Historical Highlights of the Archdiocese of Hartford

The Diocese of Hartford is deeply rooted in the faith of our early Catholic ancestors who settled in Connecticut. It was with a desire to extend greater service that Bishop Fenwick of Boston petitioned the Holy See for a division of his diocese which led to the establishment of the diocese of Hartford. Today, with great respect and pride, we recall the efforts of those dedicated men and women who left us a rich heritage which we call the Church of Hartford.

In his work entitled, The Catholic Church in Connecticut, Thomas Duggan states that, “The Catholic Church has been represented in Connecticut from the days of its earliest white settlers.” From colonial times until the arrival of the first resident in 1651, the Catholic Church in Connecticut lived very much in the shadows of the deeply Congregational tradition. The missionary zeal of those early priests led to the establishment in Hartford of the Church of the Holy Trinity which was dedicated by Bishop Fenwick on May 8, 1834. Nine years later in the spring of 1843, Bishop Fenwick, who was advanced in age, recommended to the Fifth Provincial Council of Baltimore that greater concern be given to the care of the Catholic souls in Connecticut. Bishop Fenwick proposed that his Boston diocese be divided so that a separate diocese could be established encompassing the States of Connecticut and Rhode Island.