The Australian Church, Australasian Chronicle, Sydney, 29 January 1842, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31734884:

We are happy to be able to inform our readers that the Catholic church in this colony has received another addition to the number of her pastors in the persons of the Rev. Mr. Coffey and the Rev. Mr. McEvey, who arrived yesterday by the ship Carthagenian, from Liverpool.

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Parish Libraries, Australasian Chronicle, Sydney, 7 April 1842, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31735547:

We are proud to say that the suggestion we made a short time ago, relative to the establishment of parochial libraries, has been already acted upon in more than one instance. The Rev. N. Coffey has just taken with him abundant and valuable materials for the establishment of one at Parramatta, and the Rev. Mr. Brady has determined upon the immediate establishment of another at Windsor. [...]

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Testimonial to the Rev. Dean Coffey, The Sydney Morning Herald , 31 March 1847, p 3, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12897304:

On Tuesday, the 30th instant, a deputation, consisting of Mr. Hugh Taylor, sen., Chairman; Messrs. Maurice Reynolds, of Kissing Point, Robert Hayes, James Francis Plunkett, Daniel Hickey, Jeremiah McCrohan, John Ryan, Robert Reilly, Peter Cardiff, Charles Spouncer, William Moore, and P. H. Mulholland, Secretary, appointed by a Committee formed for the purpose of presenting, on behalf of the inhabitants of the town and district of Parramatta, to the Rev. Mr. Coffey, some token of the general esteem and respect entertained for him, waited on the Rev Gentleman, at the Roman Catholic Chapel, when the following Address was presented him:—

"To the Rev. Nicholas J. Coffey, R.C, Dean of Windsor.
"Reverend Sir,—We, the undersigned inhabitants of the town and district of Parramatta, while deeply lamenting the loss which we shall sustain from your departure, feel the liveliest sense of pleasure in congratulating you on the appointment which you have recently received in the wide and flourishing district of Port Phillip.

"During a period of more than five years, the excellence of your private character, the urbanity of your manners, and the Christian-like way in which you have uniformly exercised the duties of your profession, have won our deepest respect and esteem. In all times of trouble and adversity we have found in you an adviser and a friend, and a liberal promoter of everything that tended to the welfare of the community; and although we are now destined to lose the future benefit of your zealous services, yet your memory will be preserved in our hearts amidst every change of times and circumstances.

"To mark our grateful sense of your worth, we have the gratification to offer for your acceptance the humble tribute of a purse, containing 67 sovereigns, subscribed by the inhabitants of the town and district of Parramatta generally; and at the same time, to express our regret that the brief period afforded to us did not allow us to present a testimonial of a different and more valuable nature.

"Trusting that Providence will confer upon you a long life of health and happiness—that you may be thereby enabled to extend your sphere of utility, and to cultivate in the bosoms of strangers the same warm feelings which we entertain towards you,
"We beg to subscribe ourselves."
(Signed by 320 residents of the town and district.)

Mr. Hugh Taylor Senior, then, in handing to the Rev. Mr. Coffey a purse containing the above sum, said—
"Reverend Sir,—I am requested by the inhabitants of Parramatta and its district generally, to offer to you a small token of respect of a purse containing £67.

"You, Sir, have been known to us for upwards of five years, and have on all occasions been found a Christian and a friend.

"Your absence from this town and district will be long felt by all parties. But let us trust that changes are for the best, and that God may allow you to remain in health, strength, and prosperity, and at a short period allow you to return back again to us."

The Rev. Gentleman then made the subjoined reply:—
"Gentlemen,—The esteem of which your kind address assures me, is most gratifying to me on this occasion of my departure from the town and district of Parramatta, and I beg to acknowledge it with sincere thanks.

"In explanation of my sudden departure, it may perhaps be well to say that the motives which interested me in proceeding to Port Phillip are but a continuation of those which transferred my humble labour to the scenes of this colony.

"I proceed to Port Phillip with the desire of rendering myself more useful—a desire I trust the more likely to be realized both because approved of by my Ecclesiastical superiors, and because I thus become the fellow-labourer of a dear and reverend brother with whom I have already laboured in the ministry most affectionately, and with the blessing of God successfully, in the land of our birth. As to any good towards which I may have contributed, let me thank God, and your co-operation, be assured, it will always be my delight to promote "peace and good-will" amongst my fellow-men.

I gratefully accept your most liberal testimonial; it shall be applied to such purposes as will best accord with the object of my calling. In return let me beg you to receive my most affectionate farewell; should it be my lot to be located again in this district, it will be to labour more zealously in the courses which have obtained your approbation, but if this is to be our final separation, I shall at least have the satisfaction of remembering you often in my poor prayers.

May God bless you and your children, and guide you in all your undertakings during life. "Nicholas Joseph Coffey,
"R. C. Dean of Windsor." March 30.
[A further testimonial by the St Patrick's Society follows.]

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The Church at Port Phillip, Sydney Chronicle, 7 April 1847, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31751466:

The Catholics of Port Phillip will hail with pleasure the return of the Rev. Mr. Geoghegan to that district, where he has already so long and zealously performed the duties of his sacred calling. The exertions of this gentlemen have been eminently successful, for at his previous departure from Melbourne, after having erected a splendid Church, he left his mission entirely free from debt. This alone would be a sufficient evidence not only of the rev. gentleman's zeal, but of the liberality and attachment to the faith, of his flock: we have, however, further proof of his worth in the warmth of affection displayed towards him by those who had profited by his spiritual guidance; and as to our brother Catholics of Port Phillip, we have abundant evidence of their readiness to aid by personal influence or pecuniary assistance in every work of religion or of charity. It is intended that the Rev. Mr. Geogheghan shall remain at Melbourne until the return of His Grace the Archbishop, and the Rev. Dean Coffey, who has accompanied him to the scene of his labours, will also assist in the mission at that district for the same period. The latter gentleman had for several years past the spiritual charge of Parramatta, where, by his zeal as a clergyman, and the urbanity of his manners, he obtained the esteem and respect of all classes. To mark this feeling, two addresses were presented to the rev. gentleman shortly before his departure from Parramatta, one from the inhabitants of the town and district generally, and the other from the members of St. Patrick's Society of Parramatta. The former of these addresses was signed by three hundred and twenty persons, and was accompanied by a purse of sixty-seven sovereigns, hastily collected as a small tribute to the worth of this respected clergyman. To each of the addresses the Dean returned an appropriate reply, expressing his thanks for the respect which had been shown towards him, and assuring the gentlemen by whom the addresses were presented, that the people of Parramatta would ever be remembered in his prayers. The Rev. Mr. Geoghegan, who will resume his office of Vicar Foran, will be stationed at Melbourne, and the Rev. Dean Coffey will also remain at that town. The Rev. Mr. Kenny, who had laboured zealously and successfully on the banks of the Hawkesbury, has proceeded to Geelong for the purpose of relieving the Rev. Mr. Walsh. This latter station is, we believe, a promising one, a Church having been nearly completed by the exertions of the faithful during the ministry of their late pastor.

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Valedictory Address and Testimonial to the Rev. Dean Coffey, The Argus, Melbourne, 14 September 1850, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article255611042:

A numerously attended meeting was held at the St. Francis Hall last night, for the purpose of resolving on the necessary measures for presenting a valedictory address and testimonial to the Rev. Dean Coffey, before his departure from the district, to enter upon another charge on the Sydney side of the colony. Mr O'Shannassy was called to the chair, and the following resolutions were passed unanimously:—That this meeting hear with feelings of the deepest regret the intention of the immediate departure of Dean Coffey from Melbourne. That as a mark of grateful esteem, we deem it our duty to present an address and testimonial to the Rev. Dean Coffey for his unwearied and zealous service during his residence amongst us. That the following persons be appointed to prepare the address, and present it together with the testimonial to the Reverend Dean Coffey, [...]. The subscription for the above purpose, previous to and at the meeting, amounted to £85.

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Address and Testimonial to the Rev. Dean Coffey, The Melbourne Daily News, 21 September 1850, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article226521927:

On Friday morning the deputation appointed to present an address and testimonial to the Very Rev. Dean Coffey, upon the occasion of his leaving this province to resume his official duties in the Sydney district, waited upon the rev. gentleman, when Mr John O'Shannassey on behalf of the deputation, presented the following address with a purse containing one hundred sovereigns, twenty-five of which had been subscribed by the advocates of total abstinence, in the furtherance of which cause the reverend gentleman has been an untiring laborer:—

Address
My Rev. and Dear Sir,
"We, the Catholics of Melbourne, learn with feelings of unalloyed regret that you have been recalled from your arduous missionary labours in this diocese by his Grace the Archbishop of Sydney. We remember with pleasure the period, now nearly four years ago, when our venerated and beloved Vicar-General associated you with his mission, at which time our spiritual wants were of the most pressing character, and we are aware that in consenting you severed the affectionate ties of a people devotedly attached to your person and ministry nor can we forget that you made other sacrifices of an important nature but your residence amongst us we fondly hoped would be as lasting as we know and feel it has been faithful of solid piety to the members of our communion. We cheerfully accord to you our grateful acknowledgments for the amiability and kindness of disposition evinced by you on all occasions which have earned for you the esteem of many of our separated brethren, and we cannot cease to remember your indefatigable zeal in the furtherance and defence of our ancient Faith, nor can we forbear mentioning our unqualified approbation of the distinguished position you always maintained in succouring and protecting the innocent, assuaging the wants of the poor and inculcating with happy results the principles of Temperance. Accept very Reverend and dear Sir the accompanying testimonial as a small tribute of our respect and gratitude and allow us to assure you that our fervent prayer will be frequently offered up to the Almighty giver of all good gifts for your temporal and eternal happiness. We are,
Very Reverend and dear Sir,
Your affectionate friends,
Signed on behalf and at the request of the Catholics of Melbourne in public meeting assembled.]

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Domestic Intelligence, Freeman's Journal, Sydney, 17 October 1850, p 10, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article115767242:

The Benevolent Asylum.—The sum of £56 4s. was collected in aid of this Institution at the charity sermon preached by the Rev. Dean Coffey at St. Mary's Cathedral. The collections at St. Patrick's and St. Benedict's Churches made on the same day, and for the same charitable object, amounted to £25, 6s., in all £81, 10s. This is a considerable sum, but when we consider the number of poor persons, about 460, and nearly one half professing the Catholic Faith, now inmates of the Asylum, the sum is comparitively small towards the support of so many destitute fellow mortals.[...]

The Rev. Dean Coffey, left Sydney last Monday, on his way to Bathurst, to take the pastoral charge of that extensive Mission as Dean of the District.

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The Rev. Dean Coffey, Sydney Morning Herald, 17 November 1857, p 4, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13003089:
The somewhat sudden death of this gentleman will be deeply regretted, not only by members of his own Church, but by all persons who have in any manner come in contact with him. Strongly attached to the Roman Catholic Church, he nevertheless desired to live in peace and charity with members of other persuasions. He resided for many years at Parramatta, where he was greatly respected. Dean Coffey was a fine portly man, advancing in age. It seems that his health has been declining for some time past, but there was an apparent improvement latterly. On Friday morning he attended to his sacred duties, but between 10 and 11 in the evening he expired.

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Death of Dean Coffey, Empire, Sydney, 16 November 1857, p 4, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60264716:
It is with much regret that we have to record the death of the Very Reverend Dean Coffey, late Catholic Rector of Parramatta. For some months past he had been ailing, and once, about six or eight weeks ago, was so very unwell that he felt it his duty to receive the last sacraments, which were administered to him by his fellow-labourer, the Rev. Mr. Welsh. After that, he partially recovered, and three or four times paid a visit to the metropolis. The last occasion upon which he was here was, we believe, the celebration of the funeral obsequies of the Rev. J.I. McLennan, who for many years had shared with him the labours of the mission. Both these reverend gentlemen were much esteemed by the people of Parramatta. On the morning of his death Dean Coffey celebrated mass, and did not until evening feel more unwell than of late he had usually been. During the night he got much worse, and sent for the Rev. Mr. Welsh, who gave him all the consolations of religion. He expired at about half-past ten on Friday evening.

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Death of the Very Rev. Dean Coffey, O.S.F., Freeman's Journal, Sydney, 21 November 1857, p 2, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article115561452:
Another "mighty man that" was as a Saviour to "the people of Israel" has fallen ; another flock has lost its good shepherd ; another zealous minister of God's graces has gone to render an account of his stewardship ; another priest has been snatched from us by the unrelenting hand of Death. Within a few short weeks three of our priests have been taken away by this indiscriminating visitor. May the holy will of God be done! but truly it seems to us hard to have the number of our Pastors so quickly lessened.

The Very Rev. Nicholas Coffey, whose death it is now our painful duty to record, was born in the city of Dublin, and in the Parish of St. Andrew, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 1801. After having gone through his humanity studies in his native city, he was inspired by Almighty God with the desire to dedicate himself to His service in the religious state. In order that the wish of his heart might be realized to its fullest extent he made a journey to the Eternal City, and entered the Franciscan College of St. Isidore, in the month of December, 1828. He there labored hard in preparation for the sacred ministry, and was ordained Priest in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, by the Most Rev. C. D. Joseph Della Porta, Patriarch of Constantinople, on the 26th of February, 1831.

He returned to Ireland in 1834, and took up his residence in the convent of St. Francis, Merchant's Quay, Dublin. Here he zealously performed all the duties of the ministry for about seven years, to the great satisfaction of the Primate, the late lamented Archbishop Murray. By the permission of his superiors, he offered himself to our Archbishop in the year 1840, and was at once accepted. He arrived in Sydney in the year 1842.

Since his coming amongst us no priest has been better known, and none more sincerely loved. He has been on three or four missions, but Parramatta, the place of his death, was the witness of the most of his good deeds, and always occupied the first place in his loving heart.

For some months past this good priest had but very poor health. At the time of the publication of the Jubilee at Windsor, he went there to preach, and was caught in a heavy shower of rain whilst returning. This produced a cold, which, owing to his weak state of health, scorns to have settled upon his lungs. About six weeks ago he complained of great difficulty in breathing. One night he was so seriously ill that he called in the Rev. Father Walsh to give him Extreme Unction. He, however, got a little better, and was able after a time to perform his usual duties. Since that attack he has been to Sydney three or four times. The last time was when he came to assist at the Requiem Mass and funeral of the late Rev. Father Ignatius McLennan. This circumstance is somewhat singular. They had been fellow laborers, and had lived in the same house with one another at Bathurst, Windsor, and at Parramatta, and they were very much attached to each other, "quomodo in vita sua dilexerunt se, ita et in morte non sunt separati."

Yesterday week (Friday 13th instant) he offered the adorable sacrifice of the Mass in the morning as usual, and was pretty well throughout the day. At ten o'clock in the evening, as he was about to retire to rest, he felt himself suddenly become very weak, and at once sent for Father Walsh and for his medical attendant. Father Walsh had just time enough to administer the last sacraments to him before he expired. The news of his death reached Sydney early on Saturday morning. The Right Rev. the Vicar General at once set off to Parramatta. His Grace the Archbishop was at Subiaco at the time the sad event happened ; he went over to Parramatta as soon as the melancholy intelligence was communicated to him.

The news of Father Coffey's death spread a feeling of deep regret throughout the entire community, both Protestant and Catholic; for his kind, unassuming, and benevolent dispositions gained for him the respect of all who knew this excellent priest, "who delighted to do good by stealth, and blushed to find it fame."

Arrangements were made by the Archbishop for the Requiem Mass to be sung at Parramatta, on Sunday, at eleven o'clock. All the clergy of Sydney, with the exception of those who were to say the last masses, started for Parramatta by the train at half past nine. The brethren of the Holy Catholic Guild of St. Mary and St. Joseph accompanied them, and also about two hundred more of the laity. Owing to some want of management, however, no arrangement was made for taking by special train the numbers of persons from Sydney, who wished to pay the last respect to the deceased, the consequence of which was that hundreds arrived in Parramatta too late to attend the funeral.

Solemn Requiem Mass was sung in the school, which is now temporarily used as a church, until the beautiful church, in course of erection, shall be completed. The Rev. Austin Sheehy, O.S.B., was celebrant, the Rev. Fathers Kenyon and Maher deacon and sub-deacon. His Grace the Archbishop, the Right Rev. Abbot Gregory, the Venerable Archdeacon, the Very Rev. Dean O'Connell, the Rev. the Procurator-General, and others of the clergy, were present. The choir sang the simple Gregorian Mass, with a harmonized "De profundis" at the Offertory, and a beautiful motett at the Elevation. At three o'clock in the afternoon, the Office for the Dead was recited. His Grace the Archbishop then gave the absolution, after which the funeral procession moved in tho following order : — The Children of the Parramatta Orphan School. The Brethren of the Holy Guild. The Clergy. His Grace the Archbishop's State Carriage. Pall Bearers. Hearse. Pall Bearers. Mourning Coaches containing Chief Mourners. Students of the King's School. Citizens on Foot. Coaches and Carriages.

The crowd which thronged the streets on each side of the procession was immense. Great numbers had gone up from Sydney during the day. As they proceeded to the burial ground the clergy sang the Gradual psalms and the beautiful anthem "In Paradisum deducant te angeli, &e." "May the angels lead thee to Paradise ; may the martyrs receive thee at thy coming, and conduct thee to the Holy City Jerusalam. May the choir of angels receive thee ; and with Lazarus, one time poor, mayest thou have eternal rest." The lamentations of the surrounding multitudes as they broke in between the verses of the psalms; the heart-bursting sobs, the prayers for mercy, the occasional shriek of anguish utterred by some poor soul who had long striven to be silent in her woe, but which at length found utterance in spite of her efforts, produced a melancholy melody which would cause the most indifferent and hard-hearted listener to drop a compassionating tear. "Alas" — we fancied we heard many a poor soul exclaiming — "alas! we have lost our Father ; the light of our eyes is no longer with us ; our best treasure has been stolen from us. Where now shall we go for relief in our miseries? Who will speak the word of comfort to us in the midst of our sorrows ? With what care did he not watch over us! With what solicitude did he not look after us in all our wanderings! With what gentleness did he not try to lead us back when we had gone astray! What a holiness in all his manners." What an exactness in the discharge of his duties! What an amount of wisdom, of goodness, of affability, which gained for him the respect of all who knew him! O Church of Parramatta, how desolate art thou!" And then, after these outbursts of sorrow, we could see an expression of joy suddenly playing about the eyes and lips, which, being expressed in words, would say, "No! our Church is not desolate ; we are not forsaken. We have one more saint praying for us. He will now be able to help us more strongly. He is still invisibly amongst us. Let us strive to be imitators of his virtues, that we may come to be sharers in his reward."

As on the occasion of Father McLennan's funeral the shops in Parramatta were generally closed, and the bells of the Protestant churches tolled, so did the people of the town manifest a deep mourning on the death of Father Coffey, when all the bells were again tolled in respect to his memory. Mr. Dolman had caused an excellent likeness of Dean Coffey to be taken a few weeks ago which will appear in the Catholic Almanac for 1858.

The corpse was interred in the mortuary chapel of the Parramatta cemetery. The following inscription was on the coffin: — "Hic sepeliuntur exuviae mortales admodum Reverendi Nicolai Josephi Coffey, O.S.F. Obiit die 13 Novembris, 1857. Ejus animae propitietur Deus."

At the conclusion of the funeral service, the Venerable Archdeacon McEncroe delivered a short address. Owing to the sighing murmur that ran among the vast assembled throng, and the deep emotion of the speaker, which caused him to express himself indistinctly and disconnectedly, we were not able to hear all of what he said. But as well as we could guess, he spoke as follows : — "How solemn and sad a duty, my dear friends, have we to perform to day ! How painful a thing is it not to a sensitive heart to have to perform this last act of love towards one whom it has cherished with more than brotherly love! It would ill become me— I should but wound your feelings, were I to attempt to speak of the virtues of your late Pastor, whose remains we have now laid in the cold and silent tomb. He stands in need of no panegyrist. He himself might have addressed you, if humility had not forbidden him, in the words of the Apostle Paul to the ancients of the church of Ephesus :— "You know from the first day I came, in what manner I have been with you for all the time ; serving the Lord with humility and with tears. . . . . How I have kept back nothing that was profitable to you, but have preached it to you. . . . . And now behold I go up to Jerusalem." Yea, my dear friends, we may reasonably hope that my late dear confrere, and your kind Pastor is now enjoying the happy vision of that new Jerusalem where all tears are wiped away, and where there is no more sorrow, nor weeping, nor death. But, my dear friends, we know well that nothing defiled, even by the smallest stain, can find admittance into that all pure mansion. It is, then, our duty to pray the Father of all mercies that his reward may not be retarded. Let our prayers ascend to the throne of grace — "Hear, O Lord, the prayers of this portion of Thy Church ; hearken to the sighs of us, forsaken ones, who raise our voices to implore mercy for our beloved Pastor. Reward him now for all his good works, and give him speedy possession of a happy eternity. Grant him, O Lord, a never ending rest, and let perpetual light shine upon him."

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Fr T.J. Linane, From Abel to Zundolovich, Vol. 2: Biographies of Priests on the Australian Scene up to 1900, 1980, p 57:
Coffey, Nicholas Francis Joseph, Very Rev, OFM: Builder of First Mortuary Chapel for Priests
Dean Coffey was a household word in the village of Melbourne before and after the coming of the first Bishop, Dr. J.A. Goold, in October 1848. In the period of his stay, 1847-1850, he was the initiator of primitive churches and schools, notably in Brighton and Bacchus Marsh. The people loved him for his unassuming manner and he was a writer of no mean ability. The extant copies of his writings on such subjects as the Immaculate Conception could be counted on one hand. The ruin of the first Mortuary Chapel that he built to the memory of Fr Thomas McCarthy OFM Cap. (Mc32 Vol.1, Abel to Zundolovich) is a reminder of his zealous activity.

He was born in St. Andrew's Parish, Dublin, on a day of the year in 1801 that would later be acknowledged as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.: 8 December. Recent information from the MDHC researcher in Rome (Fr. John Silke) records that he arrived at St. Isidore's Franciscan House in Rome in December 1828. Six months later he left St. Isidore's of his own accord - "sponte", but returned one month later (April '29) in regret - "paenitens". In April 1830 he was professed. The three steps to the priesthood are recorded in St. Isidore's Archives as follows: sub-deacon 18.9.1830; deacon 18.12.1830; priesthood 25.2.1831 at the hand of the Patriarch of Constantinople in St. John Lateran's. He was Vicar at St. Isidore's prior to his return to Ireland in November 1833. After eight years of pastoral work he accepted the invitation extended by Father P.B. Geoghegan, a fellow Franciscan, to come to Australia, arriving in Sydney on the 'Carthaginian' on 28 January in 1842. The first five years were spent mainly at Parramatta. The planning of a church at Ryde is just one of several achievements in his contribution to building up the primitive church west of Sydney. Returning to Sydney after a busy three to four year stay in Melbourne he was appointed to Bathurst, where a deanship was conferred in October 1850. The stay was short, as was the succeeding stay at Windsor. From 1852 it was a case of visiting old haunts at Parramatta and beyond. Once more the church building zeal was displayed at Concord and in at least six other centres.

But the unassuming Franciscan and church builder awaits a much longer biography than is contained in these brief paragraphs. "O Lord that I might die in harness", was the prayer an ancient Dean in Ararat once used in the writer's presence. (He died suddenly soon after sitting in a hairdressing salon). Perhaps too that was Dean Coffey's prayer - answered when he died in a sudden seizure while saying Mass. The age was 55, and fittingly he rests in the ruined Mortuary Chapel at Parramatta that he had initiated.

Ref: MDHC Files at Fitzroy & Torquay.
See also Footprints, Vol. 2, No. 6.