Thomas-Louis Connolly

Thomas-Louis Connolly (1814 – 27 July 1876) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest, Capuchin, vicar general of the diocese of Halifax, Bishop of Saint John, and Archbishop of Halifax from 1859 to 1876.

Connolly was born in Cork, Co. Cork, Ireland. His father died when he was young and he and his younger sister were raised by their mother. At school, he was a quick student and by age 16 had mastered Greek, Latin and French. He became a novice in the Order of Capuchins. At age 18 he went to Rome to complete his studies for the priesthood. He was ordained as a priest in 1838 in Lyons, France. He returned to Ireland, where he served as a prison chaplain in Dublin. When fellow Capuchin, Father William Walsh, was appointed bishop of Halifax in 1842, Father Connolly accompanied him to Nova Scotia as his secretary. In 1845 he became Vicar-General and administrator of the diocese.

Between 1845 and 1847, approximately 30,000 Irish arrived in Saint John, more than doubling the population of the city. During this period, Saint John was second only to Grosse Isle, Quebec as the busiest port of entry to Canada for Irish immigrants. The Roman Catholic population was largely impoverished and uneducated.

In 1852 Father Connolly was appointed bishop of St. John, New Brunswick.

In 1853, Bishop Connolly organized the construction of a cathedral for the city. Four hundred men gathered as volunteers in the work of digging the foundation at the site. Local quarries supplied the stone. The Gothic Revival cathedral and the stone, Gothic Revival/Italianate Bishop's Palace were recognized in January 2014 as The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Provincial Heritage Place.

In April 1854 the ship Blanche arrived in St. John, and brought cholera to the city. Of 5,000 people stricken, 1,500 died. The periodic outbreaks centered largely in the poorer Catholic district, where people were scarcely over the effects of ship fever (typhus). The care for orphaned children became a priority. Bishop Connolly oversaw the opening of a Catholic orphanage run by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart.

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