John J. Chanche

The Right Reverend John Joseph Chanche, S.S.
Bishop of Natchez
Daguerreotype of Bishop Chanche
See	Diocese of Natchez
In office	March 14, 1841—July 22, 1852
Predecessor	None
Successor	James Oliver Van de Velde, S.J.
Orders
Ordination	June 5, 1819
Consecration	March 14, 1841 by Samuel Eccleston, S.S.
Personal details
Born	October 4, 1795 Baltimore, Maryland
Died	July 22, 1852 Frederick, Maryland
Signature

Styles of John Joseph Chanche, S.S.
Reference style	The Right Reverend
Spoken style	Your Excellency
Religious style	His Excellency
Posthumous style	none

The Right Reverend John Joseph Mary Benedict Chanche, S.S., (October 4, 1795 – July 22, 1852) was the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Natchez from 1841 to 1852.

Chanche was born October 4, 1795, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was born to parents who had fled to Baltimore from the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti), during the Haitian Revolution (which itself occurred at about the same time as the French Revolution).

Chanche entered St. Mary's Seminary, where he joined the Sulpicians, and was ordained a priest on June 5, 1819. He was then appointed a professor at the school. In 1833, he was chosen as Master of Ceremonies for the Second Provincial Council of Baltimore, a major step by the bishops of the nation in organizing its structure. Chanche was named Vice President of the seminary, and in 1834 succeeded Samuel Eccleston, S.S., as its President.

Chanche was offered the post of coadjutor first to the Archbishop of Baltimore and then to the Bishop of Boston successively, but declined both. He was still President of St. Mary's when he was appointed Bishop of Natchez in 1841.

The Diocese of Natchez was created on July 28, 1837, and although it encompassed the entire state of Mississippi, a large geographic region, nearly three years passed before Chanche was appointed as its first bishop on December 15, 1840.