About
Chicago's first cardinal who was called God's Bricklayer for forming the city's first archdiocese: a network of churches, catholic schools and convents.
Before Fame
After his formal religious education in New and Pennsylvania, he was ordained in Rome and came to Chicago as an archbishop.
Trivia
He standardized Chicago's school system, mandating education in English - where before school instruction was carried out in a hodge-podge of languages.
Family Life
He was born in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the fourth-generation American descendant of German immigrants.
Associated With
George Carey, another ambitious archbishop, led England's catholics for the better part of the 1990s and 2000s.
