Richard Gilmour


Richard Gilmour was a Scottish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Cleveland from 1872 until his death in 1891.

Biography

Gilmour was born in Dumbarton, Scotland to John and Marian Gilmour, who were Reformed Presbyterians. In 1829 he and his parents moved to Nova Scotia and later settled near Latrobe, Pennsylvania. He received his classical education in Philadelphia, where he became acquainted with Rev. Patrick Rafferty, pastor of .
Gilmour's friendship with Rafferty eventually led Gilmour to convert to Catholicism in 1844, and he soon resolved to enter the priesthood. In 1846 he entered Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
In addition to his studies, Gilmour was named prefect of collegians and professor of mathematics in 1847. After receiving his Master of Arts degree and completing his theological studies, Gilmour was ordained a priest by Archbishop John Baptist Purcell on August 30, 1852.
Gilmour then served as pastor of in Portsmouth, Ohio, also doing missionary work in Ironton, Gallipolis, Vinton, and Wilkesville. In 1857 he succeeded Rev. James Frederick Wood as pastor of St. Patrick's Church in Cincinnati, where Gilmour erected a parochial school. He briefly served as a professor at Mount St. Mary's Seminary of the West before being named pastor of in Dayton.
On February 15, 1872, Gilmour was appointed the second Bishop of Cleveland by Pope Pius IX. He received his episcopal consecration on the following April 14 from Archbishop Purcell, with Bishops Augustus Toebbe and Caspar Henry Borgess serving as co-consecrators, at St. Peter's Cathedral. He founded The Catholic Universe newspaper in 1874, and successfully opposed attempts by the Cuyahoga County auditor to tax Catholic churches and schools. He was also wary of the public school system. He established St. Ann's Asylum and Maternity Home, St. Michael Hospital, and St. John Hospital.

Death

Gilmour went to Florida in March 1891 due to failing health, where he died at St. Augustine, aged 66, on April 13, 1891.

Legacy

, in Gates Mills, Ohio, is named in honor of Bishop Gilmour.