Historical Notes and Comments 425
DEDICATION OF THE CHURCH OF THE NATIONAL SHRINE OF
ST. PATRICK IN ST. PATRICK, MISSOURI
The new church of the National Shrine of St. Patrick, St.
Patrick, Missouri, was dedicated by Bishop Joseph M. Marling of
the Jefferson City diocese, March 17, 1957. Built at a cost of
approximately $165,000, the church is a replica of the Church of the
Four Master in Donegal, Ireland. It is the only shrine of St. Patrick
in the only town of that name in the United States.
The Reverend Joseph O'Duignan, native of Ireland and the
present pastor, came to the parish in 1935. On March 17, 1954,
ground was broken for the present shrine, built from world-wide
contributions and funds from the decoration of cards and letters in
appropriate green by the women of the parish for St. Patrick's Day
to meet the requests from thousands of people who want the
St. Patrick's cachet on their correspondence.
A statue of St. Patrick and three stained glass windows in the
side chapel of the church were manufactured in Dublin. A flagstone
from Creagh Patrick, a chalice from Lough Dergh, and an altar stone
from the holy mountain of Patrick are other Irish importations.
As part of the dedication ceremonies, a Trans-World Airline
plane dropped shamrocks on the church grounds. The crowning of a
queen, music by an Irish band, a banquet, and a ball were other
festivities of the day. A House resolution commending the people of
St. Patrick on the erection of the shrine was read at the banquet by
Richard J. De Coster, State representative from Lewis County.
ONE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DRED SCOTT DECISION
One hundred years ago in the turbulent pre-Civil War period,
the U. S. Supreme Court handed down its famous ruling in the Dred
Scott case holding that Scott, a slave, was not free because of
removal to free soil and since he was not a citizen could not sue in
the federal courts. The anniversary was observed on March 6, 1857,
in the Old St. Louis Courthouse Museum in the Dred Scott Room
where litigation in the case began. Scott's great-grandson, John A.
Madison, Sr., gave the principal address.
Born in Virginia about 1795, Scott was brought to Missouri in
1827 by his master Peter Blow, where he was later sold to Army
surgeon John Emerson who took him to free territory. It was this