Thomas O'Shea SM (13 March 1870 – 9 May 1954) was an American bishop who served as

Archbishop of Wellington The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington (''Archidioecesis Metropolitae Vellingtonensis'') is the Metropolitan diocese, metropolitan archdiocese of New Zealand. Catholics number about 83,214 (2006 census). Parishes number 22 and the archdioc ...

from 1935 to 1954.

Biography

Thomas O'Shea was born in 1870 to Irish immigrant parents in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. He received his education in New Zealand, attending

St Patrick's College, Wellington St Patrick's College is a Roman Catholic boys' secondary school in Wellington, New Zealand. History Founded by Archbishop Francis Redwood Society of Mary (Marists), SM, St Patrick's opened on 1 June 1885 with nine day pupil, day-boys and twe ...

, and later became a teacher at the same institution. O'Shea was ordained as a member of the Society of Mary in 1893 and held various positions within the Wellington archdiocese. In 1913, he became the coadjutor archbishop, and then ultimately succeeding Archbishop

Francis Redwood Francis William Mary Redwood Society of Mary (Marists), SM (6 April 1839 – 3 January 1935), was the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Wellington, metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan of New Zealand. L ...

in 1935. He played a significant role in promoting Catholic education, social justice, and cooperation with other Christian denominations on public matters. O'Shea died in 1954 at Calvary Hospital, Wellington, after struggling with senility in his later years.

Honours

In 1935, he was awarded the

King George V Silver Jubilee Medal The King George V Silver Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the accession of King George V. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir by King George V to commemorate his Silver Ju ...

Notes

References

* Ernest Richard Simmons, ''Brief history of the Catholic Church in New Zealand'', Catholic Publications Centre, Auckland, 1978 * Michael O'Meeghan S.M., ''Steadfast in hope : the story of the Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington 1850–2000'', Dunmore press, Palmerston North, 2003. * Nicholas Reid, ''James Michael Liston: A Life'', Victoria University Press, Wellington, 2006.
''Archbishop Thomas O'Shea SM'', Catholic Hierarchy website
(retrieved 12 February 2011) * https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3o7/oshea-thomas Roman Catholic archbishops of Wellington 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in New Zealand People educated at St Patrick's College, Wellington 1870 births 1954 deaths New Zealand people of Irish descent Clergy from San Francisco American emigrants to New Zealand American Roman Catholic archbishops American expatriate bishops New Zealand Roman Catholic archbishops {{NewZealand-RC-bishop-stub