The annual memorial ceremony to honor Father Thomas O’Reilly, who was the pastor of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception during the Civil War, will begin with Mass at 12:10 p.m. on Thursday, March 16, at the downtown church, with a reception following the liturgy.

A wreath will be placed at the monument for Father O’Reilly at 1 p.m., with units from the Atlanta Fire Department, Atlanta Police Department, Fire Emerald Society of Metro Atlanta, and Metropolitan Atlanta Police Emerald Society. The memorial is located at the northeast corner of the Old Atlanta City Hall.

In the fall of 1864, Father O’Reilly was instrumental in getting Gen. William T. Sherman to spare the five big churches of downtown Atlanta as the Union army swept through, destroying Atlanta. The five churches included Immaculate Conception, Central Presbyterian, St. Philip’s Episcopal, Second Baptist (now Second Ponce de Leon Baptist) and Trinity United Methodist.

The Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is located at 48 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., SW.

The wreath-laying ceremony is sponsored by the Hibernian Benevolent Society of Atlanta. For more information, go to www.irishatlanta.com.