Rohlman had the difficult task of leading the diocese through the Great Depression and World War II. The "Catholic Messenger", an independent Catholic newspaper published in Davenport, was experiencing financial problems during the Depression and was purchased by the diocese for use as a diocesan newspaper in 1937. A national edition to the paper was still published in addition to a diocesan edition for a couple decades after its purchase. The "Messenger" moved its offices into the Cosgrove Building, until they moved across the street into the Democrat Building.