History of the Eastern Lieutenancy

As Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Michael Abraham D’Assemani labored as a missionary among the Arab speaking people in Hosson and Transjordanian dedicating himself to the education of youth.

His Beatitude Louis Barlassina, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, traveled personally to Sacred Heart Church, Michigan City, to bestow the title of Monsignor upon Fr. D’Assemani and encourage him to do more for the preservation of the faith in the Holy Land.

The American Lieutenancy was formed, and the first Lieutenant of the American Lieutenancy was Msgr. Michael Abraham D’Assemani, who was the representative of His Beatitude Luigi Barlassina, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Rector and Perpetual Administrator of the Order.

On April 30, 1929, a formal dinner and reception was held at the Biltmore Hotel in New York City honoring Msgr. Michael Abraham D’Assemani for his work. At that time the statutes and by-laws of the order for the lieutenancy of the United States of America were drawn up and adopted with the approval of the Patriarch.

Likewise, the second lieutenant Chief Justice Victor J. Dowling of New York was appointed and His Eminence Dennis Cardinal Dougherty, Archbishop of Philadelphia was made first High Protector of the American Lieutenancy. The Palestinian, a magazine published in Pittsburgh, was adopted as the official publication of the order. In October of that year the stock market crashed leading the United States into the Great Depression hindering the growth of the order in America.

In June 1940, prior to the United State involvement in World War II, the Patriarch of Jerusalem subdivided the American Lieutenancy into Eastern and Western Lieutenancies. As a dividing line the authorities chose the Mississippi River. Lieutenant Doyle became the Lieutenant of the Eastern Lieutenancy with Dennis Cardinal Dougherty, Archbishop of Philadelphia, being the Prior. His Excellency Francis J. Kelley, Bishop of Oklahoma City and Tulsa was named Lieutenant and Prior for the Western Lieutenancy.

Following the successful establishment of both Eastern and Western Lieutenancies a reception and banquet was held in the Jensen room at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City with an address emphasizing the purposes of the order, pointing out that due to the devastation of war throughout Europe, the responsibility of maintaining the faith in the Holy Land must fall upon the American knights.

Lieutenant Desvernine was succeeded by Lieutenant Frank M. Folsom of New York City. The Eastern Lieutenancy was incorporated in the state of New York on May 3, 1951 with by-laws, and on May 17, 1951 it was granted exemption from federal income taxes by the United States Treasury.

In 1951 there were 218 members of the Eastern Lieutenancy, 155 knights and 63 matrons of the order (later known as dames). That year 150 people attended the investiture ceremony at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York. Francis Cardinal Spellman was the celebrant and Archbishop Cushing preached. Mass was followed by a brunch at the Rainbow Grill on the 65th floor of the 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

On December 14, 1960 Msgr. Michael Abraham D’Assemani, the founder and first lieutenant of the American Lieutenancy died at Sacred Heart Church in Michigan City, the church he had founded. In the decade that followed, as the church in the United States grew, the lieutenancies would also grow and be reorganized to meet the needs of a growing church.

By September 30, 1963 the Eastern Lieutenancy continued to be comprised of the states east of the Mississippi River growing to 530 knights and 466 dames.

The new Southern Lieutenancy was created in the United States made up of the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and the Hawaiian Islands.

The first annual meeting of the Southern Lieutenancy took place in Fort Worth, Texas in the autumn of 1963.

The first Investiture of the Southern Lieutenancy was held in Wichita, Kansas.

The Northern Lieutenancy was formed officially with the transfer of 12 states from the Eastern and Western Lieutenancies. The states that were assigned to the Northern Lieutenancy were Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

In 1967 the new Western Lieutenancy was formed, which included the states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

The Lieutenancy for Puerto Rico was created separating it from the Eastern Lieutenancy.

The new Southeastern Lieutenancy was to be made up of the states of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington DC. The Southwestern Lieutenancy was made up of the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and New Mexico.

In that same year, the North Central Lieutenancy was created by dividing the Northern Lieutenancy. The states that now comprised the North Central Lieutenancy were Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.

the Western Lieutenancy was divided into the Northwestern Lieutenancy, and the Western Lieutenancy. The Northwestern Lieutenancy included the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Alaska, and Northern California.

The Middle Atlantic Lieutenancy also came into being, which included the states of Maryland, Delaware, both of which were taken from the Eastern Lieutenancy. Washington DC, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee were taken from Southeastern Lieutenancy. Additionally, the Middle Atlantic Lieutenancy included the Archdiocese for Military Services.

The Eastern Lieutenancy included the states of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania with a total number of 1,437 members of which 1,391 were lay persons and 46 clergy.

By the end of 2018, membership in the Eastern Lieutenancy had grown to a total of 2,712, of which 1,239 were Knights, 1,115 were Dames and 452 Ecclesiastics.

The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem Eastern Lieutenancy is made up of 2,401 members, of which 1,097 are Knights, 918 are Dames and 386 are Ecclesiastics.