Bernard A. Maguire

Bernard A. Maguire, S. J. was an Irish-American Catholic priest and Jesuit. He served as president of Georgetown University from 1851 to 1858. He also served as prefect of Georgetown from 1841 to 1852. In 1866, the long-planned Georgetown Law School was established.

About Bernard A. Maguire in brief

Summary Bernard A. MaguireBernard A. Maguire, S. J. was an Irish-American Catholic priest and Jesuit who served twice as the president of Georgetown University. Born in Ireland, he emigrated to the United States at the age of six, and his family settled in Maryland. He attended Saint John’s College in Frederick, Maryland, and then entered the Society of Jesus in 1837. He continued his studies at Georgetown University, where he also taught and was prefect, until his ordination to the priesthood in 1851. His tenure was regarded as successful; new buildings were erected, the number of students increased, and the preparatory division was partially separated from Georgetown College. Upon the end of his presidency in 1858, he engaged in pastoral and missionary work in Washington, D. C. and Virginia, and developed a reputation as a skilled preacher. In 1866, the long-planned Georgetown Law School was established. His term ended in 1870, and he returned to missionary work, traveling throughout the country. He died in Philadelphia in 1886; he was buried at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Philadelphia, in front of a portrait of his late wife, Mary, who he married in 1841.

He is buried at Mount St. Mary’s Cemetery in Maryland, in the town of Frederick. He was buried next to his wife, who is buried in Mount Saint Mary’s Catholic Cemetery in Frederick. His funeral service was held on September 27, 1881, at the same place where he was originally buried. He had a son, John, who was also a priest and served as president of the university from 1851 to 1858. He also served as prefect of Georgetown from 1841 to 1852. He taught mathematics and was the prefect at Saint John’s College during the 1842–1843 academic year, while he taught mathematics, and oversaw the school’s library and museum. He took leave of his studies during the academic year of 1849–1850 to catechize the students at Georgetown. During that time, there was an uprising among the students, stemming from a dispute between the Philodemic Society and the first prefect over when the club were permitted to hold meetings. Some students were displeased with the imposition of stern discipline, and they staged another uprising to declination him.