Volume 035-2 - April 1981 (8 pages)

young man who helped him and seemed to be particularly knowledgeable about the various duties to be done. This young man was Patrick Manogue, whom we have already met. It appeared that Patrick came from County Kilkenny, Ireland, as was the case with Father Shanahan. Patrick had come to the United States with his parents in 1848, at the age of seventeen. After two years in Connecticut, where he lived with his parents, Patrick went to Chicago where he spent three years at the College of St. Mary’s of the Lake, to prepare himself for the priesthood. Since his parents had difficulty to give him financial aid, he decided to goto the California goldfields to earn sufficient money to continue his studies. Father Shanahan and later other visiting priests, Father Dalton and Father Deyaert, who succeeded Father Shanahan in 1853, encouraged him in this enterprise. When he had accumulated sufficient money, he continued his studies at the Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris, where he was ordained a priest on Christmas day 1861 by Cardinal Morlot. Soon thereafter he returned to California and offered his services to Bishop Alemany of San Francisco. Manogue was sent to Virginia City, where he founded the first Catholic church (1862). In 1868 he was promoted to Vicar-General of the Grass Valley Diocese, but he remained in Virginia City. On January 16, 1881, he was consacrated a Bishop in San Francisco at the hands of Archbishop Alamany and became coadjutor to Eugene O’Connell, the first Bishop of Grass Valley, whom he succeeded in 1884. In 1886 he became the first Bishop of the newly founded Diocese of Sacramento, which office he held until his death in 1895. L.J. Hanchett once made the following comment on Mgr. Manogue: “IT never saw a harder worker. He wasa young man of great frame and strength, and worked tirelessly from morn till night. He occupied a cabin by himself, and he put every spare moment and every evening in study. Whenever a dispute arose, Manogue was always the arbitrator. Both sides knew that he was perfectly fair-minded, and were always willing to abide by his decision. He prevented many a fight among the miners, who respected his powerful Celtic physique’”’. Actually there never was a Catholic church at Moore’s Flat, although there might have been a cabin where services could be held when a priest visited. In 1881, a Catholic church was founded in Cherokee Flat by Father William Clarke, who served “stations” at San Juan, Columbia Hill and Moore’s Flat. This parish was discontinued in 1886. In 1855, Unity Lodge of the F. and A. Masons was founded in Orleans Flat. Thompson and West list the succession of the Masters of the Lodge. When the Lodge received its charter in 1856, the name was changed to Quitman Lodge, ~ Mgr. Patrick Manogue No. 88. At that time a Lodge building was erected in Orleans Flat, jointly owned by the Masons and the Odd Fellows. The structure was apparently not too solid for, during the winter of 1867-68 it was blown down by a gale. The building burned down twice, once in July 1869, when everything was lost, except the charter and again in October 1870, when the furniture was saved. The International Order of Odd Fellows founded a lodge in October 1855, Union Lodge No. 48; apparently they worked closely together with the Masons. Another IOOF organization, the Abou Ben Adhem Encampment No. 36 was founded at Moore’s Flat in 1870. The Sons of Temperance had their Solomon’s Temple of Honor No. 58 and their Snow Drop Social Temple No. 21 at Moore’s Flat. On account of the snow, the three Flats were cut off in winter from the remainder of the County for along time. But when the weather was clement, one could travel from Nevada City to Moore’s Flat by means of several stage lines. In September 1879, the stage was held up some miles above Nevada City. One of the passengers, the banker William F. Cummings grappled with one of the two robbers over his valise, which contained $7000, during which altercation he was killed. All other Passengers were relieved of their valuables and the freight was also stolen. The murderers were apparently never caught. Like most of other mining camps, Moore’s Flat had its share of murders. But we will not discuss these here; the interested reader can find out about them in Thompson and West. The above story, compiled from sources such as Brown and Dallison, Bean, Thompson and West and so on, necessarily lacks local color. From what we learn, we can more or less visualize what the place looked like and how the people lived, but our picture lacks depth and color. It is therefore fortunate that reminiscences of Moore’s Flat were given by William Lewis Manly in his book: Death Valley in Forty Nine (San Jose, Calif. 1894). His chapter seventeen contains an’ admirable account of Moore’s Flat. As an early inhabitant of Nevada County, Manly deserves a biographical notice, especially since he gives many particulars of the early history of the Flats. His narrative of life in Moore’s@™), Flat will follow his biography. 12

young man who helped him and seemed to be particularly knowledgeable about the various duties to be done. This young man was Patrick Manogue, whom we have already met. It appeared that Patrick came from County Kilkenny, Ireland, as was the case with Father Shanahan. Patrick had come to the United States with his parents in 1848, at the age of seventeen. After two years in Connecticut, where he lived with his parents, Patrick went to Chicago where he spent three years at the College of St. Mary’s of the Lake, to prepare himself for the priesthood. Since his parents had difficulty to give him financial aid, he decided to goto the California goldfields to earn sufficient money to continue his studies. Father Shanahan and later other visiting priests, Father Dalton and Father Deyaert, who succeeded Father Shanahan in 1853, encouraged him in this enterprise. When he had accumulated sufficient money, he continued his studies at the Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris, where he was ordained a priest on Christmas day 1861 by Cardinal Morlot. Soon thereafter he returned to California and offered his services to Bishop Alemany of San Francisco. Manogue was sent to Virginia City, where he founded the first Catholic church (1862). In 1868 he was promoted to Vicar-General of the Grass Valley Diocese, but he remained in Virginia City. On January 16, 1881, he was consacrated a Bishop in San Francisco at the hands of Archbishop Alamany and became coadjutor to Eugene O’Connell, the first Bishop of Grass Valley, whom he succeeded in 1884. In 1886 he became the first Bishop of the newly founded Diocese of Sacramento, which office he held until his death in 1895. L.J. Hanchett once made the following comment on Mgr. Manogue: “IT never saw a harder worker. He wasa young man of great frame and strength, and worked tirelessly from morn till night. He occupied a cabin by himself, and he put every spare moment and every evening in study. Whenever a dispute arose, Manogue was always the arbitrator. Both sides knew that he was perfectly fair-minded, and were always willing to abide by his decision. He prevented many a fight among the miners, who respected his powerful Celtic physique’”’. Actually there never was a Catholic church at Moore’s Flat, although there might have been a cabin where services could be held when a priest visited. In 1881, a Catholic church was founded in Cherokee Flat by Father William Clarke, who served “stations” at San Juan, Columbia Hill and Moore’s Flat. This parish was discontinued in 1886. In 1855, Unity Lodge of the F. and A. Masons was founded in Orleans Flat.

Thompson and West list the succession of the Masters of the Lodge. When the Lodge received its charter in 1856, the name was changed to Quitman Lodge, ~ Mgr. Patrick Manogue No. 88. At that time a Lodge building was erected in Orleans Flat, jointly owned by the Masons and the Odd Fellows. The structure was apparently not too solid for, during the winter of 1867-68 it was blown down by a gale. The building burned down twice, once in July 1869, when everything was lost, except the charter and again in October 1870, when the furniture was saved. The International Order of Odd Fellows founded a lodge in October 1855, Union Lodge No. 48; apparently they worked closely together with the Masons. Another IOOF organization, the Abou Ben Adhem Encampment No. 36 was founded at Moore’s Flat in 1870. The Sons of Temperance had their Solomon’s Temple of Honor No. 58 and their Snow Drop Social Temple No. 21 at Moore’s Flat. On account of the snow, the three Flats were cut off in winter from the remainder of the County for along time. But when the weather was clement, one could travel from Nevada City to Moore’s Flat by means of several stage lines. In September 1879, the stage was held up some miles above Nevada City. One of the passengers, the banker William F. Cummings grappled with one of the two robbers over his valise, which contained $7000, during which altercation he was killed. All other Passengers were relieved of their valuables and the freight was also stolen. The murderers were apparently never caught. Like most of other mining camps, Moore’s Flat had its share of murders. But we will not discuss these here; the interested reader can find out about them in Thompson and West. The above story, compiled from sources such as Brown and Dallison, Bean, Thompson and West and so on, necessarily lacks local color. From what we learn, we can more or less visualize what the place looked like and how the people lived, but our picture lacks depth and color. It is therefore fortunate that reminiscences of Moore’s Flat were given by William Lewis Manly in his book: Death Valley in Forty Nine (San Jose, Calif. 1894). His chapter seventeen contains an’ admirable account of Moore’s Flat. As an early inhabitant of Nevada County, Manly deserves a biographical notice, especially since he gives many particulars of the early history of the Flats. His narrative of life in Moore’s@™), Flat will follow his biography. 12