Joseph Dalton

Who was Joseph Dalton?

Joseph Dalton was an Irish Jesuit priest born in Waterford. He was educated at the Jesuit colleges of Clongowes Wood College and St Stanislaus College, Tullabeg and entered the Society of Jesus in December 1836. He studied and served at various Jesuit institutions in Ireland and returned to Tullabeg where he had also taught in 1839–1840 and served as Rector from 1861–1865.

He led the first Irish Jesuit mission to Australia in 1866, and was responsible for the development of a number of churches and educational institutions. He also served in New Zealand for a time, where in 1878 he founded Saint Aloysius’ College, Dunedin. In Sydney, he founded St Aloysius' College, and he reopened St Patrick's College, in east Melbourne. He built Xavier College which opened at Kew, in 1878.

He became Rector of the Jesuits at Riverview, New South Wales, and he opened Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview. He lived after his retirement in 1883 at Riverview, where he died on 5 January 1905.

The Chapel of Riverview was later erected to his memory and is known as the Dalton Memorial Chapel.