The Diocese of Portland’s first bishop, Bishop David Bacon, has a new resting place in the main church of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland.

Bishop Bacon, who served as bishop of Portland from 1855 until his death in 1874, had been buried in a crypt beneath the cathedral. However, with that area no longer accessible to the public, the decision was made to transfer his remains to a new sarcophagus located within the main church, providing him a place of honor and respect where people can pay their respects.

“As we gather to entomb him anew, we are not simply reinterring the past, we are reawakening gratitude and renewing purpose,” said Bishop James Ruggieri, during a memorial Mass celebrated for Bishop Bacon. “As we bless his new sarcophagus and commend his remains to rest once more within the upper portion of the cathedral, we recall both the hope of resurrection that he embraced and the heritage of faith that he helped to plant in this soil.”

The new sarcophagus includes Bishop Bacon’s name, the years of his birth and death, the years he served as bishop, and his episcopal motto Robur ac spes, which translates to “strength and hope.”

“In reality, the story of his life is one of endurance in hope and confidence in divine providence,” said Bishop Ruggieri. “That hope gave him the strength to lead.”

As Bishop Ruggieri noted in his homily, the diocese’s first bishop faced numerous challenges during his episcopacy, but he persevered.

“Imagine the task before him: a diocese encompassing both Maine and New Hampshire, with only 10 priests – five diocesan and five Jesuits – and a smattering of parishes across vast distances. There was little infrastructure, one school at St. Dominic’s in Portland, and immense spiritual need,” Bishop Ruggieri said.

The changes that occurred during Bishop Bacon’s episcopacy were transformative. When he died, the diocese had grown to include 52 priests, the Sisters of Mercy, 63 churches, and 23 schools. Among the churches built was the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, which Bishop Bacon saw through to completion even after the great Portland fire of 1866 destroyed the partially built church along with the chapel, convent, bishop’s residence, and school.

  “He had built not only institutions but faith itself, a faith that endures to this day in the lives of countless families, parishes, and communities,” Bishop Ruggieri said.

Concelebrating the memorial Mass were Bishop Emeritus Robert Deeley and 15 priests from parishes around the diocese.

Bishop Louis Sebastian Walsh, the fourth bishop of Portland, was also buried in the crypt beneath the cathedral. His body was reinterred at Calvary Cemetery in South Portland during a ceremony held last May.