John Henry Luers

John Henry Luers (September 29, 1819 - June 29, 1871 was nominated first Bishop of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and consecrated in Cincinnati, Ohio, 10 January, 1858.

He was born near Münster, Westphalia, and emigrated to America in 1831. He was ordained priest in Cincinnati on November 11, 1846. Entering upon the administration of the new diocese, he devoted himself zealously to the founding of new parishes and missions, provided a home for the orphans, and built a cathedral.

In June, 1871, during a vacancy of the See of Cleveland, Ohio, he was called to that city to confer ordination on a number of seminarians. After the function, on his way to the train, he suffered an apoplectic stroke and fell dead. At the time of Bishop Luers' death there were, in the Diocese of Fort Wayne, 69 priests, 75 churches, 10 chapels, 1 hospital, 1 orphan asylum, 1 college, 11 academies for girls, 40 parochial schools, and a Catholic population estimated at 50,000.

The Franciscan order founded Bishop Luers High School in 1958 in Fort Wayne, where it currently enrolls around 550 students.

References

* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06150a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia] Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 6, (Robert Appleton Company, 1909),
* "The Diocese of Fort Wayne, 1857--September 22--1907, A Book of Historical Reference, 1669-1907" by the Rt. Rev. H. J. Alerding. Fort Wayne: The Archer Printing Co. 1907.
* [http://www.diocesefwsb.org/ Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend]