Diocese of Springfield in Illinois

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Bishop(s) Thomas John Joseph Paprocki, Bishop

General Information Type of Jurisdiction: Diocese Name Changed: 26 October 1923 Metropolitan: Archdiocese of Chicago Depends on: Dicastery for Bishops Rite: Latin (or Roman) State: Illinois Country: United States of America Square Kilometers: 39,210 (15,144 Square Miles) Description: Adams, Brown, Pike, Scott, Cass, Menard, Morgan, Sangamon, Christian, Macon, Calhoun, Green, Jersey, Macoupin, Montgomery, Madison, Bond, Moultrie, Shelby, Fayette, Effingham, Douglas, Coles, Cumberland, Jasper, Edgar, Clark, and Crawford Counties Conference Region: VII (IL, IN, WI) Catholic Directory Abbreviation: SFD Official Web Site: https://dio.org Mailing Address: Chancery Office, 1615 W. Washington St., Springfield, IL 62702, USA Telephone: (217)698-8500 Fax: 698-0802

Historical Details

• Diocese of Quincy
  • Latin Name: Quinciensis
  • Erected: 29 July 1853
  • Metropolitan: Archdiocese of Saint Louis
  • State: Illinois
  • Country: United States of America

• Diocese of Alton
  • Latin Name: Altonensis
  • Name Changed: 9 January 1857
  • Metropolitan: Archdiocese of Chicago
  • State: Illinois
  • Country: United States of America
  • Square Miles: 15,139

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Past and Present Ordinaries

• Joseph Melcher † (23 Jul 1853 Appointed - Did Not Take Effect)
• Henry Damian Juncker † (9 Jan 1857 Appointed - 2 Oct 1868 Died)
• Peter Joseph Baltes † (24 Sep 1869 Appointed - 15 Feb 1886 Died)
• James Ryan † (28 Feb 1888 Appointed - 2 Jul 1923 Died)
• James Aloysius Griffin † (10 Nov 1923 Appointed - 5 Aug 1948 Died)
• William Aloysius O’Connor † (17 Dec 1948 Appointed - 22 Jul 1975 Resigned)
• Joseph Alphonse McNicholas † (22 Jul 1975 Appointed - 17 Apr 1983 Died)
• Daniel Leo Ryan † (22 Nov 1983 Appointed - 19 Oct 1999 Resigned)
• George Joseph Lucas (19 Oct 1999 Appointed - 3 Jun 2009 Appointed, Archbishop of Omaha, Nebraska)
• Thomas John Joseph Paprocki (20 Apr 2010 Appointed - )

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Historical Summary

Date	Event	From	To
Diocese of Quincy
29 July 1853	Erected	Diocese of Chicago	Diocese of Quincy (erected) (Southern part of IL)
Diocese of Alton
9 January 1857	Name Changed	Diocese of Quincy	Diocese of Alton
10 September 1880	Metropolitan Changed		Diocese of Alton (from Saint Louis to Chicago) Diocese of Peoria (from Saint Louis to Chicago)
7 January 1887	Territory Lost	Diocese of Alton	Diocese of Belleville (erected)
Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
26 October 1923	Name Changed	Diocese of Alton	Diocese of Springfield in Illinois

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Statistics

Year	Catholics	Total Population	Percent Catholic	Diocesan Priests	Religious Priests	Total Priests	Catholics Per Priest	Permanent Deacons	Male Religious	Female Religious	Parishes	Source
Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
1950	110,303	934,975	11.8%	228	124	352	313		198	1,145	176	ap1951
1966	176,949	1,043,224	17.0%	242	131	373	474		216	1,236	183	ap1967
1970	187,249	1,043,224	17.9%	198	94	292	641		155	1,082	144	ap1971
1976	182,758	1,091,191	16.7%	165	87	252	725		133	984	181	ap1977
1980	184,023	1,123,000	16.4%	168	92	260	707		156	988	180	ap1981
1990	178,108	1,224,000	14.6%	146	76	222	802		104	824	172	ap1991
1999	163,713	1,106,124	14.8%	145	62	207	790	2	19	700	165	ap2000
2000	169,769	1,129,814	15.0%	132	66	198	857	2	101	611	164	ap2001
2001	175,474	1,142,630	15.4%	107	62	169	1,038	4	117	830	164	ap2002
2002	169,735	1,142,630	14.9%	108	63	171	992	7	110	503	162	ap2003
2003	177,973	1,142,630	15.6%	129	56	185	962	4	99	666	160	ap2004
2004	161,325	1,106,124	14.6%	119	59	178	906	5	90	563	156	ap2005
2009	164,000	1,176,000	13.9%	105	52	157	1,044	23	94	567	131	ap2010
2010	165,548	1,187,100	13.9%	104	53	157	1,054	36	95	525	131	ap2011
2014	170,600	1,223,000	13.9%	109	45	154	1,107	44	58	609	130	ap2015
2017	134,173	1,150,549	11.7%	105	42	147	912	58	58	544	127	ap2018
2020	127,241	1,145,660	11.1%	94	34	128	994	55	188	399	129	ap2021
2022	123,950	1,107,081	11.2%	111	29	140	885	66	49	392	129	ap2023

Note: Any changes in boundaries over time are not indicated in the above table.

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Affiliated Bishops, Living

• Victor Herman Balke (Priest: 24 May 1958 to 7 Jul 1976)
• Peter C. Harman (Priest: 17 Jul 1999)
• Carl Alan Kemme (Priest: 10 May 1986 to 20 Feb 2014)
• George Joseph Lucas (Bishop: 19 Oct 1999 to 3 Jun 2009)
• Thomas John Joseph Paprocki (Bishop: 20 Apr 2010 - )
• Kevin William Vann (Priest: 30 May 1981 to 17 May 2005)
• Edward Joseph Weisenburger

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Affiliated Bishops, Deceased

• Peter Joseph Baltes † (Bishop: 24 Sep 1869 to 15 Feb 1886)
• John Baptist Franz † (Priest: 13 Jun 1920 to 27 May 1951)
• James Aloysius Griffin † (Bishop: 10 Nov 1923 to 5 Aug 1948)
• John Janssen † (Priest: 19 Nov 1858 to 28 Feb 1888)
• Henry Damian Juncker † (Bishop: 9 Jan 1857 to 2 Oct 1868)
• Joseph Alphonse McNicholas † (Bishop: 22 Jul 1975 to 17 Apr 1983)
• Joseph Melcher † (Bishop: 23 Jul 1853 - Did Not Take Effect)
• William Aloysius O’Connor † (Bishop: 17 Dec 1948 to 22 Jul 1975)
• Anthony O’Regan † (Apostolic Administrator: 16 Dec 1853 to 9 Jan 1857)
• Daniel Leo Ryan † (Bishop: 22 Nov 1983 to 19 Oct 1999)
• James Ryan † (Bishop: 28 Feb 1888 to 2 Jul 1923)
• Philip George Scher †
• Joseph Henry Leo Schlarman †

Source(s)

Diocese of Quincy Series Episcoporum Ecclesiae Catholicae, Volume 1, Page 174 Diocese of Alton Hierarchia Catholica, Volume 8, Page 91 Hierarchia Catholica, Volume 9, Page 49 Series Episcoporum Ecclesiae Catholicae, Volume 1, Page 174 Diocese of Springfield in Illinois Acta Apostolicae Sedis, Volume 15, Page 587

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