John Carroll (archbishop)


John Carroll

Archbishop of Baltimore
Portrait by Gilbert Stuart, c. 1806
ChurchCatholic Church
ProvinceBaltimore
SeeBaltimore
AppointedNovember 6, 1789
InstalledDecember 12, 1790
Term endedDecember 3, 1815
PredecessorDiocese erected
SuccessorLeonard Neale
Orders
OrdinationFebruary 14, 1761
ConsecrationAugust 15, 1790
by Charles Walmesley
Personal details
BornJanuary 8, 1735
DiedDecember 3, 1815(1815-12-03) (aged 80)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
MottoNe derelinquas nos domine deus noster
(Forsake us not, O Lord, my God, stay not far from me)
Ordination history of
John Carroll
History
Priestly ordination
DateFebruary 14, 1761
Episcopal consecration
Consecrated byCharles Walmesley
DateAugust 15, 1790
Episcopal succession
Bishops consecrated by John Carroll as principal consecrator
Leonard NealeDecember 7, 1800
Michael Francis EganOctober 28, 1810
Jean-Louis Lefebvre de CheverusNovember 1, 1810
Benedict Joseph FlagetNovember 4, 1810
Styles of
John Carroll
Reference styleThe Most Reverend
Spoken styleYour Excellency
Religious styleMonsignor
Posthumous stylenone

John Carroll SJ (January 8, 1735 – December 3, 1815[1]) was an American Catholic prelate who served as the first Bishop of Baltimore, the first diocese in the new United States. He later became the first Archbishop of Baltimore. Until 1808, Carroll administered the entire U.S. Catholic Church. He was a member of the Society of Jesus until its suppression in 1759.

Born to an aristocratic family in the colonial-era Province of Maryland, Carroll spent most of his early years as a priest in Europe, teaching and serving as a chaplain. After returning to Maryland in 1773, he started organizing the Catholic Church in America with a small cadre of priests. The Vatican appointed him to several roles as leader of the American Catholic hierarchy, culminating in his appointment as archbishop.

Carroll founded Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and St. John the Evangelist Parish in Silver Spring, Maryland, the first secular parish in the country.

  1. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Carroll, John" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.