{{Short description|American Catholic bishop (1908–1990)}} {{Infobox Christian leader | type = Bishop | name = Alfred Michael Watson | title = Bishop of Erie<br>Titular Bishop of Nationa | image = Alfred Michael Watson.jpg | alt = | caption = | church = Roman Catholic | archdiocese = | diocese = | see = Erie | term = 17 March 1969 &ndash; 16 July 1982 | predecessor = John Francis Whealon | successor = Michael Joseph Murphy<ref>https://eriercd.org/bishop/watson.html</ref> <!-- Orders -->| ordination = May 10, 1934 | ordinated_by = | consecration = June 29, 1965 | consecrated_by = John Krol | rank = <!-- Personal details --> | birth_date = {{Birth date|1908|7|11}} | birth_place = Erie, Pennsylvania | death_date = {{Death date and age|1990|1|4|1908|7|11}} | death_place = Erie | previous_post = Auxiliary Bishop of Erie<br>(1965 to 1969) | coat_of_arms = | honorific_prefix = His Excellency, The Most Reverend | ordained_by = John Mark Gannon }} {{Infobox bishopstyles | name= Alfred Michael Watson | dipstyle= *His Excellency *The Most Reverend | offstyle=Your Excellency | relstyle=Bishop | image = Coat of arms of Alfred Michael Watson.svg | image_size = 200px }}

'''Alfred Michael Watson''' (July 11, 1908 – January 4, 1990) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Erie in Pennsylvania (1969–1982). He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of Erie from 1965 to 1969.

==Biography==

=== Early life === Alfred Watson was born on July 11, 1908, in Erie, Pennsylvania.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Bishop Alfred Michael Watson [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bwatson.html |access-date=2026-01-25 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}}</ref> Watson attended Cathedral Preparatory School in Erie. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Erie on May 10, 1934 in Erie by Bishop John Mark Gannon.<ref name=":0" />

=== Auxiliary Bishop and Bishop of Erie === On May 17, 1965, Watson was appointed auxiliary bishop of Erie and Titular Bishop of ''Nationa'' by Pope Paul VI.<ref name=":0" /> He received his episcopal consecration at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Erie on June 29, 1965. from Cardinal John Krol, with Bishop John Selby Spence and Joseph Francis Donnelly serving as co-consecrators.<ref name=":0" />

Following the promotion of John Francis Whealon to archbishop of Hartford in 1968, Watson was named b bishop of Erie by Paul VI on March 17, 1969.<ref name=":0" /> He was accused of being too slow to implement the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, and met considerable opposition from the diocesan clergy.<ref name="history">{{cite news|work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie |title=About the Diocese (1969-1990): Bishop Alfred M. Watson and Bishop Murphy |url=http://www.eriercd.org/history5.asp |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090706080622/http://www.eriercd.org/history5.asp |archivedate=2009-07-06 }}</ref> During his tenure, he ordained 88 priests, but was forced to close or merge several Catholic schools.<ref name="history" /> ===Retirement and death=== After breaking his hip and undergoing surgery,<ref name="history" /> Watson retired as bishop of Erie on July 16, 1982.<ref name=":0" /> He on January 4, 1990 in Erie at age 81.

==References== {{reflist}}

{{s-start}} {{s-rel|ca}} {{s-new}} {{s-tul |title=Bishop of National |years=1965–1969}} {{s-vac |next=Francisco Claver}} {{s-bef |before=John Francis Whealon}} {{s-ttl |title=Bishop of Erie |years=1969–1982}} {{s-aft |after=Michael Joseph Murphy}} {{s-end}}

{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie|state=collapsed}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Alfred Michael}} Category:1908 births Category:1990 deaths Category:Roman Catholic bishops of Erie Category:Participants in the Second Vatican Council Category:20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Category:20th-century American people