John T. McNicholas

John T. McNicholas, O.P. (1877 - 1950) was a U.S. archbishop. He served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of Cincinnati between 1925 and 1950. [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bmcni.html]

John T. McNicholas was born in Kiltimagh, County Mayo, Ireland on December 15, 1877. He was the youngest of eight children. He emigrated with his family to the United States in 1881. The family settled in Chester, Pennsylvania where he attended elementary school at the Immaculate Heart of Mary School. Later he attended St. Joseph's Preparatory College in Philadelphia.

At seventeen he entered the Dominican Order and entered the seminary at St. Rose Priory in Springfield, Kentucky. He was ordained a priest in Somerset, Ohio on October 10, 1901.

After graduation and ordination McNicholas continued his studies in Rome, at Minerva University. He returned to America by 1904 and served in various capacities in New York.

He was appointed bishop of Duluth, Minnesota on July 18, 1918. His consecration as Bishop of Duluth was presided over by Tommaso Cardinal Boggiani, O.P. on September 8, 1918 at Duluth. He was installed as bishop of Duluth on November 15, 1918.

For a short time he was appointed Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana from May to August 1925.

On July 8, 1925 he was appointed Archbishop of Cincinnati, Ohio. He was installed in August of the same year.

In 1933, McNicholas founded the Catholic Legion of Decency. The organization, which boasted over 22 million Catholics as members, boycotted films that were not morally approved by the Catholic Church. The film industry cooperated with the Legion and edited many films for content to avoid receiving a "C" rating. "C" signified condemned.

While Archbishop of Cincinnati, McNicholas raised the levels of Catholic education at all levels within the diocese. He was president of the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) from 1946 to 1950.

Archbishop John Timothy McNicholas died in Cincinnati on April 22, 1950.

A school is named in his honor, Archbishop McNicholas High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. [http://www.mcnhs.org/AboutUs-History.htm]

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