Lineage of Bishops
- Bishop Eugene O'Connell – 1868-1884
- Bishop Patrick Manogue – 1884-1895
- Bishop Thomas Grace – 1896-1921
- Bishop Patrick Keane – 1922-1928
- Bishop Robert Armstrong – 1929-1957
- Bishop Joseph T. McGucken – 1957-1962
- Bishop Alden J. Bell – 1962-1979
- Bishop Francis A. Quinn – 1980-1993
- Bishop William K. Weigand – 1994-present
Bishop Eugene O'Connell – 1868-1884
Bishop Eugene O’Connell served as the first and founding Bishop
of the Diocese of Grass Valley, which would become the Diocese of Sacramento.
He served from 1868 until March 17, 1884, when he resigned. He died in
Los Angeles on December 14, 1891.
Bishop Patrick Manogue – 1884-1895
The man who took O'Connell's place was one of the legendary figures in
California history, Patrick Manogue. Student, gold miner, seminarian,
and priest of the Comstock, Manogue built the Cathedral of the Blessed
Sacrament when he became the first and founding Bishop of a new Diocese
created on May 28, 1886, by Pope Leo XIII. The Pope also added 10 counties
in Northern California and eight in Nevada to the new Diocese
of Sacramento. Bishop Patrick Manogue died on February 27, 1895 in the
Cathedral rectory.
Bishop Thomas Grace – 1896-1921
On June 16, 1896, Father Thomas Grace (1841-1921) was consecrated the
second Bishop of the Diocese of Sacramento. For 25 years Bishop Thomas
Grace guided the Diocese through a period of transition from its pioneer
days to a more modern period. He was indefatigable in traveling the length
and breadth of the Diocese, even against the advice of friends.
Bishop Patrick Keane – 1922-1928
Patrick
J. Keane, D.D. (1872-1928), a priest from the Archdiocese of San Francisco.
He was consecrated as an auxiliary Bishop by Bishop Thomas Grace on December
14, 1920; he succeeded him as the third Bishop of the Diocese on March
17, 1922. His short tenure of six years was characterized by the formation
of a system of parochial schools. He died September 1, 1928.
Bishop Robert Armstrong – 1929-1957
The
fourth man to be consecrated Bishop of Sacramento was Father Robert Armstrong.
Born in San Francisco in 1884, he and his family moved to the Pacific Northwest,
where he lived most of his life until he was appointed Bishop on January
4, 1929.
For 28 years Bishop Robert Armstrong served as a Bishop of the Diocese
that originally comprised 91,562 miles. He inaugurated a period of considerable
growth in which over 28 new parishes were established; the work of taking
care of the socially disadvantaged was professionalized; and the quality
of Catholic schools was upgraded. Bishop Robert Armstrong died after a
long illness on January 14, 1957.
Bishop Joseph T. McGucken – 1957-1962
Most Reverend Joseph T. McGucken, S.T.D., L.L.D. , auxiliary bishop of
Los Angeles, was appointed coadjutor bishop of Sacramento on October
26, 1955, and succeeded to the See upon the death of Bishop Armstrong.
He was born March 13, 1902, in Los Angeles and was ordained in Rome January
16, 1928.
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On February 21, 1962, Pope John XXIII appointed Bishop McGucken fifth
Archbishop of San Francisco where he was installed on April 3, 1962. At
the same time, His Holiness announced a sweeping change in Northern California
diocesan boundaries with the creation of three new dioceses: Oakland, Santa
Rosa, and Stockton.
Sacramento ceded five counties to the new jurisdiction: Del Norte, Humboldt,
Calaveras, Tuolumne and Mono. Solano County, formerly a part of the Archdiocese
of San Francisco was added.
Bishop Alden J. Bell – 1962-1979
Pope John XXIII, on March 30, 1962, appointed the Most Reverend Alden J.
Bell, D.D. , auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles, to become the sixth spiritual
leader of the Sacramento Diocese. He was solemnly installed on May 15,
1962, in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. On September 15, 1966,
Alpine County was transferred from the Diocese of Sacramento to the Diocese
of Stockton by Sacred Decree.
On February 27, 1974, Pope Paul VI appointed John S. Cummins
as an auxiliary to Bishop Bell. However, within three years, he was selected
as the second Bishop of the Oakland Diocese, leaving Bishop Bell without
an auxiliary.
Bishop Bell retired on July 11, 1979. He was 75 years old. His years in
the Diocese of Sacramento were busy ones since they demanded a flexibility
in allowing and promoting the changes brought about because of the second
Vatican Council. He surrounded himself with men who were leaders in the
field of social action and education. He also strongly encouraged the emerging
lay ministry in the Diocese. Bishop Bell died on August 28, 1982.
Bishop Francis A. Quinn – 1980-1993
Five months after Bishop Bell retired, Pope John Paul II named Francis
A. Quinn, then an auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco, as the seventh Bishop
of the Diocese of Sacramento. He was installed February 18, 1980, in
the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium. Two years later, on September 1,
1981, John Paul II selected Father Alphonse Gallegos, O.A.R.,
Director of the Hispanic Affairs Division of the California Catholic
Conference, as an auxiliary Bishop to Francis Quinn. He was ordained
Bishop in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on November 4, 1981.
Nothing but pastoral, Bishop Gallegos’ life was cut short in an
automobile accident. Thousands of people gathered for his burial rites
in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on October 11, 1991.
In 1985, the deanery structure of the diocese was revised to comprise 15
geographical areas. Each priest appointed to be a dean was officially installed
at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament on May 30, 1985.
Bishop Quinn called for a year of celebration as the Diocese reached its
hundredth birthday: 1886-1986. The year was filled with remembering, preparation
for the celebration and a search for our own history. The event itself
was noted by local television companies and filmed.
Bishop Francis Quinn’s request to retire was accepted in 1993.
Bishop William K. Weigand – 1994-present
On January 27, 1994, Bishop William Weigand, former Bishop of Salt Lake
City, was installed in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament as the
eighth shepherd of the Diocese of Sacramento.
For more information on Bishop William K. Weigand and his continuing
guidance as Shepherd of the Diocese of Sacramento, visit Diocesan
Bishop.
With the completion of the new Diocesan Pastoral Center in early 1994, the Bishop’s Office (the former Chancery) and twelve of the Diocesan departments relocated their offices in the Pastoral Center in January and February of that same year. These offices, needed to aid in the Church's mission to proclaim the Gospel, had previously been spread throughout the city. The new Pastoral Center was blessed by Bishop Weigand on June 10, 1994.
On November 25, 1997, it was announced that Pope John Paul II named Father Richard J. Garcia, a priest of the Diocese of San Jose, California, as auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Sacramento and Titular Bishop of Bapara, to assist Bishop Weigand. Bishop Richard J. Garcia was the fourth auxiliary bishop to be appointed to the Diocese of Sacramento. Much beloved by the faithful throughout Sacramento, Bishop Garcia ministered in all corners of the Diocese with a warm manner. In December 2006, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop Garcia as the Bishop of the Diocese of Monterey. He was installed on January 30, 2007.
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