Eugene O'Connell

Eugene O'Connell (June 18, 1815 – December 14, 1891) was the first Catholic bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Grass Valley, California. Born in County Cavan, Ireland, O'Connell sailed to San Francisco upon the request of Bishop Alemany for priests to serve in the diocese of Monterey. O'Connell was rector of the diocesan seminary, and later appointed to the Vicariate of Marysville, up in the gold fields. The Diocese of Grass Valley later became the Diocese of Sacramento.

Early life O'Connell was born June 15, 1815, the eldest of four children, in the parish of Kingscourt, County Cavan. He studied at the diocesan seminary, St. Finian's College in Navan, then at St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, and was ordained to the priesthood on May 21, 1842. O'Connell taught at the seminary in Navan from 1843 to 1846. O'Connell then moved to All Hallows College, Dublin. During this time, he witnessed the terrible famine years of 1845–1848 in Ireland.

California

In August 1850, Joseph Sadoc Alemany, Bishop of Monterey, California stopped by All Hallows on his way back from Rome, looking to recruit priests for his new diocese. O'Connell agreed to serve three years. He arrived in San Francisco on July 1, 1851, and was appointed pastor of Mission Santa Inez, where he was also director of the diocesan seminary. O'Connell had to learn Spanish to serve the parishioners and teach the seminarians.

In November 1852, O'Connell was assigned to the Church of St. Francis on Vallejo Street in San Francisco. In September 1853, he was named pastor of Mission Delores. There he served as rector and professor of the Diocesan Seminary of St. Thomas Acquinas. The following year Father O'Connell was recalled to All Hallows College in Ireland. He left San Francisco in May 1854 and was appointed Dean of All Hallows. He was consecrated titular Bishop of Flaviopolis, and Vicar Apostolic of Marysville, 3 Feb., 1861, at All Hallows College, by Cardinal Paul Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin. and, early in its history, Utah and part of Colorado. St. Joseph Church in Marysville served as the pro-cathedral of the vicarate. While the diocese was erected in Grass Valley, O'Connell chose to live in Marysville. Along with Manogue, O'Connell encouraged the Daughters of Charity to help in Nevada. He dedicated Saint Mary in the Mountains Catholic Church in 1864. On that date, he was appointed as titular bishop of Ioppe. He died in Los Angeles, California, on December 4, 1891.

The remains of Eugene O'Connell were moved from Los Angeles to Sacramento over a hundred years after his death.