The story of Father Augustus Tolton, first acknowledged black Catholic priest in the United States and candidate for sainthood, is available on the Springfield diocese’s website at www.dio.org/tolton.

Information for the website was collected by Michele Levandoski, historian and director of the diocesan Archives.

“There is an abundance of information available about Father Tolton,” Levandoski said. “The problem is that much of it is unconfirmed and some of it is conflicting. If you read various accounts of his life, you might notice that there are different versions of certain events, especially his family’s escape from slavery.”

Father Tolton was born to slave parents in 1854 in Brush Creek, Mo. During the Civil War, his mother escaped with her children to the free state of Illinois and settled in Quincy. Though no seminary in the United States would accept him, the young Tolton studied for the priesthood in Rome and was ordained there in 1886.

After his ordination, Father Tolton served in Quincy, in what was then the Alton Diocese, until he was sent to Chicago in 1889. There he ministered to the black Catholic community until his death in 1897, at age 43. At his request, his body was returned to Quincy and is buried in St. Peter Cemetery there.

In February, the Archdiocese of Chicago formally opened a cause for the beatification and sainthood of Father Tolton. The Father Tolton Guild was established to promote the cause and to sponsor programs commemorating events in the life of Father Tolton.

The new website for Father Tolton attempts to provide biographical information based as much as possible on primary sources, Levandoski said.

What are primary sources?

“Primary sources are first-hand accounts written by someone who actually experienced or witnessed the events in question and are created during or close to the events,” Levandoski said. Primary sources could include official documents, letters, newspaper articles, diaries, speeches or photographs.

Secondary sources, such as books, articles or encyclopedia entries, provide a second-hand account of history. “Secondary sources interpret and analyze primary sources to draw conclusions about an event or time period,” Levandoski said.

The website also includes a bibliography of primary and secondary sources with links to those sources. “Most of the letters and newspaper articles by or about Father Tolton are not readily available to the general public. This website pulls together many of these sources into one location so people can learn more about Father Tolton based on letters and newspaper accounts written during his lifetime and by people who knew him,” Levandoski said.   

Levandoski said she is particularly excited to offer a “virtual collection” of original Tolton letters.

“Father Tolton’s letters are scattered among several diocesan and religious order archives. With the cooperation of these organizations the letters will be made available for the first time in one location,” Levandoski said.

The “virtual collection” will feature 18 original artifacts, including three letters Father Tolton wrote to Mother Katharine Drexel. In some instances the letters are transcribed, but for the most part the reader will be able to access a digital copy of the original, so they can read the letter in Tolton’s own hand.   

“We are grateful for the cooperation of all those who provided letters and information about Father Tolton,” Levandoski said. “We would particularly like to thank Quincy University, the Archdiocese of Baltimore, the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart (Josephites) and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament.

“As Father Tolton’s cause for sainthood proceeds, or as new information or sources are found, we will provide updates on website,” she said.