Encyclopedia Dubuque
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
ORDER OF SISTERS OF THE HOLY GHOST
ORDER OF SISTERS OF THE HOLY GHOST. Founded by Bishop John HENNESSY on September 8, 1890, the order was drawn from laywomen under the supervision of Mother Genevieve of the Visitation.
The decision to employ lay women as teachers was not Bishop Hennessy's first choice. He had originally intended to establish a teachers' college capable of educating skilled educators for the new schools opening on the prairie. Until the school was established he intended to tutor the students himself in the needed subjects.
Bishop Hennessy first turned to four BVM Sisters teaching at St. Raphael School. When they declined, the bishop asked for recruits among the BVM Sisters at ST. JOSEPH ACADEMY. His offer was again declined leaving lay women who would volunteer to make up the initial faculty. (2)
The order was disbanded in 1925.
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Source:
1. Gallagher, Mary Kevin (editor), Seed/Harvest: A History of the Archdiocese of Dubuque, Dubuque: Archdiocese of Dubuque Press, 1987, p. 73
2. Riehl, Christian (Director of Publication), Archdiocese of Dubuque 1837-2012, Published by Éditions du Signe, 2011, p.27