Jonathan Singerton

This project focuses on the Leopoldine Society, an Austrian state-sponsored missionary foundation which supported provided financial relief to Catholic dioceses across the United States. From 1829 until 1914, the Leopoldine Society amassed over 4.5 million Austrian gulden (roughly $30 million dollars in today’s currency) through parish alms across Austria-Hungary. Using these donations, the Society founded over 400 Catholic churches and supported at least 300 Austro-Hungarian missionaries who travelled to the United States. The project’s goal is to advance our understanding of the Leopoldine Society through the collection and evaluation of new archival sources leading to a book-length monograph.