The history of the parish can perhaps be defined as the collective accomplishments
and failures, hopes and disappointments, prayers and sacrifices of its people. During
the course of this history, many people arrive on the scene, some by choice, many by
circumstance!

St. Brigid Parish was established in 1854 in East Baltimore as a mission from Saint
Patrick Church in Fells Point. Reverend James Gibbons, newly ordained, was
assigned as the first resident Pastor. He would, in later life, be renowned throughout
the World in being named "Cardinal" the first in these United States.

As the community of Canton developed, the Irish immigrants were among the first to
settle in the neighborhood church, named after their Patron Saint. The German
immigrants followed and established Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ in Highlandtown. The
Polish people came next and established Saint Casimir Church. Finally, the Italian
immigrants came and established Our Lady of Pompeii Church.  Truly, it can be said
that the Canton/Highlandtown community is the "Melting Pot" of the East Baltimore
Metropolitan area, strongly founded in its ethnic religious background.

Throughout its over 150 years of service to the community, St. Brigid Parish has
touched the lives of the families of the Canton Community.  Many of those families have
established strong roots, any have moved on, many have gained renown for their own
deeds, nay others have gone through life while remaining a part of the Parish relatively
unnoticed -- except by their families and close friends.  However, each has contributed
in some way to the evolution of Saint Brigid Parish.
St. Brigid
Catholic Church
Baltimore, Maryland
Our Parish History
Contact: Parish Office
900 South East Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21224
Phone: 410-563-1717
Email:  sbrigid@archbalt.org

James Cardinal Gibbons 1834-1921

President William H. Taft praised James Cardinal Gibbons for his "single-minded patriotism
and love of country on the one hand and (his) sincere devotion to his Church and God, on the
other." And another president, Theodore Roosevelt, said to him directly: "Taking your life as a
whole I think you now occupy the position of being the most respected and venerated and
useful citizen of our country. "

The subject of such heady praise began life humbly enough in Baltimore, MD on July 23, 1834.
The upstairs bedroom of his parents' two-story home looked out on Gay Street, not far from the
great dome and the booming bells of Assumption Cathedral which was to play such a large
part in his life.

PRIEST AND PASTOR
He was ordained June 30, 1861, and began his ministry in and around Baltimore when the city
pastor of sorts at the mission parish of pastor of sorts at the mission parish of . His pastoral
zeal and effective . His pastoral zeal and effective St. Brigid in Canton, St. Brigid in Canton,
preaching soon came to the notice of Archbishop Martin J. Spalding who named him his
preaching soon came to the notice of Archbishop Martin J. Spalding who named him his
secretary in 1865 and delegated to him much of the preparatory work of the coming Plenary
Council.

Impressed by the young priest's work at the Council in 1866, the body of bishops nominated
him to be bishop of a newly created vicariate of North Carolina. Consecrated bishop in 1868 he
was, at 36, the shepherd of 700 Catholics scattered over 50,000 square miles.

In 1869, Bishop Gibbons went to Rome as the youngest prelate at the First Vatican Council.
Three years later he was named bishop of Richmond, VA and five years after that (April 15,
1877) he was appointed co-adjutor bishop of Baltimore. When Archbishop Bayley died the
same year, Bishop Gibbons became his successor.

In his inaugural sermon the new Archbishop gave a brief review of his illustrious predecessors
in the See of Baltimore. " . . . I might speak of Bishop Carroll, who possessed the virtues of the
Christian priest with the patriotism of an American citizen; I might speak of a Neale, whose life
was hidden with Christ in God; of a Mareschal, who united in his person the refined manners of
a Frenchman with the sturdy virtues of a pioneer prelate; of a Whitefield, who expended a
fortune in the promotion of piety and devotion; of the accomplished Eccleston, who presided
with equal grace and dignity in the professor's chair, on this throne, and at the Council of
Bishops; of a Kenrick whose praise is in the Churches, . . . I might speak of Bishop Spalding
whose paternal face is to this day stamped upon your memories and affections. . .; of an
Archbishop Baley, I can simply say that those who knew him best, loved him most. His soul
never hesitated to make any sacrifice that God's honor and his conscience demanded." He
held out the glory of his predecessors, not his own.

CHURCHMAN AND CITIZEN
At work in his office the day after the church ceremonies, the new archbishop began a 40 year
episcopate which was to see him active and influential at the very heart of American life. He
played an important role in improving Church-State relations, integrating great waves of
immigrants into American society, defending the poor, preaching morality, coping with the
turbulence of World War I, championing the rights of labor. The list goes on and on. Gifted by
God with talent and a long life, he made the best of both. When he was made a cardinal in
1886, legions of his fellow citizens, Catholic and non-Catholic, were mightily pleased. His
following grew steadily until his death on March 24,1921.

Looking for a word to characterize the cardinal, people often settled for "priestliness." Speaking
of this in a Requiem Mass, Bishop Thomas J. Shahan said in part: "It was as a minister of
Jesus Christ, as an humble, unselfish and zealous priest, concerned chiefly about the divine
and eternal interests of his people and his country, that he went about his beloved city and
state, teaching in the name of the Divine Master, charity and tolerance, mutual respect and
mutual service, and emphasizing at all times the ties which bind us in unity rather than the lines
which denote our separate or particular interests . . . To the end he was faithful to his high
priestly task of healing and consoling, of comforting and guiding a society whose defects and
errors he well knew were rooted in spiritual ignorance rather than in malice." (taken from the
CIN (Catholic Information Network ))