John Moore (June 27, 1835 – July 30, 1901) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the second bishop of the Diocese of St. Augustine in Florida from 1877 to 1901.

Biography

Early life

John Moore was born in Castletown, County Westmeath, in Ireland on June 27, 1835.Moore, John
in '' Who's Who in America'' (1901-1902 edition); via archive.org His family immigrated to

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

when he was age 14. Moore attended the seminary in Charleston. He was sent to Europe to study at the College of Cambrai in

Cambrai, France Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the E ...

. Moore then studied theology at the College of Propaganda in Rome. Moore was ordained into the priesthood by Archbishop Antonio Ligi-Bussi in Rome on April 9, 1860, for the Diocese of Charleston. After his ordination, Moore returned to Charleston to assume assignments in parishes.

Bishop of St. Augustine

On February 16, 1877, Moore was appointed by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

as bishop of the Diocese of St. Augustine. He was consecrated on May 13, 1877, by Bishop Patrick Lynch at St John Baptist Pro-Cathedral in Charleston. At this time, the diocese covered the entire State of Florida. A contingent of Benedictine monks arrived in San Antonio, Florida, in 1886 initially to serve German immigrants. In 1887, a yellow fever outbreak in Florida killed several priests in the diocese. That same year, a fire destroyed the Cathedral of St. Augustine. At Moore's request, a group of

Jesuit fathers The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

arrived in Tampa, Tampa, Florida, in 1888 to replace the priests lost to illness. In August 1888, the St. Mary's Home for Orphan Girls was opened in Jacksonville, Florida. That same year, yellow fever broke out again in Jacksonville. With the local priest William John Kenny, William J. Kenny sidelined by the disease, Moore rushed there to run the parish and tend to the sick. In 1889, Moore asked the Benedictines to establish several mission churches on the Florida Gulf Coast from Pasco County, Florida, Pasco County northward. He requested that the Jesuits cover Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough County southward to Key West.

Death and legacy

During the late 1890s, Moore suffered a stroke that left him debilitated. John Moore died at his home in St. Augustine on July 30, 1901.Bishop Moore High School in Orlando, Florida, is named for him.

References

External links

''St. Augustine Bishops''

Episcopal succession

1835 births 1901 deaths People from County Westmeath Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston Roman Catholic bishops of Saint Augustine 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Religious leaders from South Carolina {{US-RC-bishop-stub