Father
Thomas O'Reilly, a native of County Cavan, Ireland, was appointed as
Pastor at The Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Atlanta in 1861.
During the Civil War, Atlanta was a strategic transportation and supply
depot for the Confederacy. In 1864, the Union Army, led by General
Sherman, had Atlanta under siege for several months with intense
artillery bombardment of the city. Eventually the city was occupied by
the Union Army. During the siege of Atlanta, Father O'Reilly ministered
to soldiers of the Union and Confederate armies. He became a hero to
both sides while hearing confessions, answering letters, saying mass and
performing last rites.
In the autumn of 1864,
General Sherman ordered the entire city to be burned, including all
churches and residences. Father O'Reilly was outraged by this order and
obtained a meeting with a member of Sherman's staff. He argued that the
order to burn homes and churches was beyond the normal confines of
warfare. Father O'Reilly pleaded for a compromise that would spare
Atlanta's five churches. This request was rejected by Sherman.
Father O'Reilly sent
word to Sherman that the burning of churches was a sin against God, not
an act of war. Father O'Reilly also warned Sherman that "If you
burn the Catholic church, all Catholics in the Union army will
mutiny" and if not, the Catholics among them would be
excommunicated. Father O'Reilly reminded Sherman that his force had a
high proportion of Irish Catholics and he was deep in enemy territory.
In addition to the
Catholic church, Father O'Reilly also asked that the other churches be
spared, as well as City Hall and the Court House. General Sherman
considered having Father O'Reilly executed, but feared the threatened
mutiny among his Irish Catholic troops. Sherman changed his orders, thus
sparing the five churches, City Hall and the Court House. The five
churches were Immaculate Conception, Central Presbyterian, St. Phillip's
Episcopal, Second Baptist (now Second Ponce de Leon Baptist) and Trinity
Methodist.
As a result of Father
O'Reilly's heroic action, and the bravery of the "Hibernian
Rifles", an Irish unit, the City of Atlanta deeded the Hibernian
Benevolent Society a burial plot in Oakland Cemetery in 1873. The five
churches and the City also erected a monument to Father O'Reilly which
is on the grounds of City Hall. The courage and tenacity of Father
O'Reilly is a lasting example of the ecumenical spirit in Atlanta.
