Shaping of America 1783-1815 Biographies | John Carroll Biography

Born January 8, 1735 (Upper Marlboro, Maryland)

Died December 3, 1815 (Baltimore, Maryland)

Catholic leader

John Carroll is known as the founder of the Roman Catholic Church in America. He was the first Roman Catholic bishop of Baltimore and later was made archbishop of Baltimore. (The Roman Catholic Church is often called simply the Catholic Church; its members are called Roman Catholics or just Catholics.) Carroll was dedicated to building a national church that differed from the Roman Catholic Church in Europe, where church and state were closely tied to one another. He worked to counter anti-Catholic discrimination in America by stressing Catholic commitment to democratic ideals. Carroll's efforts to promote the Roman Catholic faith included a sincere attempt to create religious unity among all denominations of Christianity. His Address to the Roman Catholics of the United States of...