William Fraser

William Fraser (1778 or 1779 Glen Cannich, Inverness-shire, Scotland – October 4, 1851 Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada ) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest and the first Bishop of Halifax in Nova Scotia from 1842 until the splitting of the diocese into two dioceses effective September 22, 1844, when William Walsh took formal possession of the Diocese of Halifax.

Early life William Fraser was born in Glen Cannich, part of the wider Strathglass region of the Northwest Highlands of Scotland, as the eldest of the 12 children of Scottish Gaelic-speaking parents John Fraser and Jane Chisholm. His family belonged to the Catholic Church in Scotland.

After attending an underground Catholic school in his native district, he continued his education at the clandestine minor seminary at Samalaman in Moidart. In January 1794 he began his studies for the priesthood at the Royal Scots College in Valladolid, Spain. After being ordained to the priesthood on 8 Jan. 1804, he returned to Scotland soon after.

Priestly ministry Following his return to Scotland, Fraser's cousin, Bishop John Chisholm appointed him as an underground missionary in Lochaber. In this wide apostolate, Fraser's duties included overseeing the semi-underground Lismore Seminary and helping to organize what is now St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Fort William.

In 1822, he emigrated to Nova Scotia. Upon his arrival in Canada, Bishop Angus Bernard MacEachern introduced him to the Canadian Gaelic-speaking pioneer communities of Cape Breton Island and Antigonish County. Fraser was appointed to Mabou and in less than a month received added responsibility for the missions surrounding Bras d'Or Lake. In January 1824 he was given charge of St Ninian’s Roman Catholic Church in Antigonish, where he remained for the rest of his life.

He is said to have been a man of enormous physical strength and to have been able to break steel horseshoes with his bare hands, with legends have been collected of the Bishop's exploits.