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Coverage Dates

1958 – 2009

Description

This collection includes records of Fr. McInnes’ activities as President of Fairfield (1964-1973) as well as papers, scrapbooks, and photo albums documenting his personal interests, activities, and travels. Of particular note are the contents of a scrapbook maintained by Fr. McInnes devoted to letters and newspaper articles on the subject of student unrest at Fairfield between 1967 and 1970. The collection also includes biographical material on Fr. McInnes, including oral history transcripts and copies of obituary articles.

Notes

William C. McInnes was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts in 1923 and raised in nearby Quincy. After serving in World War II as a meteorologist and graduating from Boston College, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1946. He received a master’s degree in philosophy from Boston College in 1951 and a Ph.D. in business administration New York University in 1954. Ordained to the priesthood in 1957, he joined the Boston College faculty in 1959, becoming Associate Dean of the College of Business Administration in 1961. In 1964, he became President of Fairfield University, where his tenure was marked by considerable growth and change. Key events of his administration included the admission of women to Fairfield’s College of Arts and Sciences and the advent of “separate incorporation” for Fairfield University and its Jesuit community. Following his time at Fairfield, Fr. McInnes served as President of the University of San Francisco, President of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, and parochial vicar of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Storrs, CT. In retirement at Boston College, he taught classes at the Carroll School of Business and served as chaplain of the Boston College Alumni Association. He died in Weston, Massachusetts in 2009.

Quantity

Series One: 3 office storage boxes. Series Two: one office storage box and one flat oversized archival box. Series Three: one flat oversized archival box.

Origin

Series One: These papers were transferred to the Fairfield University Archive from the Campion Center in Weston, Massachusetts in 2009, Accession No. 121209. Series Two: These photograph albums/scrapbooks were donated by John Wardzala, resident of Trumbull, CT and personal friend of Fr. McInnes, Accession No. 042312. Series Three: extant in the collection as of 2003.

Processed By

Elise Bochinski, Katherine Bonamo

Last Updated

6-2024

Type

Finding Aid

Publisher

Fairfield University

Place of Publication

Fairfield, Conn.

Collection

Finding Aids

Repository

Fairfield University Archives and Special Collections

Identifier

FIN0017

Papers of Rev. William C. McInnes, S.J.

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