About William Wakefield Baum
William Wakefield Baum (November 21, 1926 – July 23, 2015) was an American Catholic prelate who served as bishop of Springfield-Cape Girardeau in Missouri (1970 to 1973) and archbishop of Washington in the District of Columbia (1973 to 1980). He then served in the Roman Curia as prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education (1980 to 1990) and the major penitentiary (1990 to 2001). Baum was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1976. At the time of his 1980 appointment as prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, he was the highest-ranking American ever in the church. By the time of his death, Baum had also been a cardinal longer than any other American.
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