Evangelized for more than 100 years by missionaries under the authority of the bishop of Quebec, the territory of this diocese was absorbed in 1789 by the newly-established Diocese of Baltimore.

The Diocese of Quincy

July 29, 1853 is the birthday of the present Springfield diocese. It was on that date the state of Illinois was divided into two separate dioceses. The see was established at Quincy and was comprised of the counties which now constitute the diocese of Springfield and the diocese of Belleville.

Rt. Rev. Joseph Melcher, the vicar general of St. Louis, was named the first bishop of Quincy. Father Melcher declined the appointment, and the vacant see was placed under the administration of Archbishop Kenrick of St. Louis until the see of Chicago, also vacant at the time, was filled by the appointment of Bishop Anthony O'Regan in 1854. Bishop O'Regan administered the affairs of the new diocese until 1857.

At the close of 1853 there were 47 churches, 34 missions, 24 priests and about 42,000 Catholics living in the entire southern half of Illinois that comprised the new diocese.

The Diocese of Alton and Bishop Henry D. Juncker

Quincy, which never had a resident bishop, was some distance from the center of the diocese. Thus, geography was one of the reasons the Holy See transferred the see of the new diocese to Alton on Jan. 9, 1857.

The first bishop of the Alton diocese, the Rt. Rev. Henry Damian Juncker, a native of Lorraine and a priest of the Diocese of Cincinnati, was consecrated on April 16, 1857. When he arrived in Alton he found the diocese with 58 parish churches, 30 missions, 28 priests and a Catholic population that had grown to 50,000.

The gothic church of Ss. Peter and Paul in Alton, built in 1855, became the first cathedral of the diocese. Bishop Juncker built the 52-room episcopal residence with the intention of devoting a part of the house to seminarians. However, he abandoned that plan and the early diocesan seminarians were trained at St. Joseph Seminary in Teutopolis, and at St. Patrick's College near Ruma.

The first religious order of men and the first religious order of women to establish permanent residence in the diocese were the Franciscan Fathers in 1856 and the Ursuline Nuns in 1857. The Franciscan Brothers, the Brothers of the Holy Cross, together with the Ursulines, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Sisters of St. Joseph and the Sisters of Loretto taught in the elementary schools in the diocese in 1868.

The Franciscan Fathers conducted a high school for boys in Quincy, while the Ursulines, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Sisters of Loretto, and Sisters of St. Joseph sponsored six girls' academies.
The Daughters of Charity, who operated a military hospital in Alton during the Civil War, and the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor administered general hospitals in Alton and Quincy.

Bishop Juncker led the diocese until his death on Oct. 2, 1868. He was buried in the crypt of the Alton Cathedral. At his death the diocese included 77 parish churches, 63 mission churches, 82 diocesan priests and a Catholic population of 80,000. By this time there were 45 elementary schools, two colleges for young men, one boys' high school, six girls' academies, two hospitals and one orphanage.

Bishop Peter J. Baltes

Rt. Rev. Peter Joseph Baltes, a native of Bavaria who was ordained in 1853, became the second bishop of Alton on Sept. 24, 1869. A former vicar general and later administrator of the diocese, he was the first bishop to be consecrated in Illinois. The ceremony took place on Jan. 23, 1870 in St. Peter's Church in Belleville.

The diocese enjoyed rapid growth during the episcopacy of Bishop Baltes. For example, Quincy College was incorporated in 1873. The Sisters of the Precious Blood, the Springfield Dominicans, the Franciscan Sisters of Mary Immaculate, the Hospital Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, the Poor Handmaids and the Kentucky Dominicans, began their work among the students, the orphans, the aged and the sick of the diocese.

In 1880, with the creation of Chicago as an archdiocese, the Alton Diocese became a suffragan of Chicago.

Bishop Baltes died on Feb. 15, 1886, and was buried beside his predecessor in the Cathedral crypt at Alton. When Bishop Baltes died, he left 126 parish churches, 77 mission churches, 138 diocesan priests and a Catholic population of about 109,000 in the entire southern half of Illinois.

On Jan. 7, 1887, the 28 southernmost counties in Illinois were formed into a new diocese with the see in Belleville. The remaining 28 central Illinois counties constituting the Diocese of Alton continues today as the territory of the present diocese. Rt. Rev. John Janssen, former vicar general of the Diocese of Alton, was named the first bishop of Belleville.

Bishop James Ryan

Rt. Rev. James Ryan, a native of Ireland and a priest of the Diocese of Peoria, was named the third bishop of our diocese on Feb. 28, 1988, and was consecrated on May 1, 1888.

During the 35 years of Bishop Ryan's episcopacy, eight new religious orders of women came to the diocese establishing permanent missions. They included the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart, the Sisters of the Holy Cross, the School Sisters of St. Francis, the Precious Blood Sisters, the Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception, the Sisters of Misericorde, the Sisters of Mercy and the Sisters of Divine Providence.

Bishop Ryan died July 2, 1923, and was buried in St. Patrick's Cemetery in Alton. At his death the diocese numbered 120 parish churches, 42 mission churches, 172 diocesan priests, and a Catholic population of 87,000.

Bishop James A. Griffin

Bishop James A. Griffin, born in Chicago and pastor of St. Mary's Church in Joliet, was named by Pope Pius XI as the fourth bishop of the diocese on Nov. 10, 1923. Just two weeks before, on Oct. 26, 1923, the see of the diocese had been changed from Alton, to the state capital, Springfield. Bishop Griffin was consecrated on Feb. 25, 1924.

One of Bishop Griffin's first projects was the construction of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, which was dedicated on Oct. 14, 1927. Under his administration, houses were opened in the diocese by the Priests of the Sacred Heart, the Clerics of St. Viator, the Jesuits, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, and the Franciscan Brothers of the Holy Cross.

The Franciscan Sisters of the Martyr St. George and the Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help added their labors to those of the other religious women during Bishop Griffin's episcopacy.
Bishop Griffin died Aug. 5, 1948, and was buried beneath the Cathedral sanctuary in Springfield. In 1948 the diocese numbered 133 parish churches, 43 mission churches, 217 diocesan priests, and a Catholic population of 105,173. There were 15,820 students enrolled in the two colleges, six schools of nursing, 15 high schools and 61 elementary schools of the diocese.

After Bishop Griffin's death, Msgr. John B. Franz was appointed administrator of the diocese until a new bishop was named. A native of Springfield, he was rector of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. Msgr. Franz was later named the first bishop of Dodge City, Kan., and in 1959 he was appointed bishop of Peoria. He retired in 1971 and died on July 3, 1992.

Bishop William A. O'Connor

Bishop William A. O'Connor was appointed fifth bishop of the diocese and the second of Springfield, on Dec. 28, 1948. He was consecrated at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago on March 7, 1949, and installed in the cathedral in Springfield on March 17, 1949.

Bishop O'Connor was born in Chicago on Dec. 27, 1903, and ordained Sept. 24, 1927. In 1953, the diocese observed its 100th anniversary, and Bishop O'Connor chose to join the celebration of his silver sacramental jubilee with the centenary celebration.

Bishop O'Connor observed his silver episcopal jubilee on St. Patrick's Day in 1974. He served 16 more months as Bishop of Springfield before he resigned July 22, 1975 for reasons of age. At the time of his retirement there was a Catholic population of 181,504. There were 197 diocesan and 103 religious order priests, 34 religious brothers and 999 sisters in the diocese. They were serving in 143 parishes, 38 missions, 63 Catholic grade schools, 10 Catholic high schools, two colleges and 10 hospitals in the diocese.

The only retired bishop in the first 130 years of the diocese, Bishop O'Connor died Nov. 14, 1983 at the age of 79.

Bishop Joseph A. McNicholas

Bishop Joseph A. McNicholas was appointed July 22, 1975, to succeed the retiring Bishop O'Connor. An auxiliary bishop of St. Louis, he was installed as the sixth bishop of the Springfield diocese on Sept. 3, 1975.

Bishop McNicholas was born Jan. 13, 1923, a native of St. Louis. He was ordained to the priesthood June 7, 1949. He served several parishes in St. Louis and as chaplain of St. Louis Home for Boys before being appointed to serve as an auxiliary bishop. He was consecrated to the episcopacy by Cardinal John Carberry on March 25, 1969, and four months later was named to serve as pastor of the historic Old Cathedral on the St. Louis Riverfront.

After his installation as bishop of Springfield, Bishop McNicholas spent nine months visiting the 204 parishes, missions and institutions of the diocese. Because he had a great concern for young people, Bishop McNicholas spent one school day each year in each of the nine Catholic high schools then in the diocese. He also provided fundraising efforts for all levels of Catholic education.

Spanning his concerns to include people of all ages, Bishop McNicholas secured federal funds for construction of Pope John Paul I Apartments in Springfield and Marian Heights Apartments in Alton. He also launched a successful "Come on Home for Christmas" program directed to Catholics who had become careless in practicing their faith.

Bishop McNicholas suffered a massive coronary and died suddenly on April 17, 1983. He was buried in a crypt of the Cathedral. His predecessor, Bishop O'Connor died less than seven months later and was also buried in the Cathedral.

Bishop Daniel L. Ryan

Bishop Daniel L. Ryan of Joliet was named the seventh bishop of the Springfield diocese on Nov. 22, 1983 by Pope John Paul II. He was installed by Cardinal Joseph A. Bernardin of Chicago in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield on Jan. 18, 1984.

The Springfield diocese was greatly changed and took some giant steps forward during Bishop Ryan's tenure as leader. It also struggled through some parish closings as the number of priests dwindled.
A great believer in assisting others, Bishop Ryan opened the first diocesan Office for Social Concerns. That office made strides in ministry to African American Catholics, the Hispanic Catholic community, the deaf Catholic community and those Catholics with special needs. Bishop Ryan showed great empathy by providing diocesan assistance during the devastating "Great Flood" of 1993, and by launching an interest-free loan program for struggling farmers. He centralized and expanded the services of Catholic Charities and volunteered at St. John's Breadline. A supporter of the pro-life movement, he annually attended the prayer vigil rosary walk to Hope Clinic in Granite City. He met regularly with area bishops of several denominations. Bishop Ryan also established the lay ministry formation program in the diocese.

After leading the Springfield diocese for nearly 16 years, Bishop Ryan retired on Oct. 19, 1999. He began another phase in his own ministry by assisting parish priests around the diocese.

Bishop George J. Lucas

On Oct. 19, 1999, Pope John Paul II named Msgr. George J. Lucas the eighth bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. At the time of his appointment, Msgr. Lucas was president-rector of Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis. He will be installed as bishop by Cardinal Francis George of Chicago on Dec. 14, 1999 at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.