Description:
The papers of Archdeacon John Hamilton (1800-62) are complementary to the papers of Archbishop Daniel Murray published in the previous issues of this journal. In Archivium Hibernicum xxxvi (1981) 44-7 Mary Purcell, who catalogued his papers, gives us a brief biography of this remarkable priest. The following details are taken from that article. Born in 1800, John Hamilton studied for the priesthood in the Irish College, Paris and then in Saint Sulpice. He was ordained in 1824 and appointed curate in St. Marys, the Pro-Cathedral. He was administrator there from 1831 to 1853 and paid off the debt on the Pro-Cathedral. He also built St Lawrence OToole's church and the schools at Seville Place and William Street. He ran an orphanage, a home for widows, a home for blind boys and a Catholic Library Bookshop. He revived the invaluable Catholic Directory. He also founded a spiritual association for priests. It was he who introduced the Society for the Propagation of the Faith into Ireland. During Murray's frequent illnesses and absences from town, he looked after the administration of the diocese. His papers are an important source on education issues, foreign missions, the famine and the day to day administration of the diocese.
