His Holiness Blessed Pope Pius IX, sepia print by Lesage of Dublin, pre 1878.
In 1846, Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti was elected Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and took the name Pius IX. He issued a decree on May 4, 1852 elevating the Diocese of Halifax to an Archdiocese.
On September 3, 2000 our current Pope John Paul II named him Blessed. His feast day is celebrated February 7th.