Fr Denis W. Martin, Priests of 1928, Brisbane, 2003, pp 196-199:
Patrick MacGinley

Although Pat MacGinley was Irish born, he grew up to become very much an Australian - and very much a real character.

Pat was only a little over a year old when his father, Roger MacGinley, left Donegal to take up a position as schoolmaster at Ramsay State School on the Darling Downs in 1887. His mother Ellen and all the children followed on the RMS Taroba in the following year. The children were taught by their father, then Pat proceeded to Nudgee College. He returned to Ireland, to All Hallows College, for his priestly training and was ordained there in 1916.

The young Fr MacGinley was 'run in' at Wooloowin, but a year later in 1917 he went as assistant to Dean Cashman at Charleville and then to Blackall from 1921 to 1925. The Archbishop was always a great admirer of the priests who 'worked the West' and his own words cannot be surpassed, 'Fr Patrick MacGinley was favourably known throughout the wide expanse of territory embraced within the confines of the State. From Brisbane to Cunnamulla and Thargomindah, and from Nanango to Blackall and Birdsville, the name and worth of this good priest are familiar in every bush hamlet and sheep station, and to many a shearer in his shed, and drover along the lonely bush roads.

'It may be truly said that in faith, zeal and physical endurance Fr MacGinley measured up to the best of the pioneer priests. When Charleville and Blackall were still in the Archdiocese of Brisbane, I made some extraordinary missionary tours with him. The most noteworthy of these was made memorable by a car breakdown, late one evening, which left us stranded on the roadside all night. It was only when a boundary rider came along next morning that we learned our exact position and were able to get accommodation and assistance at the neighbouring sheep station until the spare parts arrived from Charleville.

'But that night on the roadside was only an insignificant event in Fr Pat's experiences. It was when he set out alone with packhorses to visit the lonely outposts of his parish down as far as Birdsville that one realises the courage of the man and the zeal of the priest. Yet never on such long journeys did he miss his morning Mass. Sometimes it was offered up by the side of loaded wool lorries or a timber-getter's wagon. At other times it was celebrated under a gum tree in the trackless bush. On these journeys, he baptised, instructed, married and rectified marriages, buried the dead and blessed the simple graves of those who were buried in the absence of the priest. He brightened the lives of the lonely dwellers ... he baptised the Aboriginal children with good Irish names ...'

Pat described his work in the West as 'boundary riding for the Pope'. He was moved a little nearer to civilization to become Parish Priest of Nanango in 1926 and stayed there until 1943. Once again he proved to be a remarkable character and at one with his flock. They described his sermons as gems, admired his horsemanship and were proud of the champion boxers he trained. On one particular occasion in the 1930s, he had Archbishop Duhig as an unexpected guest for the parish fete which was held on a Sunday so that people could come in for Mass then stay for the day. Some bigots in the town were not pleased. On their behalf, one of them telephoned Wynberg and told the Archbishop about this flagrant violation of the Sabbath. Archbishop Duhig thanked them for letting him know the fete was on, and immediately arranged to hire a plane for the day to fly up and give his support to the function!

There is another tale about a Duhig visit to Nanango: Archbishop Duhig was just about to sit down when Pat pulled the chair away for a joke and the Archbishop ended up on the floor. He was so annoyed he said he would never come to Nanango again.

While Pat was a great horseman, the priests always made a joke of the fact that he had to make his own special saddles. Some visiting priest friends also played a joke on him. Pat's doctor in Nanango had asked him to supply a specimen so he had it bottled and ready to deliver but left it unguarded long enough for one of the others to replace the contents with a specimen from a horse. The joke was really on the doctor who did not find anything wrong!

To raise money, he sometimes held a 'cattle raid': volunteers would ride from property to property to score a bull here, a cow there, and they would be auctioned soon after. During one such raid, a parishioner stubbornly refused to give a beast. That very night, during a severe electrical storm, a beast from his farm was struck by lightning. The hand of God was seen at work and many a theological discussion followed as a result.

Across at Toogoolawah, Fr Tom O'Callaghan was organising a High Mass. Pat trained a few members of his own choir in Gregorian Chant and took them over in a cream cart for the occasion. One of the ladies was doing her best to provide a little volume when she got a tap on the shoulder from Fr Pat - 'I didn't bring you down here because you could sing, only because you know the words!'

Barney O'Shea recalled, 'Pat was a man of colourful language and impolite words but a tireless boundary rider for the Lord. He was long-winded but his conversation never related to himself, always others as he was interested in people. Someone was listing the names of a group of nuns who were coming to Nanango convent for holidays. Pat's reply: 'You don't have to remember all their bloody names. I just call them all Sister.'

It was out of consideration for his health that he was moved to Rosalie as Parish Priest in 1943, 'where he would be near medical advice'. His curate, Frank Costello recalled later, 'He was one of the real personalities of the Priesthood in Queensland. He used to break in horses and he made two saddles while I was there with him at Nanango. When he finally moved to Rosalie in Brisbane, I trucked his two horses down to Nudgee College so he could go to have a ride.'

Fr Pat's life at Rosalie was limited to about two years. He died in hospital on 20th October 1945. Archbishop Duhig spoke with genuine sincerity when he said at the Cathedral: 'One who knew Fr MacGinley as intimately as I did cannot without deep feeling speak of his remarkable character. He had the faith of a child and the charity and unselfishness of a St Francis. The rugged exterior and often blunt expression of his sentiments only served to hide the noble nature underneath them as the rocky surface often conceals the finest gold. He was no stranger to culture. He had read deeply into history, particularly the history of his native Ireland, and he shared to the full the family devotion to learning ... The late Father MacGinley had only two treasures - his Catholic Faith and his priesthood.

'He was a legendary character around whose life a splendid story might be woven. He was known by name far beyond the confines of the Archdiocese, and I have no doubt he will become a tradition, for generations of future priests will repeat anecdotes of this simple honest man with a heart of gold.'

Fr Pat MacGinley was buried at Nudgee Cemetery. He was not yet 60 years of age. He left a sister, Brigid [Sr Joseph Francis, RSJ] and a brother, John, a barrister, who was a scholar and built a fine collection of books. Some are still found which bear the stamp, 'J MacGinley. Pray for Him'. Several nieces entered the convent and two nephews opted to work in the Toowoomba Diocese - 'opted', because when Jack applied to go to Banyo, there was uncertainty as to which Diocese he belonged. The reason was that the diocesan boundary followed Heifer's Creek along the foot of the Toowoomba Range and in fact went right through the MacGinley property around Greenmount. They belonged to both Dioceses, so had a choice.

(Reproduced by permission of Fr Denis Martin.)

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Prayer Calendar: Deceased Priests who have ministered the Catholic Faith throughout Toowoomba and districts, 1864–2025, Compiled by Annie Carrett, Diocesan Archivist, 2001, Updated by Gabrielle Saide, Diocesan Archivist, 2023:
Rev Patrick McGinley, died 20 Oct 1945

Patrick McGinley was born in Castlefin, Co. Donegal, Ireland, on 23rd February, 1886, the son of Mr and Mrs Roger McGinley. (There were 7 brothers and 4 sisters in his family. A sister joined the Sisters of St Joseph. A brother, John, obtained an M.A. from London University and was later Registrar of Titles in Brisbane). His family migrated to Queensland while he was still a child. He was educated at Ramsay State School on the Darling Downs (where his father was Head Teacher) and at Nudgee College. Seminary studies were undertaken at All Hallows, Dublin, and on their completion, he was ordained there on 25th June, 1916. He returned to Brisbane in 1917 and served in the following places: Assistant Priest, Maryborough (1917); Wooloowin (1917); Administrator Charleville (during the absence of Father Cashman in 1920); Assistant Priest Red Hill; Parish Priest Blackall (?-1926); Nanango (1926-1943) and Rosalie (1943-1945). He was famous as a horseman. His zeal and physical endurance place him in the forefront of Queensland's outback priests. He was equally at home in both the company of shearers and teamsters as well as in that of the Aboriginal people, whose children he baptised with 'good Irish names'. He used regularly to celebrate Mass on the side of a wool-lorry or timber-getter's wagon; and, even when this was not available, he used to pick the nearest gum tree for his purpose. While at Charleville, he used to visit Birdsville with his packhorses. At Blackall his long trips were famous. Even when he came to Brisbane at the end of his life, he brought his horses with him, pasturing them at Nudgee and catching the train from Rosalie in order to ride them . He died in the Mater Hospital, Brisbane in 1945, aged 59 and was buried in Nudgee Cemetery.
(Ref. Brisbane Archives)

Reproduced by permission of Bishop Ken Howell.