Catholic priest, educator, b. Muenzbach, Austria. He was educated at Linz, ordained in the priesthood in 1842, and graduated from the Univ. of Vienna (D.D., 1846). He migrated to the U.S. and to Milwaukee in 1847, where he built Holy Trinity Church. Regarded as the father of St. Francis Seminary near Milwaukee because of his extensive begging trips to raise funds in its behalf, Salzmann served on its faculty from 1865 until his death. He was rector of St. Francis from 1868 to 1874. By nature an unbridled enthusiast, Salzmann's thoughts were rarely presented in a clear and orderly fashion, and he became a favorite target of the anticlerical German-immigrant "Fortyeighters" in Milwaukee, who lampooned him in their Flugblaetter. In an effort to offset such criticism, Salzmann promoted the Seebote. During the Civil War he was critical of the Lincoln administration, and was known for his sympathies for his fellow-Austrian, Maximilian, and his abortive expedition in Mexico. Following the war, Salzmann devoted his energies to founding the Catholic Normal School next to St. Francis Seminary, hoping thereby to promote better education for lay teachers and church organists; concurrently he promoted fraternal insurance and is often regarded as a progenitor of the Catholic Family Protective, the headquarters of which are in Milwaukee. J. Rainer, Noble Priest (Milwaukee, 1903); [H. H. Heming], Cath. Church in Wis. (Milwaukee, 1895- 1898); P. L. Johnson, Crosier on Frontier (Madison, 1959).Learn More
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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]
