First Archbishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Willa Cather's book Death Comes for the Archbishop is based on his career. He was born in Lempdes, France. He made his classical studies in the preparatory seminary of Clermont and his theological course work in the grand seminary of Mont Ferrand, where he was ordained a priest in December 1838. After a few months as an assistant priest in his native diocese, in 1839 he and several others from his seminary answered the call for missionaries by Bishop John Baptist Purcell of Cincinnati, Ohio. He labored at missions in Danville, Ohio and Covington, Kentucky. After the Mexican-American War the Provincial Council of the Catholic Church in Baltimore, Maryland petitioned to Rome for the establishment of a provisional diocese (Vicariate Apostolic) in New Mexico, to be headed by him. On July 23, 1850, to his surprise, he was notified of his appointment as bishop. After an arduous journey, he reached Santa Fe in the summer of 1851. The local priests at first refused to accept his authority, claiming they still were under the jurisdiction of Durango, Mexico. To resolve this situation, he set out on horseback for Durango, a distance of 800 miles. After a journey of five weeks he reached Durango and was courteously received. Bishop Zubiría of Durango accepted his documents of appointment and wrote a letter to the New Mexico clergy instructing them to recognize Lamy as their new bishop. However, he continued to have a contentious relationship with local clergy as he worked to improve and regularize church procedures, doctrinal teaching and clergy behavior. A significant proportion of his flock viewed him an just one more foreign invader. His early efforts as Bishop were directed to the building of more churches in the territory, the creation of new parishes and the establishment of schools. This included bringing in nuns to run a school for girls. An orphanage and a hospital were also established under his jurisdiction. He established the first parish in Colorado and also supervised parishes in Arizona as part of his diocese. On February 12, 1875, the Diocese of Santa Fe was elevated to an Archdiocese with Bishop Lamy as its first Archbishop. In his prime he was an avid gardener and the archbishop’s gardens were a showplace for visitors. He is credited with introducing the French lilacs that are still found scattered throughout downtown Santa Fe. He was responsible for the construction of the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi (commonly known as St. Francis Cathedral) and Loretto Chapel. Both buildings were built in the style of the Romanesque churches of France. The cathedral was consecrated seven years after his death. He died on February 14, 1888 and is buried under the sanctuary floor. A bronze statue, dedicated in 1925, stands in his memory outside the front entrance of the Basilica.