Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill

The Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill were founded by Sister Aloysia Lowe. She was accompanied by Sisters Blanche O'Keefe, Maria Theresa O'Donnell, Maria Kavanaugh and two novices.

In 1809, Elizabeth Ann Seton established a religious order of women in Emmitsburg, Maryland, based on the rule drawn up by Vincent de Paul for Louise de Marillac's Daughters of Charity. The community expanded as it received requests from bishops in New York, St. Louis, Missouri; Cincinnati, Ohio and elsewhere to send sisters to staff schools, orphanages, and hospitals. When the Emmitsburg community decided to affiliate with the French Daughters of Charity, the Cincinnati sisters decided in 1852 to become an independent congregation.

In 1869, Bishop Michael Domenec of Pittsburgh appealed to the Cincinnati community of Sisters of Charity for sisters to serve the needs of the growing Catholic population in his diocese. Sister Aloysia Lowe, three other Sisters of Charity, and two novices, left Cincinnati and arrived in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on August 20, 1870.

Under the direction of Mother Aloysia Lowe and her assistant, Sister Anne Regina Ennis, the Altoona convent became an independent foundation of the Sisters of Charity. In quick succession, schools were opened in Blairsville, Johnstown, and the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of East Liberty, Sharpsburg, Lawrenceville, and South Side.

In the summer of 1882, recognizing the need for a larger motherhouse, Mother Aloysia for her growing Congregation and purchased the Jennings Farm in Greensburg where Seton Hill University's main hilltop campus now stands. She named the site, which consisted primarily of farmland, Seton Hill, in honor of Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, the founder of the Sisters of Charity and the first American-born saint. The property had fallen into neglect over the years but a few usable buildings remained, including the Stokes mansion. Named for previous owner William A. Stokes, a wealthy lawyer and a major in the Civil War, this grand home had once contained the first private library Andrew Carnegie had ever seen, inspiring the public libraries he established in later years.

There, they also established a school for boys and in 1883, St. Joseph's Academy for Girls. Within the next year, Saint Joseph Academy was opened. After creating the Saint Joseph Academy for Girls (which operated until 1947), the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill founded what came to be known as the Seton Hill Schools (which included the Seton Hill Conservatory of Music and Seton Hill Conservatory of Art) in 1885. In 1914, the Sisters opened the doors to Seton Hill Junior College. Four years later, in 1918, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania approved Seton Hill's charter for a four-year institution of higher learning and Seton Hill College was born. A charter of incorporation was granted to the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill in 1885, and the sisters broke ground for a motherhouse the following year. It was completed in 1889. Seton Hill's physical campus includes the original 200 hilltop acres in addition to a downtown cultural district campus and a nearby Center for Orthodontics.

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