| Honorific Prefix: | His Excellency, The Most Reverend |
| Type: | Bishop |
| James Edward Quigley | |
| Archbishop of Chicago | |
| Archdiocese: | Chicago |
| Appointed: | January 8, 1903 |
| Enthroned: | March 10, 1903 |
| Term End: | July 10, 1915 |
| Predecessor: | Patrick Feehan |
| Successor: | George Mundelein |
| Birth Date: | 15 October 1854 |
| Birth Place: | Oshawa, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality: | American |
| Death Place: | Rochester, New York, US |
| Previous Post: | Bishop of Buffalo |
James Edward Quigley (October 15, 1854 – July 10, 1915) was a Canadian-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo in New York (1897–1903) and archbishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois (1903–1915).
James Quigley was born on October 15, 1854, in Village of Oshawa, Canada West (now Ontario), the son of James and Mary Lacey Quigley, whom arrived around 1849 from Ireland. His family immigrated to the United States when Quigley was age two, settling in Lima, New York.[1] At age ten, he was sent to live with his uncle, Father Edward Quigley, the rector of Immaculate Conception Parish in Buffalo, New York. As a young man, James Quigley worked as a dock worker in Buffalo.[2]
After graduating from St. Joseph's College in Buffalo in 1872, Quigley passed an entrance examination for the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. However, he soon decided to enter the priesthood instead. Quigley attended Our Lady of Angels Seminary at Niagara Falls, New York. He then went to Europe to study at the University of Innsbruck in Austria and College of Propaganda in Rome.[3]
While in Rome, Quigley was ordained a priest by Cardinal Raffaele Monaco La Valletta for the Diocese of Buffalo on April 13, 1879.[4] Following his return to New York, the diocese assigned Quigley as pastor of St. Vincent Parish in Attica. He left St. Vincent's in 1884 to become rector of St. Joseph's Cathedral Parish in Buffalo.[1] He was transferred to St. Bridget's Parish in Buffalo in 1886.[3] Quigley preached in Latin, English, Italian and German. He was also conversant in French and Polish. He served for twelve years as the president of the Catholic Schools Board in Buffalo.
On December 12, 1896, Pope Leo XIII appointed Quigley as bishop of Buffalo. He was consecrated at St. Joseph Cathedral on February 24, 1897, by Archbishop Michael Corrigan.[5]
In 1899, the Longshoremen's Union in Buffalo, representing 1,500 workersw who scooped grain out of grain ships, went on strike against the Lake Carriers Association. The Association paid these men through the local saloon keepers, who would subtract fees from their pay for room, board and drinks, leaving them very little. When the saloon keepers raised their fees, the workers went on strike. Quigley opened St. Bridget Church as a headquarters for the strikers, gave them strategic support, and acted as a mediator with the carriers. The strike finally ended when the carriers agreed to pay their workers directly.[6]
In 1902, Quigley embarked on a public campaign against what he termed "socialism" in labor unions in Buffalo. He claimed that some union regulations were unjust and oppressive to Catholic workers. Quigley wrote a pastoral letter in German to the German parishes that called on union members to assert their rights regarding union governance. He also spoke at mass meetings. While claiming to support the union movement, Quigley denounced socialism and gave his interpretation of why the Catholic Church opposed it.[6] As a result of his anti-socialism campaign in Buffalo, Quigley gained a national reputation.[7] [8]
Quigley was appointed archbishop of Chicago by Leo XIII on January 8, 1903, and installed on March 10, 1903.[9] In 1905, Quigley asked Reverend John De Schryver, a professor at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, to organize St. John Berchmans Parish for Belgian Catholics.[10] Quigley also established parishes for Italian and Lithuanian immigrants. "Chicago's urban parishes flourished as an important spiritual, cultural, and educational component of Chicago's life."[11]
In 1910, Quigley approached Reverend Francis X. McCabe, president of DePaul University, about the lack of higher education opportunities for Catholic women in the archdiocese. DePaul began admitting women the following year.[12]
In June 1915, in declining health, Quigley traveled to Rochester, New York, to stay with his brother while receiving medical treatment. James Quigley died in Rochester from what was called paralysis on July 10, 1915, at age 60.[13]
A 1915 resolution by the Chicago City Council named Quigley as;
"...one of those men who work quietly and behind the scenes, and who seek no public credit or applause for the work which they do; ...he spent himself...in particular in the service of the many and varied works of charity which have been founded..."[14]The Archbishop Quigley Center in Chicago, formerly the Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary, is named in his honor.