BAYLEY, JAMES ROOSEVELT

BAYLEY, JAMES ROOSEVELT. - American prelate, b. on 23 Aug. 1814 at Rye (New York), d. on 3 Oct. 1877 at Newark. Raised in Protestantism, he became rector of the church of St. Peter in Harlem. In 1841 he left this post, came to Rome, where he embraced the Catholic faith, and was baptized in Apr. 1842. He attended the seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris to study theology. Having returned to his homeland, he was ordained priest in March 1844 and became secretary to Bishop Hughes of New York. In 1853 he was made first bishop of Newark. He displayed great activity in organizing the new diocese and, although he did not have substantial financial means at his disposal, he succeeded in founding several religious houses, a seminary, and schools. In 1872 he was transferred to the archiepiscopal see of Baltimore. He wrote a history of the Catholic Church of New York (A brief sketch of the early history of the Catholic Church on the island of New York, 2nd ed., New York 1870).