Background
Fitzgerald, Edward Aloyslus was born on February 13, 1893 in Cresco, Iowa, United States. Son of Edward A. and Emma (Daly) Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald, Edward Aloyslus was born on February 13, 1893 in Cresco, Iowa, United States. Son of Edward A. and Emma (Daly) Fitzgerald.
Bachelor of Arts, Loras College, 1913. Bachelor of Sacred Theology, Juris Canoni Baccalaureus, Laval University, 1916. Doctor of Laws honoris causa, Loyola University, 1939.
Doctor of Laws, Loras College, 1958, Saint Mary College, 1959.
He served as Bishop of Winona from 1949 to 1969. He was ordained a priest for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque on July 25, 1916. He then served on the faculty of Loras College until 1941, when he became a pastor in Osage and afterwards in Elkader.
On August 3, 1946, Pope Pius XII appointed Fitzgerald auxiliary bishop of the Dubuque Archdiocese, and he was consecrated on September 12, 1946.
On October 20, 1949, Pope Pius XII appointed Fitzgerald Bishop of the Winona Diocese. He retired on January 8, 1969.
He became known as "the building bishop" for his oversight of the construction of a cathedral, seminary, and several churches in the diocese. He attended all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council between 1962 and 1965, and subsequently implemented the Council"s reforms in the diocese, including introducing English into the Massachusetts
Member National Catholic Education Association (Executive Board college and University department 1938-1945, chairman Midwest unit 1938-1940), Delta Epsilon Sigma (founder 1939).