Bernard O'Reilly

Who was Bernard O'Reilly?

Bernard O'Reilly was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Hartford from 1850 until his death in 1856.

O'Reilly was born in Columkille, County Longford, and embarked for the United States in January 1825 with the intention of studying for the priesthood. He attended the Seminary of Montreal in Quebec, Canada, before completing his theological studies at St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland. His brother was the Rev. William O'Reilly, who was the pastor in the late 1840s of St. Raymond's Church in the Archdiocese of New York, later rector of Our Lady of the Isle, and eventually Vicar General of the Diocese of Hartford.

He was ordained a priest by Bishop Francis Kenrick on October 13, 1831. He then served in New York City and Brooklyn, where he distinguished himself for his heroism during the cholera outbreak in 1832 and twice fell victim to the disease himself. He was transferred to Rochester in December 1832, and remained there until he became vicar general of the Diocese of Buffalo in 1847.

On August 9, 1850, O'Reilly was appointed the second Bishop of Hartford, Connecticut, by Pope Pius IX.