Mary Gertrude Banahan, 1855/1856?–1932
Sister Mary Gertrude Banahan trained in a Brigidine convent in Ireland and then taught in Australia. She was appointed superior of a new Brigidine foundation at Masterton. She established St Bride’s Convent School and eventually established another four foundations in the southern North Island.
Learn more at the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
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Thomas William Croke, 1822/1823?–1902
Born in County Cork and educated in Paris and Rome, Thomas Croke worked as a priest in Ireland for 23 years before being appointed Bishop of Auckland in 1870. In his three years in the position, before returning to Ireland, Croke restored the financial position of the diocese and brought it firmly within the Irish hierarchy.
Learn more at the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
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Mary Gabriel Gill, 1837–1905
From a wealthy Dublin family, Sister Mary Gabriel was a Dominican who came to Dunedin with Bishop Patrick Moran in 1871 as the prioress. She was strongly committed to Catholic education, establishing St Dominic’s Priory and sending sisters throughout Otago. She left for Australia in 1898.
Learn more at the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
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Patrick Moran, 1823?–1895
Patrick Moran of County Wicklow was ordained and served in Dublin before becoming in 1856 a bishop in the Cape Colony (South Africa), the youngest Catholic bishop in the world. Appointed Bishop of Dunedin in 1869, he arrived in 1871 and set about imposing Irish traditions on the Catholic Church. He was a strong advocate for Catholic schools and established the New Zealand Tablet to promote his views on politics and education in New Zealand, and on home rule for Ireland.
Learn more at the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
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