Assignment Record– Rev. James C. Shaughnessy / Shaughnessey

Summary of Case: James C. Shaughnessey was ordained for the Diocese of Harrisburg PA in 1937, where he ministered in parishes until going on Sick Leave 1941-44. He moved to the Archdiocese of Boston in 1945, where he was incardinated in 1949. He retired in 1977 and died in 1989. Shaughnessey's name was included on a list of accused priests posted by the Law Offices of Mitchell Garabedian on January 19, 2011.

Born: 1902
Ordained: 1937
Incardinated: Harrisburg PA 1937-49; Boston MA 1949-64; Harrisburg but working in Boston 1964-81; Boston 1981-89.
Retired: 1977
Died: 12/10/1989

     

Start Stop Parish Town State Position Notes

1937

Harrisburg bishop was George Leo Leech (1935-1971).

 1941 St. Mary of the Assumption Lebanon PA 3/3 Harrisburgdiocese. Parish school had 215 boys and 229 girls.
1941 1944 Sick leave        
1944 1945 St. Joan of Arc Hershey PA 2/2 Harrisburgdiocese. Parish school had 41 boys and 47 girls.
1944 1945 St. Lucy Waltonville PA 2/2 Mission of St. Joan's.

10/26/45

Boston archbishop was Richard James Cushing (1944-1970).

 11/20/45 St. Joseph's Pepperell MA assistant Boston archdiocese.
11/21/45 1/15/46 St. James the Greater Boston MA assistant Boston archdiocese.

1/16/46

 

 3/11/47 St. Anne's Readville MA 3/3 Boston archdiocese. Parish school had 136 boys and 130 girls in 1945-46.
3/12/47 9/02/47 St. Aidam's Brookville MA assistant Boston archdiocese.

9/03/47

Cushing was succeeded by Humberto Sousa Medeiros (1970-1983).

 9/19/60 St. James Haverhill MA 4/4 to 2/4 Boston archdiocese. In 1947-48, the parish elementary school had 307 boys and 295 girls; the high school had 146 boys and 206 girls.
9/20/60 2/14/61 Holy Family Rockland MA 2/3 Boston archdiocese. The parish school had 171 boys and 185 girls. Indexed here in the Directory but not listed.
12/14/61 9/19/67 St. Thomas Aquinas Boston (Jamaica Plain) MA 2/5 Boston archdiocese.
9/20/67 10/14/77 St. Michael's North Andover MA 2/4 Boston archdiocese. The parish school had 320 boys and 324 girls.

1977

Bernard Francis Law replaced Medeiros (1984-2002).

 1986   Woburn MA Retired  
1986 1989   Waltham MA Retired Shaughnessy died December 10, 1989.

 

Source: Official Catholic Directory (New York: Kenedy & Sons, 1954-2008); Archdiocese of Boston database accessed August 2015

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Shaughnessey's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with a list on the website of the Law Offices of Mitchell Garabedian. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on November 2, 2015.