 Born in Elizabeth NJ, he was the son of German immigrants Edward and Anna Hirt Grassmann.He was educated at St. John's Preparatory School at Fordham University, attended Seton Hall, and from 1916 to 1917, attended Syracuse University.He was professed in 1917, and then studied at the seminary of St. Anthony's on the Hudson in Rensselaer, NY, where he completed his theological training.