Edward McGlynn

Father Edward McGlynn (September 27, 1837 – January 7, 1900), American Roman Catholic priest and social reformer, was born in New York City of Irish parents. He was controversial in Catholic circles for his acceptance of public schools. He actively promoted the political goals of Henry George and the "Single Tax" movement; he campaigned for George who ran for mayor in 1886. He was censured and excommunicated between 1887 and 1892 on the charges of disobedience and suspicion of socialist leanings, due to his support of Henry George. Conservative Catholic leaders were outraged by his liberalism.

Edward McGlynn was born in New York City on September 27, 1837. His parents, Peter and Sarah McGlynn, had immigrated from Donegal, Ireland in 1824. His father became a contractor, acquiring a small fortune before dying in 1847, leaving a widow and ten children. McGlynn was first educated at the Thirteenth Street Grammar School and the Free Academy, now the City College of New York. When McGlynn was thirteen years of age, Archbishop Hughes, a family friend, and his pastor, Father Jeremiah Williams Cummings, arranged for him to attend the Urban College of the Propaganda, Rome. In 1859, after eight years in Rome, he transferred to the newly opened Pontifical North American College. He had received his doctorate in theology and philosophy, and was ordained a priest on March 24, 1860, in the Church of St. John Lateran.

McGlynn's first assignment was as assistant to Rev. Thomas Farrell at St. Joseph's Church, New York. Father Farrell had been an ardent opponent of slavery and left $5,000 in his will for a Catholic church for blacks. This led to the establishment in 1883 of St. Benedict the Moor Parish in Hell's Kitchen.

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