Patrick Vincent Dwyer (1858-1931) was the first Australian born Roman Catholic Bishop.

Life

Patrick Vincent Dwyer was born on 21 August 1858 at

Albury Albury (; ) is a major regional city that is located in the Murray River, Murray region of New South Wales, Australia. It is part of the twin city of Albury–Wodonga, Albury-Wodonga and is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of ...

, New South Wales, to William Dwyer, schoolteacher, and his wife, Anastasia, née Dermody, both his parents being from Kilkenny, Ireland."Patrick Vincent Dwyer & Joseph Wilfrid Dwyer"
''

Dictionary of Australian Biography The ''Dictionary of Australian Biography'', published in 1949, is a reference work by Percival Serle containing information on notable people associated with Australia, Australian History of Australia, history. With approximately a thousand e ...

''. He was educated at

St Stanislaus' College St Stanislaus' College is an Australian independent Roman Catholic secondary day and boarding school for boys located in , in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, west of Sydney. Founded in 1867 and conducted since 1889 by t ...

in Bathurst, and on encouragement from Bishop James Murray he went to study for the priesthood in

Clonliffe College Holy Cross College (also known as Clonliffe College), located on Clonliffe Road, Drumcondra, was founded in 1854 as the Catholic diocesan seminary for Dublin by Paul Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin (later created, in 1866, a cardinal). History ...

Dublin in Ireland and the Pontifical Urban University of Propaganda Fide in Rome, being ordained on 4 March 1882 after which he returned to Australia. Father Dwyer served as secretary to Bishop

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American bicycle manufacturer * Murray Motor Car Company, an American car manufacturer * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trus ...

, Bishop of Maitland; and from 1882 to 1889 as diocesan inspector of schools. In 1897, he was appointed coadjutor to Bishop

his mentor (the first Australian-born Catholic bishop) and then Bishop in 1909 of

Maitland, New South Wales Maitland () is a city in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia and the seat of Maitland City Council, situated on the Hunter River, New South Wales, Hunter River approximately by road north of Sydney and north-west of Newcastle, New S ...

, upon Murray's death. Bishop Dwyer wrote the "Diocese of Maitland" article for the ''

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

''. His brother

Joseph Wilfrid Dwyer Joseph Wilfrid Dwyer DD (1869–1939) was an Australian Catholic priest and Bishop of Wagga Wagga, New South Wales. He was born on 12 October 1869, in East Maitland, New South Wales, to William Dwyer, school inspector, and his wife Anastasia Der ...

DD (1869-1939) also studied in Dublin and Rome and became a priest and served as a Bishop of Wagga. His nephew Francis Aloysius Dwyer (1902-1953) was a Supreme Court judge of New South Wales. Bishop Patrick Dwyer died of coronary vascular disease in West Maitland on 28 March 1931 and was buried in the Sacred Heart Church.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dwyer, Patrick Vincent Alumni of Clonliffe College 1858 births 1931 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Australia Contributors to the Catholic Encyclopedia Roman Catholic bishops of Maitland-Newcastle People from Albury Australian people of Irish descent People educated at St Stanislaus' College (Bathurst)