Harrisburg and Camillus and Edward in Roseburg. A note indicates Edward returned in 1923.
• 1913: Notes the arrival of Fr. Brendan (O’Callaghan) in November, who would later become a long-term leader in Abbottstown.
• 1915: Mentions the arrival of Adrian, Ferdinand, and Anthony in September.

Post-World War (1919–1926):
• 1919–1920: Shows a new wave of friars, including Raphael, Gabriel, Urban, Stephen, Vincent, and Ambrose.
• 1924: A particularly busy year for arrivals, listing Pacificus, Finbarr, Isidore, Albert, Reginald, and Damian.
• 1926: The final entries on this sheet record Berchmans and Enda arriving in January.

A record of the administrative appointments and personnel changes decreed during a meeting of the Custos Provincial and Assistants held on 15 September 1949, at St. Francis of Assisi in Los Angeles. Signed officially by Fr. Stephen Murtagh OFM Cap., Custos Provincial, the roster assigns Capuchin Franciscan friars, fathers, and brothers to specific leadership and supportive roles across fourteen distinct regional sites.

Information supplied by Irish Capuchin friars residing in Abbottstown, Pennsylvania, to Fr. Edwin Fitzgibbon OFM Cap., Provincial Minister, during his visitation. The document includes a comprehensive log of religious masses said by specific Capuchin priests at Paradise Parish in Abbottstown between August 1919 and June 1921, dedicated to the intentions of the Most Reverend Father General. Includes chronological tallies and specific location notes for individual clergy members – including Fathers Brendan, Benignus, Malachy, Ferdinand, Raphael, Leo, Gabriel, Ambrose, and Vincent – culminating in a ‘Grand Total’ of 103 masses. It also features a structured ledger cross-referencing individual priests against specific intentions, such as ‘Jubilees’, ‘House & Pious’, deceased family members (e.g., ‘Fr. John’s Mother’), and general intercessions like ‘Def. Gen. Eugenio’ and ‘Pro Fid. Def’. Handwritten annotations throughout provide contextual updates on the priests’ movements, indicating whether they arrived late, left for other locations like Lincoln in Nebraska or if a particular mass went unrecorded.

Visitation report from St. Francis of Assisi Capuchin Franciscan Friary in Los Angeles (located at 1541 Golden Gate Ave). The report details the parish’s administrative, financial, and spiritual progress since the Capuchins assumed leadership on 1 June 1929. The report notes that the initial property debt of $18,000 has been successfully reduced to $15,500. Additionally, the parish has completed extensive property improvements totalling $8,535 – including church remodelling, new stained-glass windows, painting, and a new bell – alongside constructing a new, fully defrayed Capuchin Friary for over $6,000. Driven by active parish sodalities, church socials, and card parties, the congregation has more than doubled to over 350 families, generating a regular Sunday income of approximately $135.00 per week. Led by Community Superior Father Joseph Fenelon OFM cap. along with his assistants Father Ambrose Brunton OFM Cap., and Father Edmund Hyland OFM Cap., the report concludes by praising the deep spirit of fraternity within the community and its excellent relations with the local Bishop and clergy.

Photograph of Fr. Urban Riordan OFM Cap. and Fr. Ambrose Brunton OFM Cap. at Oneonta Gorge falls in Oregon. A manuscript annotation by Father Urban on the reverse reads ‘Revs Kernan & Daly, Portland / Fathers Urban and Ambrose, Capuchin’.

Photograph of First Communicants of the Vocation School in Fort Bragg in California. Fr. Ambrose Brunton OFM Cap. is present.

Photograph of (from left) Fr. Ambrose Brunton OFM Cap., Fr. Anthony Holmes OFM Cap., and Fr. Clement Connolly OFM Cap.

Photograph of Fr. Ambrose Brunton OFM Cap., Fr. Anthony Holmes OFM Cap., and Fr. Clement Connolly OFM Cap. on a boating excursion.

Photograph of a large group of Capuchin friars in the garden of the Church Street Friary in Dublin. The photograph was taken during the Eucharistic Congress held in the Irish capital.