Finding aid for the Msgr. John Henry Schengber Collection

Biography of Msgr. John Henry Schengber

Monsignor Schengber was born on November 16, 1867 in Gesmold, Germany. He studied Philosophy and Theology at Mt. St. Mary Seminary, then located in Price Hill, and for poor health reasons he was ordained ahead of his classmates on February 12, 1893 by Archbishop William H. Elder. While he was not expected to live long enough to be ordained with his classmates, he outlived all of his classmates and died at the age of 95 as the oldest priest in the Archdiocese at the time. Rev. Schengber began his long priestly ministry as chaplain to the Sisters of Good Shepherd in Carthage from April 1893 to September 1894. Thereafter he taught Greek at St. Gregory Seminary in Cedar Point, while at the same time took charge of Guardian Angels Parish in Mt. Washington, and St. Jerome Parish, California, where he remained pastor until September 1896 at which time he was appointed one of the regular professors at the Seminary. In April 1902, he was appointed pastor of St. Aloysius, Delhi, and St. Joseph, North Bend. In 1910, he became pastor of Holy Trinity in Dayton. On September 8, 1921, he became the "irremovable" pastor of St. Francis de Sales, East Walnut Hills, serving there until his death in 1963. Throughout his ministry there he gained the reputation as being very knowledgeable in priestly duties, clerical calling, and an efficient mentor to his young assistants so much so that the rectory was dubbed a "postgraduate seminary course." Msgr. Schengber's pastoral leadership gained him additional responsibilities in the Diocese. These include Dean of Hamilton County Deanery, 1921; Domestic Prelate, 1930; Synodal Examiner, 1927 and 1930; Judge on the Matrimonial Court, 1926; Board Member of Diocesan Consultors, 1945 and 1951 and Pro Synodal Examiner, 1945 and 1951. He died on January 2, 1963 at Good Samaritan Hospital after a long illness. Archbishop Karl J. Alter officiated at his funeral and he is buried at Calvary Cemetery.

Scope and Content

This collection is composed of 10 folders containing handwritten sermons in notebooks and 7 diaries from 1895 to 1946. While most of the sermons are in English, a few are written in Latin and some in German. There is also a brief CV and a letter addressed to the Glenmary Home Missioners archivist, Fr. James Ploeger, regarding the disposition of this material.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

This record group is open for research.

The following record groups held by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Archives contain materials relevant to the Rev. John Henry Schengber Collection: RG 6.1: Deceased Priests

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

Item Description, date, box number, folder number, Record Group Number, Record Group Name, Archdiocese of Cincinnati Archives.

Detailed Description of The Collection