In 1875, Van de Vyver was appointed as pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus parish in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia.

[1] In 1901, philanthropist Thomas Fortune Ryan and his wife donated almost $500,000 to buy the land and construct a new Sacred Heart Cathedral in Richmond.

[3] With assistance from a donor, Van de Vyver opened an industrial college for African-American boys in Rock Castle, Virginia.

[4] On August 22, 1902, Joseph Anciaux a Belgian Josephite priest in Virginia wrote a letter to the Congregation of the Propaganda in Rome, condemning acceptance by the U.S. Catholic hierarchy of racial segregation in the United States.

He called it a radical and non-Catholic policy, and accused Van de Vyver personally of timidity in the face of "negro haters".