1834-1921
Roman Catholic Cardinal and Archbishop of Baltimore

Elder Statesman.

As the archbishop of Baltimore, the oldest Roman Catholic see in the United States, as well as the only U.S. cardinal between 1886 and 1911, James Cardinal Gibbons enjoyed the status of the unofficial leader of American Catholicism in the early part of the twentieth century. Although he had passed the prime of his life before the 1910s — he was seventy-five when the decade began — little could be accomplished by Catholic organizations except under his auspices. Gibbons also possessed another talent that was even more important than his leadership skill. His tact and diplomacy won him the respect and affection not only of Catholic officials in Rome but also of his Protestant peers and public officials in America. By the time he orchestrated the organization of the National Catholic War Council in 1917, he was...