Thomas Frederick Price was born in Wilmington, North Carolina on August 19, 1860, to parents who were Catholic converts. As a child he was an altar server and developed a deep faith. He was mentored and influenced by many of the priests who served the church his family attended over the years. Upon graduating from high school, he decided to pursue the priesthood.
 
At the time, his parish priest, Fr. Mark Gross, helped him enter St. Charles College in Catonsville, Maryland to start his studies. To get there, Price traveled as a passenger on a wooden steam cargo ship called the Rebecca Clyde. The ship was to travel from Wilmington to Baltimore hauling lumber, cotton, and other goods. While en route, on September 17, 1876, the steamer was caught in a hurricane and wrecked. The ill-fated vessel was completely destroyed and only a few survived. Frederick, being one of the survivors, attributed his fortune to Blessed Mary, the Mother of God’s intercession as he and his mother had a deep devotion to Mary. After this traumatic experience, Price returned home for a year to regroup.
 
In 1877 he forged ahead and started his studies at St. Charles. He then entered the St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore. He was ordained a priest in 1886 back in his hometown of Wilmington, making him the very first person born in North Carolina to be ordained a priest.
 
Early in his priesthood he began a statewide evangelization program through a magazine he published that he entitled Truth. His efforts with this publication continued from 1897 until 1912 when he passed the work of creating it into the care of the International Catholic Truth Society. Early in his priesthood he also started an orphanage — the Nazareth Orphanage. The idea behind the orphanage was to help those in need locally as well as to win over the many in his local community who were anti-Catholic. The orphanage’s success paved the way for Price to organize local seminarians into catechizing teams and open a training house for these missionaries. This training house became the Regina Apostolorum, a preparatory seminary focused on the formation of missionaries for their home missions. He became the primary spiritual director and educator for this institution.
 
Following the success of the Apostolorum, Father Price met Father James Anthony Walsh of Boston, and they formulated a vision for the establishment of a seminary for foreign missionaries. After receiving approval, they traveled first to Rome to meet with the Pope and then to France to take a pilgrimage to Lourdes. This trip was transformative for Price and propelled him and Father Walsh forward in their missionary vision. Upon their return they purchased property in Ossining, New York, for their new organization — the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America — better known today as Maryknoll.
 
By 1918 the seminary had prepared their first three priests for overseas missions. Price joined them as superior during their first mission to China while Father Walsh stayed back in the U.S. to direct the seminary. The missionaries established their mission in Yeungkong, now called Yangjiang, near the South China Coast.
 
While in China, Price became seriously ill. He had to travel a long way to Hong Kong via primitive means to secure adequate medical care. By the time he reached St. Paul’s Hospital in Causeway Bay, run by the Sisters of St. Paul de Chartres, he was found to have an advanced case of appendicitis. Despite operations to help, he died of a burst appendix on September 12, 1919. His death date was on the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary which held significance to those who knew him due to his deep devotion to Mary. He was originally buried in Hong Kong but, he was transferred to the Maryknoll Cemetery in 1936 and then interred in the crypt below Maryknoll Seminary Chapel alongside Fr. Walsh’s remains in 1955.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, You so inspired Father Thomas Frederick Price with love for You and zeal for the Gospel that he dedicated his life to serve You and Your Church, first in North Carolina, his home state, and then in the foreign missions. Grant that by his example we may grow in holiness and into a deeper union with Our Lord Jesus Christ. Help us to be authentic witnesses of the Gospel and proclaim the Holy Name of Jesus throughout the Diocese of Raleigh and to all the people and in all the places we are sent to love and serve. If it be according to Your will, glorify Your servant, Father Thomas Frederick Price, by granting the favor I (we) now request through his prayerful intercession (mention your request here) I (we) make this prayer confidently through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen.