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The Most Reverend Henry Joseph Richter
Bishop of Grand Rapids
Church	Roman Catholic
See	Diocese of Grand Rapids
In office	April 22, 1883 December 26, 1916
Successor	Michael Gallagher
Orders
Ordination	June 10, 1865 by Costantino Patrizi Naro
Consecration	April 22, 1883 by William Henry Elder
Personal details
Born	(1838-04-09)April 9, 1838} Neuenkirchen, Grand Duchy of Oldenburg
Died	December 26, 1916(1916-12-26) (aged 78) Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Nationality	German
Education	St. Joseph's College Pontifical North American College

Henry Joseph Richter (April 9, 1838 – December 26, 1916) was a German-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan from 1883 until his death in 1916.

Biography

Early life

Henry Richter was born on April 9, 1838, in Neuenkirchen in the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg (later part of Germany) to Johann and Anna (née Albers) Richter. After studying at local schools and under a private teacher, Henry Richter immigrated to the United States in 1854, settling in Cincinnati, Ohio. He then enrolled at St. Xavier's College in Cincinnati. Richter then studied at St. Joseph's College in Bardstown, Kentucky, before returning to Cincinnati to attend Mount St. Mary's Seminary. In 1860, he was sent to the Pontifical North American College in Rome, obtaining a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree in 1865.

Priesthood

While in Rome, he was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati by Cardinal Costantino Patrizi Naro on June 10, 1865. Upon his return to Cincinnati in October 1865, Richter was named professor of dogmatic theology, philosophy, and liturgy at Mount St. Mary's Seminary. He also served as chaplain to the Sisters of Charity at Cedar Grove, and became vice-president of Mount St. Mary's in 1866. In 1870, he was appointed as the founding pastor of St. Lawrence Parish in the Price Hill neighborhood of Cincinnati.

Bishop of Grand Rapids

On January 30, 1883, Richter was appointed the first bishop of the newly erected Diocese of Grand Rapids by Pope Leo XIII. He received his episcopal consecration on April 22, 1883, from Archbishop William Elder, with Bishops Caspar Borgess and William McCloskey serving as co-consecrators, at St. Andrew's Cathedral in Grand Rapids

When Richter was appointed bishop, the diocese had 36 priests, 33 churches, 17 parochial schools, and 50,000 Catholics; by the time of his death, there were 75 priests, 56 churches, 38 parochial schools, and over 150,000 Catholics. He also attended the Second (1882) and Fifth (1889) Provincial Councils of Cincinnati and the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore (1884).

Death and legacy

Henry Richter died on December 26, 1916, after three days of illness at St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Rapids; he was age 78.

References

1. ^ "RICHTER, Henry Joseph" (PDF). Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids.
2. ^ Moore, Charles (1915). History of Michigan. Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company.
3. ^ "Bishop Henry Joseph Richter". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.

External links

v t e Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids
Bishops	Ordinaries Henry J. Richter Michael J. Gallagher Edward D. Kelly Joseph G. Pinten Joseph C. Plagens Francis J. Haas Allen J. Babcock Joseph M. Breitenbeck Robert J. Rose Kevin M. Britt Walter A. Hurley David J. Walkowiak Auxiliaries Charles A. Salatka Joseph C. McKinney
Churches	List List of churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids Cathedral Cathedral of Saint Andrew, Grand Rapids Notable parishes Basilica of St. Adalbert, Grand Rapids
Higher education	Colleges Aquinas College
Secondary education	Diocesan high schools Catholic Central High School, Grand Rapids West Catholic High School, Grand Rapids Parish high schools St. Patrick High School, Portland Sacred Heart Academy Classical Highschool Private high schools Muskegon Catholic Central High School, Muskegon
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v t e Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati
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v t e Education in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Higher education Chatfield College University of Dayton Edgecliff College Mount St. Joseph University Xavier University Seminary Athenaeum of Ohio – Mount St. Mary's Seminary of the West High schools Cincinnati DePaul Cristo Rey High School Elder High School La Salle High School Mercy McAuley High School Archbishop McNicholas High School Purcell Marian High School Seton High School St. Ursula Academy St. Xavier High School Summit Country Day School Ursuline Academy Dayton Carroll High School Chaminade Julienne High School Other Archbishop Alter High School, Kettering Father Stephen T. Badin High School, Hamilton Catholic Central School, Springfield Bishop Fenwick High School, Franklin Lehman Catholic High School, Sidney Moeller High School, Kenwood Mount Notre Dame High School, Reading Royalmont Academy, Mason Roger Bacon High School, St. Bernard St. Rita School for the Deaf, Evendale
v t e Clergy of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Auxiliary bishops Sylvester Horton Rosecrans Joseph H. Albers George John Rehring Paul Francis Leibold Edward A. McCarthy Nicholas Elko Daniel Edward Pilarczyk James Henry Garland Carl K. Moeddel Joseph R. Binzer Priests John Martin Henni Edward Fitzgerald Clarence George Issenmann Henry Damian Juncker Joshua Maria Young John Baptist Lamy James Frederick Wood John Henry Luers Caspar Henry Borgess Richard Gilmour John Quinlan Augustus Toebbe Joseph Gregory Dwenger Henry Richter Francis Beckman Urban John Vehr Francis Augustine Thill Anthony John King Mussio John Joseph Kaising Robert Daniel Conlon Michael William Warfel Earl K. Fernandes
Miscellany	The Catholic Telegraph Der Wahrheitsfreund Former St. Charles Seminary Gruenwald Convent Minster Elementary School St. John Cemetery, Cincinnati New St. Joseph Cemetery, Cincinnati Old St. Joseph's Cemetery, Cincinnati
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• 1838 births
• 1916 deaths
• German emigrants to the United States
• The Athenaeum of Ohio alumni
• Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati
• People from Oldenburg (city)
• 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States
• St. Xavier High School (Ohio) alumni
• American chaplains
• Roman Catholic bishops of Grand Rapids
• 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States