Rev. William J. Foran Scrapbook

Item — Box: SC186-FORA-001

Identifier: SC186-FORA

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This scrapbook dates from 1887 to 1890 but is arranged in no particular chronological order and contains clippings from various papers or books. The main theme of the collection is one of Catholic and Irish identity. The pages contain pieces on famous Irishmen and Catholics in American History and include the obituaries of Cardinal Newman and the Irish-American poet John Boyle O’Reilly. In between, the young Father Foran created a mix of poetry, news, trivia facts, and history all relating to the central theme of his Catholic and Irish-American Identity.

Dates

Creation: 1887-1890

Creator

Foran, William , T., 1875-1964 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions

Conditions Governing Use

Materials believed to be under copyright or other restrictions are available for limited noncommercial, educational and personal use only, or for fair use as defined by United States copyright law and with proper citation. Please note that the College of the Holy Cross may not hold the rights to all items in this collection. Users assume responsibility for identifying all copyright holders and for determining whether permission is needed to make any use of the content. For permission under rights held by the College, please contact archives@holycross.edu.

Biographical Note

Rev. William J. Foran was born in Worcester in 1875. Graduating from Holy Cross in 1896, he was selected by Bishop Beaven of Springfield to study theology at the North American College in Rome. Upon the completion of his studies, he was ordained by Cardinal Respighi, Cardinal Vicar of Rome, on June 1, 1901 in St. John’s Lateran Basilica. He served across the Northeast including serving as founding Pastor of Little Flower Church in Pittsfield. In 1942, he was named Pastor of St. Mary’s in Worcester, a position he held until his death in 1964. The Parish underwent many improvements under his leadership including the addition of a new marble altar and organ in the main church. The grounds of the parish were landscaped and a Shrine to St. Joseph was built on land near the schools. The entire parish debt was liquidated in 1948. He passed away in 1964, the oldest living diocesan priest in Worcester. He is buried in St. John's Cemetery.