San Francisco County
Biographies
REV. PATRICK
J. RYAN
Rev. Patrick J. Ryan, who is the pastor of the Church of the Epiphany at 645 Amazon avenue in San Francisco and held in the estimation of the public as one of the ablest members of the local clergy, was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, April 23, 1880. He studied for the priesthood in St. Patrick’s College in Thurles, Ireland, and was there ordained in 1906. He then left for the United States, and arrived in San Francisco in October of the same year. He first became an assistant priest in an Oakland parish, and following this incumbency he was assistant priest at St. Joseph’s Church in Alameda, California, and St. Ann’s Church in East Oakland.
Rev. Ryan held his first pastorate in the St. Lawrence O’Toole parish in Fruitvale, Alameda county, where he labored until 1922, when he came to the Church of the Epiphany in San Francisco, and in the service of this parish he has performed notable work in the subsequent years. The Church of the Epiphany itself was originally a mission, founded in 1909, and was served by Father Brody, pastor of St. John’s. In 1911, it was made a church, and the first pastor was Rev. James Stokes, who served until the advent of Rev. Ryan. The original site was on Russia street, but in 1922 the present pastor removed the church to the address where it is now situated, and later built the parish home. The church now is in a very prosperous condition, having about six hundred families enrolled. There are two assistant pastors, Rev. D. A. Kelly and Rev. Henry McEney. The Church of the Epiphany has all of the Catholic societies customarily affiliated with the local congregation of this faith.
Rev. Ryan is a member of the Knights of Columbus, and as a public-spirited citizen he holds an unassailable position in the community. He has been very successful in advancing the interests of his large parish, and holds a strong prestige and excellent influence among his communicants.
Transcribed by: Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
Source: Byington, Lewis Francis, “History of
San Francisco 3 Vols”, S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.,
Chicago, 1931. Vol. 3 Pages 355-356.
© 2008 Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
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