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St. Joseph’s Free School and The Academy of Mount Saint Vincent, stained glass panels, 1810; 1859; 1943; 1972
Panel 1, upper section: Emmitsburg, Maryland, 1810:
In 1810 when Elizabeth Seton arrived in Emmitsburg, Maryland, the new community of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Joseph’s, opened a free school, the two-story Federal-style building depicted, today known as the ‘White House.’ On February 22, 1810, three girls were the first day students to attend Saint Joseph’s Free School, the first free Catholic school for girls staffed by religious women in the country.
Panel 1, lower section: McGown’s Pass, Manhattan, 1847:
Mother Seton’s school in Emmitsburg was the precursor to the Academy of Mount Saint Vincent, Bronx, opened after the New York Sisters separated from Emmitsburg community in 1847. Under the patronage of Reverend John Hughes, the first Archbishop of New York and brother to Mother Mary Angela Hughes who led the Community 1855-1861, the Academy at McGown’s Pass was regarded as one of the pioneer institutions in the East for the education of Catholic girls. In 1851, the Academy received its charter from the New York State Legislature. McGown’s Pass at approximately 109th Street and 5th Avenue, had been the location of Revolutionary War headquarters for George Washington and his army.
Panel 2, upper section: Font Hill-On-Hudson, Bronx, New York, 1859
When the Sisters were asked to vacate the McGown’s Pass property in Manhattan for the planned development of Central Park, they purchased the 55-acre estate Font Hill-On-Hudson located on the east bank of the Hudson River. In 1859 when construction of the first building at Font Hill-on-Hudson was completed, the building included accommodations for the new Academy and boarding students. The classrooms, grand study hall, art room, music hall, reception rooms, as well as the Convent and Chapel of the Immaculate Conception were housed in this building, today known as Founders Hall.
Panel 2, lower section: Tuxedo Park, New York, 1943
As the College student population increased, the need for separate quarters for the Academy’s faculty, students, and activities, was addressed. To provide a new location for the school, Archbishop Spellman deeded an estate in Tuxedo Park, New York, that had been donated to the Archdiocese of New York by Mrs. E. John Heidseick. On this property, the mansion ‘Chastellux’ first housed the Academy of Mount Saint Vincent at Tuxedo Park in 1943. In 1947, the Academy expanded in acreage when Mr. Erasmus Lindley deeded his adjacent home and property. -
Motherhouse, Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill
Motherhouse building on the campus of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, Greensburg, Pennsylvania -
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Status of Mary as the Incomparable Virgin
The statue of Mary as the Incomparable Virgin. The Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth actually began as the Sisters of Charity in Nashville, TN. When their situation there changed leaving them in financial straits the Community’s foundress, Mother Xavier Ross, left to attend a meeting of Bishops in St. Louis, MO. In hopes of finding a Bishop who needed their work. Before leaving, Mother Xavier instructed the Sisters to begin a Novena to Mary as the Incomparable Virgin that she be successful. In St. Louis Mother Xavier met Bishop Miege, Bishop of the territory East of the Rocky Mountains and headquartered in Leavenworth, KS. Bishop Miege was pleased to have the Sisters come settle and minister to the people of Kansas. Mother Xavier returned to Nashville with the good news and the Sisters have ever since held Mary, the Incomparable Virgin in regard as well as the Novena. Unfortunately, in order to settle their debts before leaving Nashville the Sisters had to sell off most of their furniture and all of their land and buildings and so did not bring much with them to Leavenworth. One of the few things they did bring was this statue of the Incomparable Virgin. -
Silver pitcher
In 1858, as Community foundress Mother Xavier Ross prepared to leave Nashville, TN., where her Community had first began, The people of Nashville, TN. gifted Mother Xavier with a silver pitcher engraved: “A token of esteem and gratitude, respectfully inscribed to the Sisters of Charity, by the citizens of Nashville, Dec. 4th, 1858.” The pitcher has become a treasured historical artifact of the early days in Nashville and the work the Sisters did there. -
Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Motherhouse
Photograph of the Motherhouse at Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, Kansas -
Elizabeth Boyle Hall
Elizabeth Boyle Hall is the location of the archives of the SIsters of Charity of New York. -
Convent Kitchen
Sister Mary Francis Irvin, a Sister of Charity of Seton Hill, was a dedicated religious,
inspiring teacher, and gifted artist. While attending the Carnegie Institute of Technology during World War II, Sr. Mary Francis completed a precisionist-style painting entitled “Convent Kitchen.” The piece would go on to win second place in the 1943 Pittsburgh Associated Artists exhibition. “Convent Kitchen” not only reveals the hard work and comradery of women religious, but the painting’s style and perspective reinforce the subject’s simplicity in life and the idea of subjection of the individual identity for the good of the whole in community life. Conversely, the subject of women religious shelling peas is a juxtaposition to the more industrial precisionist paintings of the 1920s and 30s. In a continuation of the story, “Convent Kitchen” inspired a great benefactor of Sr. Mary Francis, helping to further her career as an artist.