Bishop Louis DuBourg (1766-1833)

Born in Santo Domingo, Louis William Valentine DuBourg grew up in France and was ordained in 1788. In 1794, he joined the Sulpicians in Baltimore. In 1796 he served as President of Georgetown College, and in 1799 he founded St. Mary’s College and Seminary. He served as advisor to Mother Seton and encouraged her in founding the Sisters of Charity. In 1812 DuBourg was appointed Bishop of New Orleans. His diocese stretched from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains, from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and included Florida. DuBourg traveled to Europe to secure aid for his diocese. He gathered missionaries and funds. He proved himself a powerful and effective speaker. He worked to bring priests to settlers scattered in villages throughout the Valley. Bishop DuBourg brought to Florissant Jesuit missionaries, including Father DeSmet, to attend to the conversion of the Indians. One of his first projects was to bring to the diocese the Vincentian fathers to establish a seminary in Perryville. Through his efforts, St. Phillipine Duchesne and the Sacred Heart Sisters settled in the St. Louis Diocese. Bishop DuBourg also began a college which today is St. Louis University and established the first cathedral west of the Mississippi. Feeling he had not long to live, he resigned his post and returned to France where he spent seven years as Bishop of Besancon. Bishop DuBourg died as the Bishop of Besancon on December 12, 1833.
(From the high school website)