Maurice F. McAuliffe

Maurice Francis McAuliffe (June 17, 1875 – December 15, 1944) was an American Latin Catholic prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the Diocese of Hartford in Connecticut, U.S., from 1934 until his death in 1944. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the same diocese from 1926 to 1934.

Biography

Early life Maurice McAuliffe was born in Hartford, Connecticut, to Daniel and Catherine (née Noonan) McAuliffe. He graduated from St. Peter's School in Hartford and Hartford Public High School in 1894, and attended Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland, for a year. He then continued his studies at the Grand Seminary of Saint-Sulpice in Issy, France, and at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt in Eichstätt, Germany. Following his return to Connecticut, McAuliffe was appointed to the faculty of St. Thomas Seminary in Hartford.

Bishop of Hartford Following the death of Nilan, Pius XI named McAuliffe as the eighth bishop of Hartford on April 23, 1934. During his ten-year-long tenure, he established 25 parishes, nine parochial schools, and several junior high schools. He organized the campaign to raise $1 million for improvements to St. Francis Hospital in Hartford.

Death and legacy McAuliffe was admitted to St. Francis Hospital on December 3, 1944, and placed in an oxygen tent. He later died at age 69.

McAuliffe Hall on the campus of Fairfield University is named in his honor. The Knight of Columbus Council 3181 – Bishop Maurice F. McAuliffe in Windsor, Connecticut is also named in his honor.