Edward D. Kelly

Edward Denis (also Dionysius ) Kelly (December 30, 1860 – March 26, 1926) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Detroit in Michigan from 1911 to 1919, and then as the third bishop of the Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan from 1919 until his death in 1926.

Biography

Early life Edward Kelly was born on December 30, 1860, in Hartford, Michigan, to Thomas and Mary (née Hannon) Kelly. He attended Assumption College in Windsor, Ontario, Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and St. Charles College in Catonsville, Maryland. Kelly finished his formation for the priesthood at St. Joseph's Seminary in Troy, New York.

Priesthood Kelly was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Detroit in Windsor on June 16, 1886, by Bishop Caspar Borgess.

Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit On December 9, 1910, Pope Pius X appointed Kelly as the first auxiliary bishop of Detroit and as titular bishop of Cestrus.

After the American entry into World War I in 1917, Kelly served on the Michigan Library War Council, an organization that provided reading material to soldiers from Michigan. In 1918, he was appointed superintendent of the diocesan schools. In 1920, Kelly and the other bishops in Michigan defeated a proposed amendment by nativist groups to the Michigan State Constitution that would have required all children between ages five and 16 to attend public schools.

Bishop of Grand Rapids

On January 16, 1919, Pope Benedict XV named Kelly as the third bishop of Grand Rapids; he was installed on May 20, 1919. Edward Kelly died on March 26, 1926, at the episcopal residence in Grand Rapids, Michigan, from a hemorrhage or embolism. He was age 65.