Peter Bourgade

Peter Bourgade (October 17, 1845 – May 17, 1908) was a French-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as bishop of Tucson in the Arizona Territory (1885–1899) and archbishop of Santa Fe in the New Mexico Territory (1899–1908).

Biography Early life Bourgade was born on October 17, 1845, in Vollore-Ville, Puy-de-Dôme, to Claude and Marie (née Chapet) Bourgade. He received his early education under the Brothers of the Christian Schools and completed his classical studies at the Jesuit college of Billom in France. He studied for the priesthood at Saint-Sulpice Seminary in France, receiving his minor orders during that time.

In 1869, during his fifth year at Saint-Sulpice, Bourgade and five other seminarians were recruited by the newly consecrated Bishop Jean-Baptiste Salpointe to serve in the missions in the American Southwest. The group sailed from Brest, France, in September 1869 to the United States. They then traveled by railroad and stagecoach to Las Cruces in the New Mexico Territory.

Priesthood Bourgade was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe on November 30, 1869 in Santa Fe.

Following his ordination, Bourgade was named pastor of Immaculate Conception Church in Yuma in the Arizona Territory. However, in the summer of 1873, ill health forced him to return to France for two years. In 1881, he was transferred to St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Silver City, New Mexico, where he built a convent, hospital, and academy for the Sisters of Mercy.

Vicar Apostolic of Arizona On February 7, 1885, Bourgade was appointed vicar apostolic of Arizona and titular bishop of Thaumacus by Pope Leo XIII. He received his episcopal consecration on May 1, 1885, from Archbishop Jean-Baptiste Lamy, with Salpointe and Bishop Joseph Projectus Machebeuf serving as co-consecrators, at the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe.

Bourgade was named the fourth Archbishop of Santa Fe on January 7, 1899. He served as archbishop for nine years, and his last annual report to Rome showed the archdiocese contained a Catholic population of 167,000 people, 45 churches with resident priests, and 340 missions. He was in poor health for most of his tenure and received Reverend John Baptist Pitaval as an auxiliary bishop in 1902.

Death In May 1908, due to his failing health, Bourgade was sent to Mercy Hospital in Chicago and placed under the care of Dr. John Benjamin Murphy. He died in Chicago on May 17, 1908 at age 62. He is buried in the crypt of the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi.