Lockley, Fred.  "History of the Columbia River Valley, From The Dalles to the
Sea." Vol. 3.  S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1928.  p. 379.

REV. JOHN HENRY POWERS

Rev. John Henry Powers, pastor Of the Holy Cross Catholic church of Portland
since May, 1923, has been a zealous representative of the priesthood for nearly
two decades. He was born in New York city on the 3d of March, 1874, his parents
being Thomas and Margaret (Gleason) Powers. The family numbered four sons and
three daughters, two of whom took the veil. The surviving sister of Father
Powers of this review is Sister Madeleine of Rochester, New York.

A little lad of but three years when his parents established their home in New
Haven, Connecticut, John H. Powers was there reared and attended the grade and
high schools of that city. Subsequently he pursued a four yearsâ theological
course in St. Bernard Seminary of Rochester, New York, after which he spent a
year in St. Josephâs Seminary and College of Dunwoodie, that state. He came to
Oregon in 1908 and for a year resided at Mount Angel, where he was ordained to
the priesthood by Archbishop Christie on the 5th of June, 1909. He spent a few
weeks in Albany as assistant to Father Lane and in September, 1909, entered upon
a yearâs pastorate at Tillamook. Thereafter he was in charge of a parish at
Roseburg for two years, next spent a similar period at Grants Pass and then for
nine years labored at Medford. It was in May 1923 that he took up his duties as
pastor of the Holy Cross church in Portland, which has been in existence for a
quarter of a century, having been founded by the Holy Cross fathers in 1903.
This parish was controlled by the Holy Cross fathers until 1915, when it was
returned to Archbishop Christie. It numbers about one hundred and twenty-five
families and has a grade school with an attendance of about one hundred and
seventy pupils, taught by the Sisters of St. Mary. Father Powers has labored
with consecrated zeal for the upbuilding of his church and has made his parish a
strong spiritual force in the life of the community


Submitted to the OR. Bios Project in September 2006 by Jeffrey L. Elmer

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Notice: These biographies were transcribed for the Oregon Biographies Project. 
The submitter has no further information on the individual featured in the
biography.