William Henry Elder

His Excellency, the Most Reverend William Henry Elder
Archbishop of Cincinnati
Archbishop Elder (1903)
Archdiocese	Cincinnati
In office	1883–1904
Predecessor	John Baptist Purcell
Successor	Henry K. Moeller
Previous post	Bishop of Natchez (1857–1878) Coadjutor Archbishop of Cincinnati (1880–1883)
Orders
Ordination	March 29, 1846 by Giovanni Brunelli
Consecration	May 3, 1857 by Francis Kenrick
Personal details
Born	March 22, 1819 Baltimore, Maryland, US
Died	October 31, 1904 (aged 85) Cincinnati, Ohio, US
Buried	St. Joseph New Cemetery, Cincinnati
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Education	Mount St. Mary's University Pontifical Urban College
Motto	Vincit mundum fides (Faith conquers the world)

William Henry Elder (March 22, 1819 – October 31, 1904) was an American Catholic prelate who served as bishop of Natchez in Mississippi from 1857 to 1880 and as archbishop of Cincinnati in Ohio from 1883 until he died in 1904.

Biography

Early life and education

William Elder was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 22, 1819. His father, Basil Elder, was a descendant of William Elder, a Catholic immigrant from England to the Province of Maryland in colonial times. His grandfather was Thomas Elder, the husband of Elizabeth Spalding, making William a first-cousin-removed of Catherine Spalding, co-founder of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. His mother was Elisabeth Miles (née Snowden) Elder.

In 1831, Elder entered Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland. He graduated in 1837 and entered the seminary. In 1842, he was sent to the Pontifical Urban College in Rome, where he received the degree of Doctor of Divinity.

Priesthood

Elder was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Rome on March 29, 1846, by Cardinal Giovanni Brunelli. After his ordination, the archdiocese assigned Elder to teach at Mount St. Mary's.

Bishop of Natchez

Elder was appointed bishop of Natchez on January 9, 1857, by Pope Pius IX. Elder was consecrated in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Mary in Baltimore by Archbishop Francis Kenrick on May 3, 1857. At that time, the diocese comprised the entire state of Mississippi.

In 1861, Mississippi declared secession from the United States, joining the Confederate States of America. On the eve of the American Civil War, Elder wrote to his father:

It is hard to tell what is to be the fate of the country. I have not enough of political sagacity to see what will be the course of events, nor what would be the fruit of the remedies proposed.... We can all unite in praying to God to guide and protect us.

During the war, Elder celebrated mass for wounded soldiers and displaced civilians, including both Confederate troops and formerly enslaved people in Natchez. He also assigned priests as chaplains in the Confederate States Army and Sisters of Mercy to care for the wounded. He blessed a group of Confederate volunteers from Natchez.

In July 1863, the Union Army reestablished control of Natchez. On June 18, 1864, Colonel B.G. Farrar, the Union Army commander at Natchez and a former schoolmate of Elder's at Mount St. Mary's, ordered the clergy in Natchez to include prayers for US President Abraham Lincoln in their services. Farrar characterized the order as a "public recognition of allegiance under which they live, and to which they are indebted for protection..."

Elder refused, arguing that the directive infringed upon the "Liberty of the Church to discharge her divine functions, without interference from other persons". Brigadier General James Tuttle initially issued an enforcement order, which he then stayed at Elder's request, pending review by the U.S. War Department. Elder wrote to Lincoln, explaining that his refusal was based on the church's authority to regulate church services. Senator Francis Kernan wrote back to Elder, saying he had met with Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton and Stanton would ask Tuttle not to interfere with Elder. Elder subsequently wrote, thanking Stanton for protecting religious freedom, and requesting that the decision be communicated to other military commanders.

General Mason Brayman adopted a stricter enforcement posture, saying "military orders are to be followed, not discussed..." and ordered Elder detained in Vidalia, Louisiana. Elder was held in custody in Vidalia for several weeks. After intervention from federal authorities in Washington, Brayman ordered Elder's release on August 12, 1864.

In 1878, a yellow fever epidemic broke out in Natchez. Elder contracted the disease while ministering to the sick. He survived the illness but lost six diocesan priests to the epidemic. When he arrived in Natchez, the diocese included eleven missions (churches), nine priests, and 10,000 Catholics. When he left, there were 41 churches, 25 priests, 6 religious houses for men, 5 convents, 13 parish schools, and 12,500 Catholics.

Coadjutor Archbishop and Archbishop of Cincinnati

On January 30, 1880, Pope Leo XIII appointed Elder as coadjutor archbishop of Cincinnati with the right of succession, to assist Archbishop John Purcell.

After Purcell died on July 4, 1883, Elder automatically succeeded him as archbishop. He became archbishop at a time of great financial difficulty in the archdiocese. Elder systematically organized the administration of the diocese. He reopened Mount Saint Mary Seminary in Cincinnati in 1887, which had been closed since 1879. He instituted the office of chancellor and insisted on annual financial reports from clergy and parishes to reduce the archdiocesan debt.

Death and legacy

Elder died in Cincinnati on October 31, 1904, from influenza. Elder High School, a Cincinnati parochial school, was named for Elder.

See also

• Archdiocese of Cincinnati

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

William Henry Elder, third Bishop of Natchez, Mississippi, U.S.A., and second Archbishop of Cincinnati, b. in Baltimore, Maryland, March 22, 1819; d. in Cincinnati, October 31, 1904. His father, Basil Elder, was a descendant of William Elder, who had emigrated from England to America, in colonial times; his mother, Elisabeth Miles (Snowden) Elder. In 1831 he entered Mt. St. Mary's College, Emmitsburg, Maryland, then presided over by the Rev. John Baptist Purcell, who afterwards became the second Bishop, and later the first Archbishop, of Cincinnati. In 1842 he went to Rome, to complete his theological studies at the College of the Propaganda, where he received the degree of Doctor of Divinity. He was ordained priest in Rome, March 29, 1846. Returning to Maryland, he became professor at Emmitsburg, which position he held until he was appointed Bishop of Natchez, for which he was consecrated in the cathedral of Baltimore, by Archbishop Kenrick, May 3, 1857. In 1864 he was brought into prominence by his refusal to obey the order of the Federal troops at Natchez, to have certain prayers for the President of the United States recited publicly in the churches of his diocese. He was arrested, tried, and convicted; but the decision of the military court was reversed at Washington. His devotion to his people during the yellow-fever epidemic of 1878 won universal commendation. On January 30, 1880, he was made titular Bishop of Avara and transferred to Cincinnati, as coadjutor with the right of succession to Archbishop Purcell, whom he succeeded July 4, 1883. Great financial difficulties clouded the last years of Archbishop Purcell's life and made the task of his successor a trying one. But the reopening of the theological seminary, Mt. St. Mary's of the West, the founding of St. Gregory's Preparatory Seminary, the enlarging of St. Joseph's Orphan Asylum, besides the building of numerous other religious institutions, show how well Archbishop Elder overcame these difficulties. (See Archdiocese of Cincinnati.)

External links

• Biography of William Henry Elder
• St. Mary Basilica Archives, Natchez, Mississippi Archived May 7, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
• Civil War diary (1862–1865) of Bishop William Henry Elder, Bishop of Natchez