Records Relating to Rev. Jules Garnier, Superio... | Saint Michael's College Archives & Special Collections

Father Jules Garnier, a native of Parigny, France, was ordained in 1877 after attending school at Mont-Saint-Michel and novitiate at Pontigny. He served primarily around Pontigny, although he did spend some time as the pastor of the Parish at Mont-Saint-Michel. He was the Superior of the French House and acting superior General before elected Superior General in 1913. Garnier’s term as Superior General was marked by both expansion and dispersal. The Society continued to grow in Vermont, and added another North American mission in Forsythe, Montana. Severe financial problems beset the Society during this time. By 1923, the financial problems were so embedded that Garnier asked for permission to hold an Extraordinary General Chapter. He also requested that the Sacred Congregation of Religious appoint an Apostolic Visitor to the community. At the Extraordinary Chapter, under the direction of Apostolic Visitor Dom Etcheverry, a majority of constituents voted to dissolve the Society and to seek amalgamation with another society. The chapter also elected a new Superior General, Fr. Félix Viannes. (Although Dom Etcheverry exercised extraordinary control over the society for the next ten years.) This subgroup consists primarily of correspondence, some of which is related to the dissolution of the Society. Correspondence is arranged chronologically, although one file contains a group of letters that were stored together in one envelope. A few translations are available and are filed with the original. Other Garnier correspondence may be found in the Historical Files of the SSEA. Files related to individual missions or apostolates may be found there. While the subgroup does contain a great deal of information related to the dissolution of the society, other related material can be found in the Viannes and Nicolle, 1930-36 subgroups.