Meet Our First Pastor
Rev. Patrick Keating was the first resident pastor of the Church of the Assumption, which was built in 1860
on the site of Wright and Ludlow Streets. Rev. Keating was born in Wexford, Ireland in 1842 and graduated
from Wexford College. A passionate man, he was a firm believer in Irish
home rule and became active in the Fenian uprising of 1867. He was
arrested by the British authorities and incarcerated in a Dublin jail for a
considerable time. His trial resulted in banishment from Ireland for 20
years. Upon coming to the United States, he studied for the priesthood in
St. Hyacinth’s in Quebec, Canada and was ordained at the Grand
Seminary in Montreal. He is said to have ministered to the wants of the
Westport Catholics with commendable zeal. In January of 1877, he
purchased a house to serve as a rectory on the corner of Riverside and
Burr Avenues, and built a barn on the accompanying land. During his
pastorate, he made improvements to the church and had the interior of the
church frescoed. The chancel ceiling over the altar was colored in goldbespangled blue, with a symbolic representation of the Holy Spirit in the
center. The lower altar had elaborate panels in blue and violet filled with
gilded carvings and flanked by kneeling angels.
Rev. Keating served as the pastor of Assumption until May of 1885, whereupon he spent time in St. Mary’s
Church in Lakeville before becoming pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Norfolk, CT.
Rev. Keating was very fond of life here in the U.S. and described this
diocese (Hartford at the time) as the finest in the country. He died in
1917 and is buried in the cemetery he established, St. Mary’s
Cemetery in Norfolk.
Please spend some time in prayer for Rev. Keating and all of the
founding and current priests that serve our parish and diocese. For
further parish history, please refer to the new history section on the
parish website.
References: The Hartford Courant Archives; The Sacred Heart Review, Boston June 27, 1896,
Vo. 13, No. 26; And There was Light, The story of religious communities in Westport &
Weston; The Westport Historical Society; The History of the Hartford Diocese