Father JAMES ARCHINGER, O.F.M. was born in 1863 and was ordained in 1889. He served as the Parish Priest of St Joseph's Church in Chatham, from 1901 - 1918. He died on February 25, 1948.

Rev. James Archinger, pastor of St. Joseph's parish, Chatham, was one of the scholarly men of Chatham, and was a native of Cincinnati, Ohio. He was born there on August 20, 1863, of German ancestry. His father, George A. Archinger, was born in Germany in 1814, and in his native country learned the trade of carriage making. In 1834 he emigrated to the United States, settling in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he followed his trade. In 1849 he married Elizabeth Boeh, who was born in 1826 in Germany, of which country her father, Albert Boeh, was also a native. To this marriage ten children were born, of whom Father Archinger was the only survivor in 1904, three years after he came to Chatham. When he had reached the required age, growing up in Cincinnati, James Archinger entered St. Xavier College, in Cincinnati, and pursued his studies for four years. He then entered St. Francis College, in Cincinnati, where he graduated in 1882. Deciding to become a priest, he entered the Franciscan Order. His studies continued, until 1889, when he was ordained a priest by Archbishop Elder, of Cincinnati. After ordination, Father Archinger was located at St. Francis parish, Cincinnati for two years. He was then transferred to Wichita, Kansas for two years. For the next eighteen months he was pastor of St. Mary's parish at Kansas City, Missouri. He was then transferred to Emporia, Kansas, where he remained for five years. He was a well-travelled priest before he came to Chatham. In 1901, twenty-three years after the first Franciscans came to Chatham, Father Archinger was placed in charge of St. Joseph's parish in Chatham, at that time with 600 families. He also looked after the spiritual needs of the Ursuline Convent in Chatham. In 1909, when Council 1412 was chartered, Father James became its first Chaplain. In 1916, Father James was instrumental in having the twin towers completed on the front of St. Joseph's Church, which were not part of the original church. In 1951, when the Fourth Degree of Chatham was chartered, the Assembly chose the name Father James, after this dedicated priest, who was a very devout man, highly educated and well read, and possessed of great executive ability. The people of St. Joseph's were devoted to him, as he took a deep interest in their welfare and bringing to them the great truths of the Church. As the Father James Assembly, Fourth Degree, celebrates its 50th anniversary, many Catholic men and Knights have been proud to have been members of this Assembly. In 1918, Father James was recalled back to Cincinnati at age 55. In later years, Father James suffered the loss of his sight, and spent his retirement at the Franciscan Friary in Cincinnati, where he died in 1948, and was buried in the Franciscan Cemetery. [courtesy of S.K. Victor Miller]