Denis Mary Bradley

His Excellency, The Most Reverend

Denis Mary Bradley
His Excellency, The Most Reverend; Denis Mary Bradley
Bishop of Manchester
See	Diocese of Manchester
Successor	John Bernard Delany
Orders
Ordination	June 3, 1871; by Bernard John McQuaid
Consecration	June 11, 1884; by John Joseph Williams
Personal details
Born	February 25, 1846; Castleisland, County Kerry, Ireland
Died	December 13, 1903 (aged 57); Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S.
Nationality	Irish
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Education	College of the Holy Cross (AB); St. Joseph's Seminary

Denis Mary Bradley (February 25, 1846 – December 13, 1903) was an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Manchester in New Hampshire from 1884 until his death in 1903. Bradley was a co-founder of Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire.

Biography

Early life

Denis Bradley was born on February 25, 1846, in Castleisland, County Kerry in Ireland. When Bradley was eight years old, his father died. His mother immigrated with the family to the United States, settling in Manchester, New Hampshire. Bradley attended Park Street Grammar School and other Catholic schools in Manchester.

In 1863, Bradley entered the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. According to a contemporary account, Bradley was an introspective and serious student. He graduated from Holy Cross in June 1867. In September 1867, Bradley enrolled at St. Joseph's Seminary in Troy, New York.^[1]^[2]

Priesthood

Bradley was ordained a priest in Troy by Bishop Bernard McQuaid for the Diocese of Portland in Maine on June 3, 1871. At that time, this diocese included both Maine and New Hampshire.^[3] After his ordination, Bradley was given a pastoral assignment to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland, Maine. He was eventually appointed as rector of the cathedral and chancellor of the diocese.

In 1879, Bradley took a six-month trip to Europe for health reasons.^[4] After returning to Maine, he was still not able to keep up with all of his job responsibilities. In June 1880, Bishop James Healy moved Bradley to the less demanding position of pastor of St. Joseph's Parish in Manchester, New Hampshire.^[1]^[4]

Bishop of Manchester

On April 18, 1884, Pope Leo XIII appointed Bradley as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Manchester. He was consecrated on June 11, 1884, by Archbishop John Williams at St. Joseph's Church in Manchester.^[3] Bradley was the first graduate of St. Joseph's Seminary to be appointed bishop.

In the rural parts of New Hampshire, there were many scattered Catholics, and Bradley's first efforts were directed towards providing for them. He held the first synod of the diocese on October 24, 1886.^[5]

At some point in the 1880s, Bradley contacted the Benedictine monks at Saint Mary's Abbey in Newark, New Jersey, about creating a Catholic college in New Hampshire. Saint Anselm College opened in Goffstown, New Hampshire in 1889.^[6]

Death and legacy

During a mass in early December 1903, Bradley collapsed at the altar. Denis Bradley died in Manchester of chronic gastritis on December 13, 1903, at age 57.^[3]^[7]^[8] Bradley House at Saint Anselm College was named after him.

References

^ ^a ^b Willey, George Franklyn (1903). State Builders: An Illustrated Historical and Biographical Record of the State of New Hampshire at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century. New Hampshire Publishing Corporation.
^ Byrne, William (1899). Introductory [by] William Byrne. Archdiocese of Boston [by] W. A. Leahy. Diocese of Providence [by] Austin Dowling. Diocese of Portland [by] E. J. A. Young. Diocese of Manchester [by] J. E. Finen. Hurd & Everts Company.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Bishop Denis Mary Bradley [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
^ ^a ^b Hurd, Duane Hamilton (1885). History of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire. J. W. Lewis & Company.
^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Denis Mary Bradley" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
^ "History & Mission | Saint Anselm College". www.anselm.edu. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
^ The Holy Cross Purple. College of the Holy Cross. 1903.
^ "DEATH OF BISHOP BRADLEY.; Head of the Diocese of New Hampshire Passes Away with His Priests Around Him". The New York Times. 14 December 1903. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 June 2022.

Other Sources

Catholic News files (New York, December, 1903) at Catholic Directory (Milwaukee, WI: 1904)
Reuss, Biog. Encyl. Of the Cath. Hierarchy (Milwaukee, WI: 1898)
Gabriels, History of St. Joseph's Seminary, Troy (New York: 1906)

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Thomas F. Meehan (1913). "Denis Mary Bradley". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[:0-1] Willey, George Franklyn (1903). State Builders: An Illustrated Historical and Biographical Record of the State of New Hampshire at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century. New Hampshire Publishing Corporation.

[2] Byrne, William (1899). Introductory [by] William Byrne. Archdiocese of Boston [by] W. A. Leahy. Diocese of Providence [by] Austin Dowling. Diocese of Portland [by] E. J. A. Young. Diocese of Manchester [by] J. E. Finen. Hurd & Everts Company.

[:1-3] "Bishop Denis Mary Bradley [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 4 June 2022.

[:2-4] Hurd, Duane Hamilton (1885). History of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire. J. W. Lewis & Company.

[CE-5] Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Denis Mary Bradley" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[6] "History & Mission | Saint Anselm College". www.anselm.edu. Retrieved 4 June 2022.

[7] The Holy Cross Purple. College of the Holy Cross. 1903.

[8] "DEATH OF BISHOP BRADLEY.; Head of the Diocese of New Hampshire Passes Away with His Priests Around Him". The New York Times. 14 December 1903. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 June 2022.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

v t e Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester
Bishops	Ordinaries Denis Mary Bradley John Bernard Delany George Albert Guertin John Bertram Peterson Matthew Francis Brady Ernest John Primeau Odore Joseph Gendron Leo Edward O'Neil John Brendan McCormack Peter Anthony Libasci Auxiliaries Francis Joseph Christian Joseph John Gerry Robert Edward Mulvee
Churches	Cathedral Cathedral of St. Joseph Abbey St. Anselm Abbey Parishes St. Anne of the Good Shepherd, Berlin St. Joseph Church, Claremont St. Thomas More Church, Durham Ste. Marie Church, Manchester St. Aloysius of Gonzaga Church, Nashua Former parishes St. Stanislaus Church, Nashua
Education	Higher education Rivier University Saint Anselm College Thomas More College of Liberal Arts High schools Bishop Guertin High School, Nashua Holy Family Academy, Manchester Mount Royal Academy, Sunapee St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Dover Trinity High School, Manchester Defunct institutions Magdalen College of the Liberal Arts
Priests	Thomas Michael O'Leary
Catholicism portal

v t e Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland
Bishops	Ordinaries David William Bacon James Augustine Healy William Henry O'Connell Louis Sebastian Walsh John Gregory Murray Joseph Edward McCarthy Daniel Joseph Feeney Peter Leo Gerety Edward Cornelius O'Leary Joseph John Gerry Richard Joseph Malone Robert Deeley James T. Ruggieri Auxiliary Amédée Wilfrid Proulx
Churches	Cathedral Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Basilica Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, Lewiston Parish churches (list) Holy Cross Church, Lewiston Sacred Heart Church, Portland St. David Church, Madawaska St. Denis Church, North Whitefield St. Joseph's Church, Biddeford St. Mary's Church, Augusta St. Patrick's Church, Newcastle St. John's Church, Bangor Former churches St. Andre's, Biddeford St. Mary's Church, Biddeford St. Cyril and St. Methodius Church, Lisbon Falls St. Dominic's, Portland St. Joseph's Church, Lewiston St. Patrick's Church, Lewiston
Education	Higher education St. Joseph's College High schools Cheverus High School, Portland Saint Dominic Academy, Auburn Former schools St. Joseph's School, Biddeford Catherine McAuley High School, Portland
Priests	Denis Mary Bradley Charles M. Murphy
Miscellany	Mercy Hospital, Portland
Catholicism portal