Father James Cavanaugh was ordained a priest of the Youngstown Diocese May 26, 1951, by Bishop Emmet Walsh in St. Columba Cathedral. Father Cavanaugh retired in 1988.
A Youngstown native, he graduated from St. Edward elementary and junior high schools and Ursuline High School, before beginning priestly studies at Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit. He completed his seminary training at St. Mary Seminary, Cleveland, later earning a master’s degree from John Carroll University near Cleveland.
Following his ordination, Father Cavanaugh’s first assignment was as summer pro-tem assistant pastor at St. James in North Jackson (now Our Lady of the Lakes Parish). His first regular assignment was as assistant pastor at St. Edward Parish in Youngstown, where he served until June 1964, when he was assigned to his first pastorate at Sacred Heart Parish in Rock Creek. Father Cavanaugh became pastor of Immaculate Conception in Wellsville in June 1966 (now Holy Trinity Parish), serving there until his appointment as pastor of St. Bernadette in Masury (now St. Thomas the Apostle Parish), in September 1975. He retired July 31, 1988, for reasons of health.
During his active priesthood, he pursued, over a dozen summers, additional studies in Scripture at Georgetown University. During his pastorate in Wellsville, he served as director of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) for Columbiana County and as moderator for the deanery Conference of Catholic Nurses. He was also a member of the Priests Senate. In addition, Father Cavanaugh was chaplain of Wellsville Council of the Knights of Columbus and the Masury Knights of Columbus Council. In his retirement, Father Cavanaugh has traveled extensively and has assisted at various parishes. He has endowed a scholarship at Youngstown Cardinal Mooney High School in the name of his brother, the late Robert Cavanaugh, a legendary English teacher at the school.
