Archdiocese of Toronto

(TORONTINA).

Located in the Province of Ontario, Canada. When constituted a diocese, it embraced all Upper Canada west of the Newcastle district, but at present is limited to the counties of York, Simcoe, Ontario, Peel, Dufferin, Lincoln, and Welland. The first missionary in this district was Father Joseph Le Caron, a Recollect, who celebrated Mass on the shore of Georgian Bay in 1615. Thus began the Huron missions, the story of which, replete with heroism of Recollect and Jesuit, is told elsewhere in this work; suffice it to say here that all the missions among that people and some of those attempted among their Neutral kindred lay within the present archdiocesan limits. During the century and a half following the destruction of these nations, a few priests are known to have been in this district; among these were Father Hennepin, in 1678, and Abbé Picquet, who visited Fort Rouillé (Toronto) in 1752. A Catholic chaplain was attached to the troops at Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) in 1794, and about the same time missionaries began to visit occasionally the few Catholics of York (Toronto) and the neighbouring territory. Amongst these was Father Burke, afterwards Vicar Apostolic of Nova Scotia, who held the office of Vicar-General of Upper Canada. After 1804 Father Macdonell came as often as his extended field of labour allowed, and, when Bishop of Kingston, resided at York for some years. In 1826 there were two resident priests in this region, one at York, the other at Niagara.

The Diocese of Kingston was divided on 17 December, 1841, and Father Power, bishop-elect of the western portion, having permission to name his episcopal city, chose Toronto, the provincial capital. The first bishop, Michael Power, born at Halifax, N.S., 17 Oct., 1804, was Vicar-General of the Diocese of Montreal when raised to the episcopate. Consecrated on 8 May, 1842, he laid the cornerstone of the cathedral, introduced the Jesuits, and made arrangements to bring the Loreto nuns to the diocese. Appointed by the Government to the Council of Public Instruction, he presided over that body. He died on 1 Oct., 1847, of typhus contracted while attending the immigrants at the fever-sheds. His successor, Armand-Francois-Marie Comte de Charbonnel, a