Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine

The Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine, a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women, have served health, education and social service needs in the Diocese of Cleveland, Ohio, since 1851.

The first Bishop of Cleveland, the Rt. Rev. Louis Amadeus Rappe, planned to establish a hospital in the city under the supervision of Catholic Sisters. He sought candidates unsuccessfully in France for a time while on a tour of his native country in 1849-50. Finally he was directed to Mother Bernardine Cabaret, the Mother Superior of St. Louis Hospital, run by the Hospitaller canonesses regular, who followed the Rule of St. Augustine, in Boulogne-sur-Mer. There Rappe set forth his invitation for some members of the community to come to America and establish a hospital in his diocese.

Mother Bernardine immediately volunteered to go herself. Securing the commitment of Sister Françoise Guillement to accompany her, she put her proposal for the mission to the community. Though the Sisters were reluctant to lose her talents, they voted unanimously to authorize the mission to America. Bishop Rappe, eagerly awaiting the Sisters' arrival, had written in the spring, "Come, my daughters, I have now prepared a place for you. On it is good spring water and good fresh air." Mother Bernardine then persuaded two of the postulants, Louise Brulois and Cornelie Muselet, to join in this missionary venture. The small group left France on September 24, 1851, with little more than chapel furnishings and boxes of linens for their home and nursing needs. During the voyage, they studied the basics of English to prepare for their new home.

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