Richard Brendan Connolly, O.P., Death, 1977-04-01
Scope and Contents
This collection contains personal materials relating to friars after they have left the order, passed away, or transferred to another province. Each friar's file contents are mostly contain to their novitiate records, canonical assignments, historically important correspondence, and a small number of personal items if desired upon their passing. Within the broader collection, each Friar is sorted as a series.
Friars with particuarly substantial historically important papers or items outside of the scope of the Personal Files Collection are moved to a dedicated collection under their name.
This collection is a work in progress and any use of these files requires the explicit permission of the Provincial. Contact the Archivist to discuss access or inquire about friars that may not been cataloged yet.
Dates
- Creation: Death, 1977-04-01
Conditions Governing Access
Requires explicit permission from Provincial to access any records. Contact the Archivist for more information.
For comprehensive lists and records of individuals who left the order or transferred to other provinces, researchers must contact the archivist. Access to such materials may be restricted and is subject to privacy considerations and organizational policy.
Conditions Governing Use
Can only be accessed upon written permission of the Provincial. Contact the Archivist for further details.
Biographical / Historical
Father Richard Brendan Connolly died of pneumonia in Oak Park Hospital on Friday, April 1, 1977, two months before his fiftieth anniversary of priestly ordination. Following services at St. Dominic-St. Thomas Priory and St. Vincent Ferrer Church in River Forest, Illinois, be was buried in the Dominican plot at All Saints Cemetery, Des Plaines, Illinois, on April 4.
Pierce Richard Connolly was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on July 6,
1895, and educated at Mt. Carmel grade school in Chicago, Illinois; Cretin High School in St. Paul, Minnesota; and Aquinas High School and College in Columbus, Ohio. He also worked in the Chicago offices of the Burlington Railroad for four years before entering the Dominican novitiate at St. Joseph's Priory, Somerset, Ohio, on August 16, 1920, where he took the religious name of Brendan. Following first profession in 1921, he studied philosophy at St. Rose Priory, Springfield, Kentucky, and theology at the House of Studies in Washington, D.C. He was ordained a priest in Washington on June 9, 1927.
After ordination, Father Connolly was sent to Manhattan College in New York City for a master's degree in language arts. In 1929, he was assigned to the first faculty of the new Renwick High School in Oak Park, Illinois. While teaching at Fenwick, Father Connolly founded the Fenwick Mother's Club and also completed graduate studies in science at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and at Loyola and De Paul Universities in Chicago for his second master's degree.
In 1942, Father Connolly was named pastor of St. Vincent Ferrer Parish in River Forest, Illinois. During his term as pastor, construction of the new school building was completed in addition to the sisters' convent, rectory, and gymnasium-church.
In 1950, Father Connolly returned to teach at Fenwick for a year before being assigned associate pastor at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1952, he was appointed subprior of the newly established priory in Madison.
In January 1968, Father Connolly was sent to Dubuque, Iowa, as chaplain to St.
Dominic's Villa. In 1974, he retired to St. Dominic-St. Thomas Priory in River Forest, where he continued to provide priestly service whenever possible until the time of his last illness.
Extent
From the Collection: 100 Linear Feet (30 File Cabinets )
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
From the Collection: Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Archives of the Province of St. Albert the Great, U.S.A. Repository
1910 S. Ashland Ave
Chicago Illinois 60608 United States
3122430011
archivist@opcentral.org