DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Bishop Peter Verdaguer, down in Webb County. Pull up a chair, because this man's story covers more ground than most folks cover in a lifetime. He started a long way from South Texas.
Born in the Cataluña region of Spain, Peter Verdaguer de Prat made his way to the United States to study, and it was out in San Francisco where he was ordained, in 1862. From there he ministered at Catholic Indian missions in California, finding his footing, learning his calling. He was servin at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Los Angeles when word came down: he'd been nominated for the Vicariate of Brownsville.
Now, if you're keeping score, that's a considerable leap — from the California coast to the brush country of South Texas. But before he ever set foot in Texas, he was consecrated a Bishop. That happened in Barcelona, in 1890.
Then he sailed to Corpus Christi, and by 1891 he had taken up residence right here in Laredo. And here is where the story gets heavy, because what waited for Bishop Verdaguer was not a comfortable post. He was entrusted with the care of forty-two thousand, five hundred Catholics spread across a vicariate defined by two severe problems: extreme poverty, and the mobility of the many Mexican-Americans among his flock.
People who moved with the land, with the seasons, with necessity. You couldn't just wait for them to come to you. Then the great drought of the early 1890s rolled in and aggravated everything.
So what did the Bishop do? He got on a horse. He spent much of his time riding — Laredo to Victoria, Laredo to Brownsville — out across the South Texas ranches, baptizing, marrying, and confirming the faithful wherever he found them.
That is not a desk job. That is a man who understood that the church had to go to the people if the people could not come to the church. And somehow, through all of that hardship, something was being built.
Literally. Three new churches went up in Laredo between 1896 and 1909. During his tenure, the number of Catholics in the Vicariate rose from forty-two thousand, five hundred all the way to eighty-two thousand.
Churches, schools, and clergy — all increased significantly. After his death, the Vicariate kept on. It continued to exist until 1913, when the Diocese of Corpus Christi was established — a structure built, at least in part, on the foundation that one Spaniard on horseback had spent his years laying down, one ranch at a time.
What the marker says
Born in the Cataluna region of Spain, the most Rev. Peter Verdaguer de Prat studied in the United States. He was ordained (1862) in San Francisco and ministered at Catholic Indian missions in California. While serving at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Los Angeles, he was nominated for the Vicariate of Brownsville. Consecrated a Bishop in Barcelona in 1890, he sailed to Corpus Christi and in 1891 took up residence in Laredo. Entrusted with the care of 42,500 Catholics, Bishop Verdaguer faced two severe problems: the extreme poverty of the Vicariate and the mobility of the many Mexican-Americans among his flock. The great drought of the early 1890s aggravated the situation. Bishop Verdaguer spent much of his time traveling on horseback from Laredo to Victoria and Brownsville, baptizing, marrying and confirming the faithful on South Texas ranches. Despite hardship, three new churches were built in Laredo from 1896 to 1909. During the tenure of the most Rev. Verdaguer, the number of Catholics in the Vicariate rose to 82,000, and the number of churches, schools and clergy increased significantly. After his death, the Vicariate continued to exist until 1913, when the Diocese of Corpus Christi was established. (1978)