The Quincy Area Father Augustine Tolton, a Venerable Servant of God who was born, raised, and buried in Quincy, will be honored with a pilgrimage procession on Wednesday, July 9 in Quincy to mark the 128th anniversary of his passing. The process to beatify and canonize Father Tolton as a saint is still going on at Rome. He is known as the first black priest in the United States.
Father Tolton’s statue outside St. Peter Catholic Church, located at 2600 Maine, will be the starting point of the mile-long pilgrimage procession at 5:30 p.m. The pilgrimage procession will travel along the south side of Maine Street before crossing onto the east side of S. 33rd St. following a brief welcome and explanation, and then a prayer. Father Tolton is buried at St. Peter Catholic Cemetery, which is reached by following the east side of S. 33rd St.
When the procession enters the cemetery, it will pause at Father Tolton’s grave for the 6:30 p.m. Evening Prayer service. The presider will be Quincy University adjunct professor and Campus Ministry director Father Daren Zehnle.
After evening prayer, the pilgrims will pray for Father Tolton’s canonization as a saint, the abolition of racism, and the appointment of more priests through his intercession. Father Tolton’s favorite song, Holy God, We Praise Thy Name, will be sung when the pilgrimage procession comes to a close.
You are welcome to park close to the cemetery and meet the procession at the grave if you would like to take part in Evening Prayer but are unable to walk in the procession. No one should park in the cemetery itself because of its modest size.
Those who would like to participate in Evening Prayer will have access to chairs and bottled water at the cemetery.
In 1854, Father Tolton was born into slavery. His mother and siblings bravely crossed the Mississippi River to Illinois in 1862. He attended St. Peter’s Catholic School after relocating to Quincy. Since no American seminary would take a black man, Tolton later attended one in Rome. After being ordained, he was brought back to Quincy, where he returned to thousands of admirers, despite his initial plan to minister in Africa. Before moving to Chicago, Tolton, who was well-known for his amazing homilies and singing, lived in Quincy for a number of years. On July 9, 1897, he passed away from heatstroke at the age of 43. He is interred in Quincy’s St. Peter’s Cemetery. On June 12, 2019, Pope Francis most recently made him Venerable, the second of four steps to the Catholic Church’s sainthood.
