Vincent Leonard

Vincent Martin Leonard (December 11, 1908 – August 28, 1994) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania from 1969 to 1983.

Biography

Early life Vincent Leonard was born on December 11, 1908, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, one of nine children of Francis and Catherine (née Dolan) Leonard. His father worked in the steel mills. After graduating from Duquesne University Preparatory School, he studied at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and then at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

Priesthood Leonard was ordained to the priesthood in Latrobe for the Diocese of Pittsburgh by Bishop Hugh C. Boyle on June 16, 1935. After his ordination, the diocese assigned Leonard as assistant chaplain at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he remained for two years. He received his episcopal consecration at Saint Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh on April 21, 1964, from Bishop John Wright, with Bishops Richard Henry Ackerman and William G. Connare serving as co-consecrators.

After Bishop Wright was named to head the Congregation for the Clergy, Leonard was appointed the ninth bishop of Pittsburgh on June 1, 1969. Vincent Leonard died on August 28, 1994, from pneumonia at the Little Sisters of the Poor Home in Pittsburgh, at age 85.