Francis William Howard
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type =
| honorific_prefix =
| name = Francis William Howard
| honorific_suffix =
| title = Bishop of Covington
| image = Francis William Howard (1867–1944).png
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| church = Catholic Church
| archdiocese =
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| diocese = Diocese of Covington
| see =
| appointed = March 26, 1923
| term_end = January 18, 1944
| quashed =
| predecessor = Ferdinand Brossart
| successor = William Theodore Mulloy
| opposed =
| other_post =
| ordination = June 16, 1891
| ordained_by = John Ambrose Watterson
| consecration = July 15, 1923
| consecrated_by = Henry Moeller
| cardinal =
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| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1867|06|21}}
| baptised =
| birth_place = Columbus, Ohio
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1944|01|18|1867|06|21}}
| death_place = Covington, Kentucky, U.S.
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| alma_mater =
| motto = In spiritu lenitatis
| signature =
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| coat_of_arms = Coat of arms of Francis William Howard.svg
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Francis William Howard (June 21, 1867 – January 18, 1944) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Covington from 1923 until his death in 1944.
Biography
The fifth of seven children, Francis Howard was born in Columbus, Ohio, to Francis and Catherine (née O'Sullivan) Howard, who were Irish immigrants.{{cite news|work=ACUA Catholic Education Collections|title=Howard, Bishop Francis W. Papers|url=http://libraries.cua.edu/achrcua/subeducation.html}} After attending St. Joseph Academy in Columbus, he entered Our Lady of the Angels Seminary at Niagara, New York in 1884, and later returned to Ohio in 1888 to continue his studies at Mount St. Mary's Seminary of the West in Cincinnati. Howard was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Columbus by Bishop John Ambrose Watterson on June 16, 1891.{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924063262053/page/n125/mode/1up |title=The Catholic Encyclopedia and its Makers |publisher=The Encyclopedia Press |page=80 |year=1917 |access-date=2021-06-11 |via=archive.org}}{{cite news|work=Catholic-Hierarchy.org|title=Bishop Francis William Howard|url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bhowardf.html}} In 1901 he organized the first Columbus Diocesan School Board.{{cite news|work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Covington|title=Most Rev. Francis William Howard, D.D.|url=http://www.covingtondiocese.org/index.cfm/NewsItem?ID=86691&From=Home}} He also served as secretary (1904–1928), president (1928–1936), and member of the advisory board (1936–1944) of the National Catholic Educational Association.
On March 26, 1923, Howard was appointed the fifth Bishop of Covington, Kentucky, by Pope Pius XI. He received his episcopal consecration on the following July 15 from Archbishop Henry K. Moeller, with Bishops James Joseph Hartley and John A. Floersh serving as co-consecrators. During his 20-year tenure, he became a nationally recognized leader in Catholic education and established a strong system of Catholic grade schools and high schools a priority for the diocese. He was named an Assistant at the Pontifical Throne in 1928. Following the 1937 Ohio River flood, he opened all Catholic churches in Covington for relief purposes.{{cite news|work=Kenton County Public Library|title=1937 Flood|url=http://www.kenton.lib.ky.us/genealogy/history/covington/article.cfm?ID=276}}
Howard died of heart disease in Covington on January 18, 1944.{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/79378476/bishop-howard-dies-of-heart-ailment/ |title=Bishop Howard Dies of Heart Ailment |newspaper=Washington C.H. Record-Herald |location=Covington, Kentucky |agency=AP |page=1 |date=1944-01-18 |access-date=2021-06-11 |via=Newspapers.com}} He is buried at St. Mary Cemetery in Fort Mitchell.
References
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External links
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Episcopal succession
{{s-start}}
{{s-rel|ca}}
{{succession box |
before=Ferdinand Brossart |
title=Bishop of Covington |
years=1923–1944 |
after=William Theodore Mulloy
}}
{{s-end}}
{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Covington}}
{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Francis William}}
Category:The Athenaeum of Ohio alumni
Category:Clergy from Columbus, Ohio
Category:Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus