When Bishop William O'Hara left Philadelphia for Scranton to take possession of his See on September 12, 1868, two months after his ordination to the Episcopate, he was assured of the services of exactly twenty-four priests to staff an equal number of parishes spread out over an enormous expanse of 8,466 square miles. Yet only thirty years later, the number of priests had risen to 152; parishes, to 100; parochial schools, to 32; and teaching orders of sisters, to four. In addition, he had also provided an orphanage, a hospital, and a college.