Henry Hanlon

Bishop Dr Henry Hanlon MHM (7 January 1862-18 August 1937) was an English Roman Catholic bishop, belonging to the order of the Mill Hill Missionaries.

Hanlon was born in 1862 in Manchester, the son of Henry Hanlon, a warehouse packer, and his wife Sarah, he was educated at St Augustine's RC School, Manchester. Prior to joining the priesthood he trained as a cabinet maker. Having decided to train as a priest, he attended the Missionary School at Kelvedon, Essex, then St Joseph's College, Mill Hill. He was ordained Priest on the 21 September 1889 for the Mill Hill Missionaries and travelled to Northern India, where he served until 1894 when he was recalled to Rome to be appointed the first Vicar Apostolic of Upper Nile District of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tororo, being consecrated 17 July 1894 and taking the title of Titular Archbishop of Teos. He was then sent to lead the first band of four Mill Hill missionaries into the African interior, they arrived in Kampala on 26 September 1895^[1] after walking from Mombassa.^[2] Upon arrival Bishop Hanlon and his missionaries were received by Kabaka Mwanga, who offered them land on Nsambya Hill where they established their mission station, today the site is occupied by the large Catholic Church of St. Peter,^[3] he founded new parishes at Budaka and Masaba in 1901 and at Nyondo in 1906. In 1903 he bought a congregation of the Fransciscan Sisters of St Joseph from Manchester to Kampala where they established a school and a hospital for the local district.^[4]

He continued in that position until 17 November 1911 when he resigned, becoming then Vicar Apostolic Emeritus.^[5][6]

Bishop Hanlon returned to England and began Parish work in his native Diocese of Salford. In 1915 he became Missionary Rector at the Church of St Alban, Blackburn where he would remain until ill health forced his retirement in 1934.^[7] Along with Auxiliary Bishop John Vaughan, Bishop Hanlon took on many episcopal duties with the diocese to assist Bishop Louis Casartelli, who suffered from ill health through much of his episcopate. He died in 1937 at the age of 75.

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