William Murphy

William Francis Murphy (May 11, 1885 – February 7, 1950) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Saginaw in Michigan from 1938 until his death in 1950. Biography Early life William Murphy was born on May 11, 1885, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to William and Mary (née Gibson) Murphy. His parents were Irish immigrants who came to the United States from County Wexford. One of ten children, Murphy was the youngest child and only son; three of his sisters became nuns. He received his early education at the parochial school of St. Augustine's Parish and at Lefevre Institute, both in Kalamazoo. Murphy then studied at St. Jerome's College in Kitchener, Ontario and at Assumption College in Sandwich, Ontario. Bishop John Foley then sent him to the Pontifical North American College in Rome so that he could attend the Urban College of Propaganda. Murphy earned a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree from the Urban College in 1908, and a Licentiate of Canon Law from the Pontifical Athenaeum S. Apollinare in 1909.