Thaddeus Amat y Brusi
Thaddeus Amat y Brusi ( 30 December 1810 - 12 May 1878) was a priest of the Congregation of the Mission who became first bishop of Los Angeles.
Born in Barcelona, Spain, Amat y Brusi was ordained 23 December 1837 in Paris. After ordination, he was sent to Louisiana as a missionary.
On 29 July 1853, while serving as rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, he was appointed bishop of Monterey in California, succeeding Joseph Sadoc Alemany, who had been named archbishop of the newly created Archdiocese of San Francisco. At the time of Amat y Brusi's appointment, the Diocese of Monterey extended from San Jose to the Mexican border.
Amat y Brusi was consecrated in Rome on 12 March 1854. With the growth of Los Angeles and the decline of Monterey, Amat y Brusi petitioned the Vatican to move the episcopal see to Los Angeles. He was named bishop of Bishop of Monterey-Los Angeles on 29 July 1873. In 1873, he oversaw construction of Los Angeles' first cathedral, St. Vibiana's.
