Diaries, 1869-01-01 - 1878-04-27

File — Box: 1, Folder: 2

Scope and Contents

Diary kept by Fr. Devitt while at Gonzaga College (Washington, DC), Woodstock, and the College of the Holy Cross (Worscester) that predominantly discusses his travels and that of fellow Jesuits, teaching, and current events. Regarding the inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant, he notes the “city was thronged with strangers” for the event, estimating that more than 100,000 people were there, but that the procession “had too many negroes in it, noticeably the ‘boys in blue’ of the district” (3-4-1869).

He also references the Chapel of Blessed Martin de Porres, the first Black church in the District: “went to hear a negro confess at St. Martin’s Church … the colored people are doing very well. P. [Felix] Barrotti said that the revenue was $7000 per annum. 90 converts in one year. Their church is too small, and they want to build a larger one. They promised to raise the money in a few years, and would pledge real estate in payment” (6-8-1869).

As the diary progresses and Fr. Devitt is transferred to Woodstock for his philosophy and theological studies, entries focus more on his studies and teaching. This continues when he is later stationed at the College of the Holy Cross. Note that entries from 12-1869 to 6-1871 are in shorthand.

Dates

1869-01-01 - 1878-04-27

Conditions Governing Access

The Edward I. Devitt, SJ Papers are on deposit at Georgetown University and are the property of the USA East Province of the Society of Jesus. As stewards of the Archives, the Georgetown University Library’s Booth Family Center for Special Collections is responsible for managing access to the material based on policies set forth by the USA East Province. Researchers may view these materials in the Reading Room of the Booth Family Center for Special Collections. General policies for using Special Collections can be found here.

Access to the Archives is governed by the USA East Province and is subject to all Library and Special Collections policies and procedures in addition to the specific guidelines below. These guidelines are a summary of access policies; the Archives may include materials that fall outside the scope of these general guidelines. For information on access to specific materials, please contact the Special Collections staff.

Guidelines:

1. All Archives materials dated or bearing solely on events occurring before January 1, 1940, shall be open for review unless otherwise restricted, subject to Library policies and procedures.

2. All unpublished Archives materials dated or bearing solely on events occurring on or after January 1, 1940, shall be open for review upon request subject to a decision by the Provincial or someone designated by the Provincial.

3. Researchers may quote from the materials.

4. Researchers may take their own photographs of the material for scholarly and research purposes. Allowing photographs is not an authorization to publish or to deposit the material in another library or archive.

5. Written permission from the USA East Province is required for the publication of substantive portions of any material or publication-quality reproductions of any material.

6. Material not yet processed is not available to researchers; permission will not be granted to access any unprocessed material.

7. Audiovisual, microfilm and other material in the Archives, the original of which is held in another archive, may be consulted and transcribed only. Written permission from the archive holding the original material is required for any duplication, reproduction, or publication of that material.

8. Use the Permission Request Form to request permission (i) to access any restricted processed material or (ii) to publish reproductions or quote substantive portions of the material. Send the completed form by email to the Booth Family Center for Special Collections (speccoll@georgetown.edu).