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St. Joseph’s Academy, St. Paul

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Color image of the main entrance to St. Joseph’s Academy, c.2001.

The main entrance to St. Joseph’s Academy, c.2001. Image courtesy of the archives of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, St. Paul Province.

St. Joseph’s Academy traces its origins to 1851, when the first Sisters of St. Joseph opened a school for girls in a log cabin on the banks of the Mississippi. One hundred and twenty years later, the final St. Joseph’s Academy High School closed its doors. Today, its buildings on Marshall and Western Avenues are on the National Register of Historic Places and still in use.

Fifteen years after the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet arrived in Missouri from Lyons, France, four of the Sisters came to Minnesota Territory. Joseph Cretin, the first Roman Catholic Bishop of St. Paul, had asked them for help with the work facing the growing community.

The four Sisters of St. Joseph arrived by steamboat and settled on the banks of the Mississippi in November 1851. Within a week, they opened their first school in the vestry of a log chapel, the forerunner of the St. Paul Cathedral.

When the need for more space became apparent, the Sisters acquired land on what was then the outskirts of the city of St. Paul, in an area known as St. Anthony Hill (now Cathedral Hill). In 1863, the first building that became St. Joseph’s Academy was built on the corner of Marshall and Western Avenues. This three-and-a-half-story limestone building is one of the oldest in St. Paul.

Growth spurred the construction of more buildings on the property to house new programs and more classrooms. From 1863, St. Joseph’s Academy had been a boarding school, too distant for daily commutes. This ended in 1905, when the city had grown and more streetcar lines became available in St. Paul. By 1926, St. Joseph’s Academy, or SJA, as it was known to students, had become one of the early St. Paul high schools.

In the early twentieth century, the Academy’s curriculum featured a well-equipped science laboratory. As the catalog stated, there was also a “collection of specimens for botanical and geological study.” The commercial department expanded so that students could choose between working after high school and taking college preparation courses.

During this period of growth, SJA was also home (1882–1930) to Ellen Ireland, a remarkable high achiever and one of the high school’s first graduates. Ireland entered the St. Joseph’s convent and became Mother Seraphine, leader of the sisters in the St. Paul Province. Except for temporary assignments at other convents, SJA was her lifelong home. She joined her brother, Archbishop John Ireland, in helping to expand SJA. Together, they prepared the way for the founding of the College of St. Catherine (now St. Catherine University) in 1905.

In 1901, graduates of SJA formed an alumnae association and began their newsletter, Chapter Chats. Although the newsletter was not sent for a number of years, the tradition was reinstated in 1931. In the early twenty-first century the SJA Alumnae Association continues to send Chapter Chats to thousands of members.

SJA was home to many outstanding teachers over the years. Several of the Sisters also contributed their talents to the wider community. Among them was Sister Mary Aloysius Sherin, a celebrated math and science teacher from 1935 to 1955.

In 1938 Sister Ann Thomasine Sampson became director of the SJA Glee Club. The group was in demand for many community-wide events in St. Paul. After retirement, Sister Ann Thomasine conducted oral histories of a number of Sisters. The histories are still available in the archives of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

Sister Irmina Kelehan, an English teacher at SJA, responded in1956 to a request from the Japanese government to open a school in Tsu, Japan. She joined several other Sisters of St. Joseph from around the U.S. and opened a school for girls. They named it St. Joseph’s Academy.

In 1971, enrollment declined while the costs of maintaining older buildings kept rising. The Sisters decided it was time to close St. Joseph’s Academy and turn to other ministries. On June 5, 1975, the buildings of the Academy were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The property and buildings were sold to Christ’s Household of Faith.

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© Minnesota Historical Society
  • Bibliography
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Dougherty, Sister Dolorita Marie, et al. Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. St. Louis, MO: B. Herder, 1966.

Marie, Sister Elizabeth. Academy for a Century: A History of St. Joseph’s Academy. St. Paul: North Central, 1951.

Richardson, Mary Jo. “A School to Remember; St. Joseph’s Academy: The Legend Lives On.” Ramsey County History 47, no. 3 (Fall 2012): 21–27.

Sampson, Sister Ann Thomasine. “Attacked by a Starving Wolf: Four Sisters of St. Joseph and Their Mission to St. Paul.” Ramsey County History 35, no. 4 (Winter 2001): 4–14.

——— . Seeds on Good Ground: Biographies of 16 Pioneer Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet in St. Paul from Their Arrival in St. Paul in 1851 until 1943. Minneapolis: M&M Printing, 2000.

Towne, Oliver. “Academy Now Closed, But It Still Plays a Part in Education.” St. Paul Pioneer Press, March 5, 1984.

Related Images

Color image of the main entrance to St. Joseph’s Academy, c.2001.
Color image of the main entrance to St. Joseph’s Academy, c.2001.
Black and white photograph of the Chapel of St. Paul, c.1855.
Black and white photograph of the Chapel of St. Paul, c.1855.
Black and white engraving made in 1863 of the exterior of St. Joseph’s Academy.
Black and white engraving made in 1863 of the exterior of St. Joseph’s Academy.
Black and white photograph of the St. Joseph’s Academy high school class of 1883
Black and white photograph of the St. Joseph’s Academy high school class of 1883
Black and white photograph of Students of St. Joseph’s Academy relaxing on school grounds, 1897.
Black and white photograph of Students of St. Joseph’s Academy relaxing on school grounds, 1897.
Black and white photograph of students at St. Joseph’s Academy performing experiments in the school’s chemistry lab, c.1930s.
Black and white photograph of students at St. Joseph’s Academy performing experiments in the school’s chemistry lab, c.1930s.
Black and white photograph of Holiday carolers at St. Joseph’s Academy, c.1950.
Black and white photograph of Holiday carolers at St. Joseph’s Academy, c.1950.
Black and white photograph of Sister Irmina Kelehan (bottom left) and other Sisters of St. Joseph setting sail for Japan, 1956.
Black and white photograph of Sister Irmina Kelehan (bottom left) and other Sisters of St. Joseph setting sail for Japan, 1956.
Black and white photograph of the debate team of St. Joseph’s Academy in the late 1960s.
Black and white photograph of the debate team of St. Joseph’s Academy in the late 1960s.

Turning Point

In 1971, after more than a century of educating young girls in Minnesota, the Sisters of St. Joseph close the doors of St. Joseph’s Academy.

Chronology

1836

Six sisters of the religious congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph embark from Lyons, France, to begin their mission in the United States. They make their new home in Carondelet, Missouri, where they take the name Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet.

1851

At the request of Bishop Joseph Cretin, four Sisters of St. Joseph arrive by steamboat in St. Paul to begin their work as teachers and nurses. They open a school, the original St. Joseph’s Academy, in a log chapel on the banks of the Mississippi River.

1852

The Sisters move to a nearby two-story brick building that serves both as a school and as sleeping quarters for student boarders.

1860

In pursuit of a larger and more permanent school, the Sisters of St. Joseph obtain land on the outskirts of the city in an area called St. Anthony Hill.

1863

The first St. Joseph’s Academy building is constructed in the southwest corner of the new property. The original building, which is three-and-one-half stories high, is of yellow limestone.

1867

The Academy is incorporated in June.

1875

In the Academy’s annual report, the curriculum reveals the addition of a number of science courses, such as astronomy, botany, and chemistry, along with three languages and other college preparation courses.

1882

Mother Seraphine Ireland, sister of John Ireland, first Archbishop of St. Paul, becomes the provincial superior of the Sisters of St. Joseph. Together they support the expansion of St. Joseph’s Academy and help found the College of St. Catherine.

1890

To provide a wider range of choices for graduates, SJA adds a number of commercial classes to the curriculum, such as stenography, typing, and other business-related classes.

1901

Graduates of St. Joseph’s Academy meet to form the SJA Alumnae Association and start their newsletter, Chapter Chats.

1926

With the expansion of the city and the increase in the number of streetcar lines available, SJA enrollment increases and it becomes a high school only.

1938

Sister Ann Thomasine Sampson becomes the director of the SJA Glee Club. The club features many school and community events, such as the yearly performance of the Messiah at the St. Paul Civic Center.

1955

After a twenty-year career as a teacher of math and science at St. Joseph’s Academy, Sister Mary Aloysius Sherin retires with honors for promoting math and science among girls at SJA.

1956

Sister Irmina Kelehen, an English teacher at SJA, embarks on a new adventure. At the request of the Japanese government, she and other Sisters of St. Joseph start another St. Joseph’s Academy in Tsu, Japan.

1971

Due to declining enrollment and other factors, St. Joseph’s Academy closes its doors and the Sisters move on to other ministries.

1975

On June 5, 1975, the buildings of St. Joseph’s Academy are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.