Born in Ballybunnion, County Kerry, Ireland, Keane studied in 1890–1895 at St. Patrick's College in Carlow, County Carlow, Ireland and The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC where he was granted a Doctor of Divinity in 1896. He was ordained a Catholic priest for the Archdiocese of San Francisco on June 20, 1895. For the next 25 years he was involved in parish work. His first assignment, St. Patrick's Church in San Francisco. The pastor of St. Patrick's, Father Peter Grey had high praise of Father Keane to Archbishop Riordan. In 1900, Keane was transferred to St. Joseph's Church in San Francisco. The pastor of St. Joseph, Father Patrick Scanlon died May 31, 1904. Father Keane served nearly six years under the new pastor, Father Patrick Mulligan at St. Joseph. On March 6, 1910, Archbishop Patrick W. Riordan of San Francisco named Father Patrick J. Keane, Administrator of St. Francis de Sales in Oakland. The founding pastor of St. Francis de Sales, Father Thomas W. Mc Sweeney had a series of strokes. Mc Sweeney would die in Ireland on July 28, 1915. On July 30, 1915, Archbishop Edward Joseph Hanna appointed Father Keane, second pastor of St. Francis de Sales.
Bishop of Sacramento
On September 10, 1920 Pope Benedict XV named Keane the Titular Bishop of Sebaste in Palaestina and Auxiliary Bishop of Sacramento. He was consecrated a bishop on December 14, 1920 by Archbishop Edward J. Hanna of San Francisco. The co-consecrators were Bishops John Cantwell of Monterey-Los Angeles and Thomas Grace of Sacramento. On December 27, 1921, Bishop Grace died. Pope Benedict XV died on January 22, 1922, before he could appoint Keane bishop of the diocese. On March 17, 1922 Pope Pius XI named Bishop Keane as the third bishop of Sacramento. During the six years he was Bishop of Sacramento he was instrumental in the formation of the parochial school system. He also founded several new parishes and followed a directive from the Holy See to recruit new priests and vocations from the local diocese. Bishop Keane died in Sacramento on September 1, 1928 at the age of 56.
