Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College: 160 years

Wabash Valley profiles : a series of tributes to hometown people and events that have shaped our history

Description:	One typed page including photograph of the Church of the Immaculate Conception; a brief history of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. ABASH VALLEY WP R O F I L E SA series of tributes to hometown people and events that have shaped our history.Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College: 160 Yearsn Oct. 22, 1840, 160 years ago, six Sisters of Providence from RuillZ-sur-Loir, France, arrived in densely-wooded western Vigo County with an ecclesiastical mandate to found a Catholic school of higher education for girls. The initial colony, consisting of Blessed Mother Theodore GuZrin, Sister St. Vincent GagZ, Sister Basilde SZnZschal, Sister Mary Xavier LerZe, Sister St. Ligouri Tiercin and Sister Olympiade Boyer, endured incredible hardships. Western roads were notoriously bad. The coach transporting the nuns from Vincennes to Terre Haute overturned. High water caused by torrential rain transformed the Wabash River bottoms into huge lakes. Guided by the Rev. Stanislaus Buteux, Church of the Immaculate Conception the first resident priest assigned to Terre Haute, the immigrants finally reached their destination. Though Father Buteux had erected a church at the site in 1837, it had been ravaged by fire in February 1840. In its place was a tiny log hut, used both as a chapel and Buteuxs residence. Four postulants resided in a nearby farmhouse occupied by Joseph Thralls and his large family. A 50-foot by 25foot two-story building designed to house the sisters was under construction. From those humble beginnings a community blossomed. On July 2, 1841, Saint Marys Academy for Young Ladies was opened in the building designed to serve as the sisters residence. Terre Haute children, both Catholic and Protestant, were among the first students. By November, ten pupils, including one from Pittsburgh, boarded on the Sugar Creek Township campus. Through poverty, recurrent disasters and illness, Mother Theodore and her companions responded to the needs of the Vincennes diocese, opening several missions, schools and orphanages. On several occasions, abandoning the mission site was seriously considered. Nevertheless, on Nov. 10, 1844, a new brick church was dedicated and, in 1853, a motherhouse was erected. At the time of her death, May 14, 1856, GuZrin was responsible for 24 postulants and 74 professed sisters. New Academy buildings were erected in 1860 and 1870 (Foley Hall). Since then, operations have expanded far beyond their Indiana home. In Vigo County the sisters have furnished administrators for Providence Hospital (1872), Saint Ann Orphanage (1877), St. Anthonys Hospital (1844) and teachers at schools associated with St. Joseph (1848), St. Benedict (1865), St. Ann (1876), St. Patrick (1882 and 1923), St. Margaret Mary (1921) and Sacred Heart (1942) parishes, as well as for Schulte High School (1953). As early as 1882, consideration was given to converting Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Academy into a womens Catholic college. The first degree was bestowed upon Terre Haute resident Elizabeth Cooper in 1899, ten years before a full collegiate program was adopted. On Aug. 11, 1911, contracts were let for GuZrin Hall and Saint Cecilia Conservatory of Music, the first college buildings. Both were dedicated in 1913. The devotion and resolve of the founding sistersand those who succeeded them in creating and maintaining a major community resource from such meager origins provides daily inspiration, worthy of special celebration on Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College Foundation Day 2000.OTERRE HAUTE(812) 238-6000NATIONAL BANKAlways Close to HomeDate published: October 19, 2000Filename: Saint Mary-of-the-Woods
Origin:	2000-10-18
Created By:	McCormick, Mike
Publisher:	Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Source:	http://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/vchs/id/585
Collection:	Vigo County Historical Society
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/
Copyright:	Copyright Undetermined
Subjects:	Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College Religious education Religious facilities Universities & colleges Education Religion

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