From the desk of the Tar Heel disciple:
September 14, 2026 (#132)
The Servant of God Father Thomas F. Price
“The Tar Heel Apostle”
Part III
NC Highway Marker in Wilmington, NC
As previously noted, Thomas Price's mother, Clarissa, was by all accounts a devout and pious woman, deeply committed to the Catholic Faith she had embraced as a young woman. Her devotion to the Mother of God undoubtedly influenced her son. From an early age, he considered the priesthood. With the support of his mother and his pastor, Father Mark Gross, he set off for the seminary in Maryland, at the age of 16. He embarked from the Port of Wilmington on Friday, September 15, 1876, on a steamer named the Rebecca Clyde. Off the coast of the Outer Banks, the ship met with hurricane force winds and sank near the Ocracoke inlet. The captain, 10 crewmen, and 1 passenger died as the result. Price, who could not swim, survived. The story of his survival helps to understand the importance of the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, in his life. It may have, in fact, been a miraculous event.
During his time at the seminary, he is believed to have recounted the story only once, to a classmate who eventually became the Cardinal Archbishop of Boston, William O'Connell. O'Connell published the story in 1934. He wrote that as the ship was breaking up in the storm, “Young Price, with the others, groped his way to the deck and instantly was swept into the angry sea.” He cried out, “Christ Jesus, save me or I perish.” Immediately after, he experienced a vision of the Virgin Mary, who while smiling at him pointed to a large plank that had been washed overboard from the sinking ship. He managed to reach it and pulled himself aboard, thus saving his life. He eventually reached the beach where he was rescued. After a period of recuperation at the Outer Banks, he returned to his family in Wilmington, remaining there until February 1877, when he once again embarked on a ship for the seminary in Baltimore.
Another manifestation of his intense devotion to the Virgin Mary and of her care for him occurred just few years later, not long before his ordination as a subdeacon (May 30, 1885). Price had suffered from a protracted illness that left him significantly deaf. Turning once again to the Mother of God, he prayed a novena to her under the title “Mary, our hope.” He attributed the healing he subsequently experienced to her intercession and was able to continue his path toward ordination.
The close bond between Thomas F. Price and the Blessed Virgin Mary, fostered by his own mother during his childhood, and then strengthened by Mary’s intercession in these times of need only deepened in the years after his ordination to the priesthood, and lasted until his death on September 12, 1919, the feast day of the Holy Name of Mary.
The faithful are encouraged to pray for his intercession:
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
