Washington National Cathedral

Dean Sayre called John Thomas Walker (1925-1989) to Washington as canon missioner for the Cathedral in 1966. In this role, Walker worked hard to forge connections between the Cathedral and the city of Washington. He was elected suffragan bishop of Washington in 1971 and bishop coadjutor in 1976. When he succeeded the Rt. Rev. William F. Creighton in 1977, Walker became Washington’s first black diocesan bishop and the second black diocesan bishop in the Episcopal Church. Francis Sayre resigned as dean concurrently with incoming Bishop John Thomas Walker’s announced plan to consolidate the authority of bishop and dean in the person of the bishop of Washington so as to have a more direct hand in the Cathedral’s affairs and direction. At the time, the Cathedral was in the midst of a grave financial crisis, with both its construction and program outreach in jeopardy. Dean Walker was gradually able to return the finances of the Cathedral to a solid footing that enabled both its construction and programmatic life to continue on a pay-as-you-go basis. The Cathedral’s 1990 completion is widely attributed to Dean Walker’s vision, although he did not live to see it. He died on September 29, 1989, exactly one year before its consecration.