Martin Stanislaus Brennan

Martin Stanislaus Brennan (July 23, 1845 – October 3, 1927) was an American Roman Catholic priest and scientist known for writing books about religion and science.

Brennan wrote science textbooks for children as well as general interest books on scientific topics and was a popular lecturer in Europe and Palestine as well as in his hometown, St. Louis, Missouri.

Early life Born in Ballinroe, Castleiney, County Tipperary, Ireland, Brennan's family immigrated to the United States when he was age three, settling in St. Louis. His parents, William C. Brennan and Margaret Hackett, were both from Tipperary. Brennan attended the Cathedral Parish School in St. Louis and served as an altar server at the Cathedral Church.

Education Brennan attended Christian Brothers College in St. Louis, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in 1865 and a Master of Arts in 1869, He studied theology at Saint Vincent's College in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. In 1869, Brennan was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of St. Louis. He frequently delivered lectures on scientific topics to audiences in St. Louis. Brennan also studied the devastating 1896 St. Louis–East St. Louis tornado.

Brennan died of natural causes on October 3, 1927, at age 82 in St. Louis. He was interred at Calvary Cemetery in the city.

Works What Catholics Have Done for Science. With Sketches of the Great Catholic Scientists (1887) Astronomy, New and Old (1889)