In 1689, members of the growing Puritan population in Maryland staged a takeover of the colonial government and effectively outlawed Catholicism.[9] In November 1783, after the end of the Revolution, the Catholic clergy in Maryland petitioned the Vatican for permission to nominate a priest as superior of the missions for the United States.Since Maryland had the largest Catholic population, Pope Pius VI placed the prefecture see in Baltimore and appointed Carroll as its first prefect apostolic.Twenty-two priests attended the synod, setting national policies for baptism, confirmation, penance, the celebration of the liturgy in the mass, anointing of the sick, and mixed marriages.[16] In 1806, Carroll started construction of the Cathedral of the Assumption in Baltimore[17] As the Catholic population of the United States grew, the Vatican saw the need to create more dioceses.However, due to Neale's bad health, Pope Pius VII in 1816 appointed Reverend Ambrose Maréchal as coadjutor archbishop.The Sisters of the Visitation increased the number of their academies in the city and the archdiocese, the Brothers of St. Patrick opened a trade school near Baltimore, and the Redemptorists provided services for German-speaking immigrants.The Vatican continued to erect new dioceses and vicariates out of the Archdiocese of Baltimore through the 19th century as the church evolved and grew in the United States.[31] Following the death of Eccleston, Bishop Francis Kenrick of Philadelphia was named the sixth archbishop of Baltimore by Pope Pius IX in 1851.[39] After the end of the American Civil War in 1865, Spalding raised $10,000 in the archdiocese for relief efforts in the former Confederate States of America.Writing to Archbishop John McCloskey, Spalding said, "Four million of these unfortunates are thrown on our charity, and they silently but eloquently appeal to us for help.[41] He convened the Eighth Provincial Synod in 1875 and enacted new regulations on clerical dress, mixed marriages, and church music."[44] Gibbons died in 1921 Bishop Michael Curley of the Diocese of Saint Augustine was the next archbishop of Baltimore, named by Pope Benedict XV in 1921.[52] In July 1961, Pope John XXIII named Bishop Lawrence Shehan of the Diocese of Bridgeport to assist Keough as coadjutor archbishop.[55] Shehan worked with his friend Harry Lee Doll, Episcopal Bishop of Maryland, on both civil rights and ecumenical issues.[56] Following Shehan's retirement in 1974, Pope Paul VI named Bishop William Borders of the Diocese of Orlando as the 13th archbishop of Baltimore that same year.[64] After Keeler retired in 2006, John Paul II replaced him with Archbishop Edwin O'Brien from the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.[65] In 2008, O'Brien dedicated the Pope John Paul II Prayer Garden in Baltimore, which he called a "sanctuary in a suffering city.In 2019, Lori released “The Journey to Racial Justice: Repentance, Healing and Action.” The document acknowledged racism in the Catholic Church and suggested measures to combat it."[73] The archdiocese was featured in the 2017 Netflix documentary The Keepers, investigated sexual abuse by clergy at Archbishop Keough High School and the murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik in 1969.A report released by Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro in August 2018, singled out Cardinal William Keeler for criticism.[76] In February 2019, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh launched an investigation into sexual abuse allegations against the archdiocese.[85][68][87] At the same time as the release of the report, the Maryland General Assembly passed a bill to end a statute of limitations on abuse-related civil lawsuits.[89] On September 29, 2023, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore in the US filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to evade large anticipated financial losses in upcoming lawsuits permitted by the Maryland Child Victims Act starting on October 1.[90][91][92] In 1858, the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith (Propaganda Fide), with the approval of Pius IX, conferred "Prerogative of Place" on the Archdiocese of Baltimore.John Carroll (1784–1789), appointed first diocesan bishop with erection of diocese[94] John Carroll (1789–1808), elevated to Archbishop[94] Dominic Laurence Grässel appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Baltimore in 1793 but the notice arrived after his death As of 2023, the Archdiocese of Baltimore had 40 elementary and middle schools and 18 high schools with a total student enrollment of approximately 24,000.The province currently contains the following suffragan dioceses: Media related to Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore at Wikimedia Commons