Early life and education John Maguire was born on December 11, 1904, in
New York City to James and Ellen Marie (née Shea) Maguire. He attended
Regis High School in Manhattan and
Cathedral College in Queens. Maguire began his studies for the
priesthood at
St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, New York. Two years later, Cardinal
Patrick Hayes sent Maguire to Rome to continue his studies at the
Pontifical North American College.
Priesthood On December 22, 1928, Maguire was
ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of New York by Archbishop
Giuseppe Palica in the
Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome. Upon his return to New York, Maguire's knowledge of
Italian led to his first assignment as a
curate at
St. Patrick's Old Cathedral in Manhattan, which had a large
Italian-American congregation. Maguire was appointed assistant
chancellor of the archdiocese in 1940, vice-chancellor in 1945 and chancellor in 1947. The Vatican elevated Maguire to the rank of
domestic prelate in 1948. In 1953, Archbishop
Francis Spellman named Maguire as
vicar general of the archdiocese, a post he held until 1980. Following Spellman's death in December 1967, Maguire was elected by the archdiocesan board of consultors to serve as
apostolic administrator of New York until the pope named a new archbishop. In the interim, he was mentioned as a top candidate to fill the vacant post, but Paul VI ultimately appointed Auxiliary Bishop
Terence Cooke as archbishop in March 1968.
Later life and death After reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, Maguire resigned as coadjutor archbishop and vicar general on January 8, 1980. During his retirement, Maguire resided at the rectory at St. Patrick's Cathedral. Maguire died on July 6, 1989, at
St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan at age 84. Upon his death, Cardinal
John O'Connor said, "For myself, Archbishop Maguire was the linchpin which linked the archdiocese of yesterday with the archdiocese of today." Maguire is interred near the deceased archbishops of New York in the crypt beneath the main altar of St. Patrick's Cathedral. ==References==