Francis Clement Kelley was born in
Vernon River, Prince Edward Island, Canada, to John and Mary Kelley. His sister was poet
Lucy Gertrude Clarkin. He was educated at
St. Dunstan's College, Prince Edward Island, and ordained a priest for the
diocese of
Detroit,
Michigan, in 1893. Father Kelley served as a military chaplain during the Spanish–American War, as a captain with the Michigan National Guard. He was later promoted to the rank of colonel. Kelley served as vice commander general of the
Military Order of Foreign Wars, a veterans' group, for five years. Kelley was elected its first president. The Extension Society continues to promote the mission of the Catholic Church in rural and mission areas of the United States and abroad. As a diplomat, Kelley represented the bishops of Mexico during the
World War I Peace Conference in Paris. He also initiated unofficial negotiations between the Vatican and the Italian government for a settlement of the
Roman Question. Two years after the war, Kelley was sent to England by the Vatican to settle postwar differences over German and American missions. As president of the Extension Society, Kelley also represented the Mexican bishops during the Carranza Revolution. He established a seminary in Texas for exiled Mexican seminarians and clergy. ==Episcopacy==