The Library is thrilled to announce that the first set of the papers of John McElroy, SJ, are now available in DigitalGeorgetown. Fr. McElroy was a key figure in the early history of Georgetown University and Boston College, and served the United States in the Mexican-American War.
John McElroy was born in Ireland in 1782, and came to the United States in 1803. He entered Georgetown College in 1806, the same year in which he joined the Society of Jesus as a lay brother. Fr. McElroy eventually assumed the management of Georgetown's financial affairs, and in 1817 was ordained a priest.
In 1822, Fr. McElroy was sent to Frederick, where he remained for 23 years, until the Mexican-American War. During the war, McElroy served as an Army chaplain on the front lines in Mexico. Upon his return from the war, he went to Boston, where he was instrumental in the establishment of Boston College before his death in 1877.
The materials currently digitized and available in DigitalGeorgetown include daily diary entries from Fr. McElroy’s time at Georgetown, financial records from the University in the early 1800s, and a few poems and miscellaneous letters and notes. We’ll be adding new items to the collection periodically, so check back!
