Edward Ignatius Devitt (November 26, 1840 – January 26, 1920) was a Canadian American priest,

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

, and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

of the American

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Born in

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John () is a port#seaport, seaport city located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. It is Canada's oldest Municipal corporation, incorporated city, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign ...

, he moved with his family to

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, at a young age. He studied in

public schools Public school may refer to: *Public school (government-funded), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging private schools in England and Wales *Great Public Schools, ...

in the city before enrolling at the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by educators Benedict Joseph Fenwick and Thomas F. Mulledy in 1843 under the auspices of the Society of Jesus. ...

. Devitt spent two years there, and then entered the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

in 1859. He studied at the

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Maryland, second-largest ...

, and at the newly opened

Woodstock College Woodstock College was a Society of Jesus, Jesuit seminary that existed from 1869 to 1974. It was the oldest Jesuit seminary in the United States. The school was located in Woodstock, Maryland, west of Baltimore, from its establishment until 1969, ...

. He briefly taught at the Washington Seminary during his studies, and after graduating, was a professor for the next thirty years at Holy Cross, Woodstock, and

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

. To the surprise of many Jesuits, Devitt was appointed the vice rector of

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

in 1891, becoming the rector and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

later that year. He held the position for three years, and spent the remainder of his life teaching and working as a historian of the

Catholic Church in the United States The Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in full communion, communion with the pope, who as of 2025 is Chicago, Illinois-born Pope Leo XIV, Leo XIV. With 23 percent of the United States' population , t ...

and of

colonial Maryland The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America from 1634 until 1776, when the province was one of the Thirteen Colonies that joined in supporting the American Revolution against Great Britain. In 1781, Maryla ...

. He died at Georgetown University in 1920.

Early life

Edward Ignatius Devitt was born on November 26, 1840, in

, in modern-day Canada. His parents were Irish

Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, and Devitt was

baptized Baptism (from ) is a Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or by immersing in water either partially or completely, traditionally three ...

two days after his birth. While a young boy, he moved with his family to the United States, where they settled in the North End of

. Devitt's father became active in the North End

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of St. Mary's, which was run by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

, under the

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

ship of John McElroy. In this way, Devitt became exposed to religious life, particularly to the Jesuits. As there were no

Catholic schools Catholic schools are parochial pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school system. In 201 ...

in Boston at the time, Devitt was enrolled in public school, graduating from the Boston English School in 1857. He then continued his education at the

. He completed two years there before meeting Burchard Villiger, the

provincial superior A provincial superior is an officer of a religious institute (including religious orders) acting under the institute's Superior General. A provincial superior exercises general supervision over all the members of that institute in a territorial ...

of the Jesuit Maryland Province, and applied for membership in the

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

. His application was accepted, and Devitt entered the

on July 28, 1859, proceeding to the

. While at the novitiate, the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

broke out, and the school was several times commandeered by the armies as a makeshift hospital, the novices and juniors being ordered to tend to the wounded.

Teaching and higher education

In 1863, Devitt moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, where he became a professor of the

classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

and

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

at Washington Seminary (which later became Gonzaga College High School). He was a professor at the school at the time Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, and he marched with the Gonzaga students in the deceased president's

funeral procession A funeral procession is a procession, usually in motor vehicles or by foot, from a funeral home or place of worship to the cemetery or crematorium. In earlier times the deceased was typically carried by male family members on a bier or in a cof ...

. Devitt left Gonzaga in 1869 to complete his studies in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, where he was a member of the first class. He remained at Woodstock for seven years. He was ordained a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

by Archbishop

James Roosevelt Bayley James Roosevelt Bayley (August 23, 1814 – October 3, 1877) was an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, Bishop of Newark (1853–1872) and as Roman Ca ...

Laetare Sunday Laetare Sunday ( Church Latin: ; Classical Latin: ; English: ) is the fourth Sunday in the season of Lent, in the Western Christian liturgical calendar. Traditionally, this Sunday has been a day of celebration within the austere period of Len ...

in 1875. From 1877 to 1879, he served as

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...

of studies at the College of the Holy Cross. On August 15, 1880, he professed his

fourth vow A fourth vow is part of religious vows that are taken by members of some religious institutes in the Catholic Church, apart from the traditional vows based on the evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity and obedience or their equivalents stabili ...

Academic career

For the next thirty years, Devitt taught philosophy at the College of the Holy Cross, Woodstock College, and

. In teaching at Woodstock, he became the first alumnus of the college to be appointed to the faculty, and eventually became the chair of

dogmatic theology Dogmatic theology, also called dogmatics, is the part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and God's works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Chu ...

. He believed that teaching was the preeminent mission of the Society of Jesus. Over the course of his career, he taught such subjects as the classics, mathematics, modern languages, philosophy, and science.

President of Boston College

While Devitt was a professor of philosophy at the College of the Holy Cross, the Jesuit provincial superior, Thomas J. Campbell, paid his annual visit to the college. On January 6, 1891, during his visit, he appointed Devitt as vice rector of

, where he would assume management of the school due to the rector, Robert J. Fulton's, worsening illness. The Jesuits in both

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

and Boston were surprised by his appointment. Eventually, on September 3, 1891, Devitt's status was changed to rector and president of Boston College by the Jesuit Superior General,

Anton Anderledy Anton Maria Anderledy (3 June 1819 – 18 January 1892) was a Swiss Jesuit, elected the twenty-third Superior General of the Society of Jesus. Religious and academic formation Son of a director of the postal services, Anderledy entered the Jes ...

. He simultaneously served as pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in the South End of Boston. During Devitt's tenure, the holdings of the college library were increased by 25%, and the science department was expanded. Boston College's literary magazine, ''

The Stylus ''The Stylus'', originally intended to be named ''The Penn'', was a would-be periodical owned and edited by Edgar Allan Poe. It had long been a dream of Poe to establish an American journal with very high standards in order to elevate the literat ...

'', resumed publication in 1893, having been inactive since 1889. Devitt's tenure as president came to an end on July 16, 1894, and he was succeeded by Timothy Brosnahan. In 1902, Devitt was selected to represent the Maryland-New York Province at the Jesuits' congregation of procurators in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Historian

Devitt also developed a reputation as an authoritative historian of the

and of

. Though his historical interests began as a hobby, Devitt eventually became an editor of the ''

Woodstock Letters The ''Woodstock Letters'' were a periodical publication by the Society of Jesus. Originally published by Woodstock College in Maryland, the letters were intended for distribution among of the Jesuits in North America and later South America ...

'', a journal published by the American Jesuits. He became a member of the

Columbia Historical Society The Historical Society of Washington, D.C., also called the DC History Center, is an educational foundation dedicated to preserving and displaying the history of Washington, D.C. The society provides lectures, exhibits, classes, and community e ...

, the

Maryland Historical Society The Maryland Center for History and Culture (MCHC), formerly the Maryland Historical Society (MdHS), founded on March 1, 1844, is the oldest cultural institution in the U.S. state of Maryland. The organization "collects, preserves, and interpr ...

, and the

American Catholic Historical Society The American Catholic Historical Society (ACHS) is a historical society based at 263 South Fourth Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1884, it is the oldest Catholic historical society in the United States. The goal of the society is to ...

, the latter of which he was especially active in. While at Georgetown University, toward the end of his life, he received for the university's library one of the most comprehensive collections of books on the

history of Maryland The recorded history of Maryland dates back to the beginning of European exploration, starting with the Republic of Venice, Venetian John Cabot, who explored the coast of North America for the Kingdom of England in 1498. After European settlement ...

. Despite his reputation as an adept historian, his skills in writing were considered lackluster by many of his colleagues. He also served as the

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

of Georgetown's historical

archive An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials, in any medium, or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or organ ...

s. Devitt died on January 26, 1920, at Georgetown University, and was buried in the Jesuit Community Cemetery. His largest project, a history of the Maryland-New York Province of the Society of Jesus, remained unfinished at the time of his death. For his historical work, Devitt received the posthumous praise of Bishop Thomas Shahan, the rector of the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

and a historian.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Devitt, Edward I. 1840 births 1920 deaths Writers from Saint John, New Brunswick English High School of Boston alumni St. Stanislaus Novitiate (Frederick, Maryland) alumni College of the Holy Cross alumni Woodstock College alumni College of the Holy Cross faculty Georgetown University faculty Gonzaga College High School faculty Historians of Jesuit history American historians of religion Historians of Maryland Presidents of Boston College 19th-century American historians 19th-century American male writers 20th-century American historians 19th-century American Jesuits 20th-century American Jesuits Emigrants from pre-Confederation New Brunswick to the United States American male non-fiction writers Pastors of the Church of the Immaculate Conception (Boston, Massachusetts) Deans and Prefects of Studies of the Georgetown University College of Arts & Sciences