Bernard Francis Casey (nicknamed "Barney") was born on 25 November 1870 on a farm in Oak Grove as the sixth of sixteen children to Bernard James Casey (October 6, 1840 - September 9, 1915) and Ellen Elizabeth Murphy (September 1, 1844 - February 5, 1918) who were both Irish immigrants.
Following this advice he applied to the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin in Detroit into which he was received in 1897.