In 1900, Leo's maternal grandparents Louise Baquié and Joseph Martinez lived in the predominately Black 7th Ward of New Orleans, according to U.S. Census records, the same part of the city where ...

Long before Pope Leo XIV was born in Chicago in 1955, his family was building a life in New Orleans’ Seventh Ward, an area that once buzzed with Black-owned businesses, culture, and a relentless ...

In a recent interview, Pope Leo XIV’s brother, John Prevost, confirmed the family’s Haitian roots and connections to New Orleans. He noted that while they knew their grandparents’ heritage ...

Pope Leo with his family tree at the Vatican. / Vatican Media Leo, 69, was born in 1955 and raised on the south side of Chicago. He has not publicly addressed his racial identity.

Pope Leo XIV, who is the first American pope in history, has lineage among “free people of color” in the U.S. dating back to at least the 1840s, a genealogist told Forbes.