“St. Ann’s Academy is an enduring legacy of the role of women and Francophones in the history of British Columbia.”
National and Provincial Historic Sites: Parks Canada
How a French Canadian Order Came to Serve the People of the Pacific Northwest
STURDY ROOTS
Blessed Marie-Anne, born Esther Sureau-Blondin, Founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Ann in Vaudreuil, Quebec, lives on in multiple memories, captured in one of her most prophetic statements: “The deeper the tree sinks its roots into the soil, the greater its chances of growing, branching out, and producing fruit.” The sturdy roots of Blessed Marie-Anne’s religious congregation are planted firmly in the Pacific Northwest and nowhere more evident than at St. Ann's Academy in Victoria, BC.
In 1846, Reverend Modeste Demers was consecrated Roman Catholic Bishop and made missionary associate of Bishop Norbert Blanchet in the Oregon Territory, a vast area ranging from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean and from the Columbia River to the North Pole. Bishop Blanchet had been present in Quebec in 1851 at the profession of faith of a Sister of St. Ann and when “…giving the holy habit to a young woman of Vaudreuil, he had prophetically reserved her for the missions of the West.” Subsequently, when Bishop Demers appealed to the Sisters of St. Ann for missionaries to the West, his plea was immediately answered in the affirmative.
The departure date of the four chosen to go to “Vancouver’s Island” – Sister Marie-du-Sacré-Cœur (Mary of the Sacred Heart), Sister Marie-Angèle , Sister Marie-de-la-Conception (Mary of the Conception) and Sister Marie-Luména – as well as their laywoman companion, Miss Marie Mainville, was set for April 8, 1858.
The travelers’ journey began on land, by train to New York, then by steamship to Panama, across the Isthmus of Panama by train, and once again by steamer along the West Coast. Some of them were not good sailors, and they suffered through the major part of the journey at sea, through changing ships four times, and, after their arrival in Fort Victoria, through being thrown into the “hustle and bustle” of a community excited by the news of a gold rush!
These French Canadian pioneer women were simple, modest folk, who knew only their culture – Quebec of the mid-nineteenth century. Though they had studied English as well as rudimentary nursing skills prior to their departure and attempted to prepare to meet all challenges; surely their trust in God alone sustained them. The journey of fifty-four days contained many frightening moments (and a wide variety of marriage proposals!), but trust, patience and a modicum of humor carried them forward.
The Sisters had fully expected to find a French speaking population in Fort Victoria. Indeed, the fur trade had brought many French Canadians to the West Coast. Their building and trapping skills were valued by the Hudson’s Bay Company and they helped erect Fort Victoria. There were enough French speakers in the region at the time to warrant the publication of a French newspaper, Le courrier de la Nouvelle-Calédonie. The little log house that became the pioneer convent in which the Sisters first settled was built by Jacques Lachequier, and then bought by Léon Morel, both French Canadians employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company. In turn, Léon Morel sold the house to Bishop Demers, and his daughter Émilie was one of the first pupils of the Sisters of St. Ann. So, understandably, the Sisters were a bit overwhelmed when they found that they were expected to teach the daughters of the English speaking officers of the Hudson’s Bay Company. However, they quickly adapted to the situation. Nonetheless, the influence of the Sisters’ French roots is particularly noticeable in the architecture of St. Ann’s Academy and its beautiful chapel, which are strongly reminiscent of Quebecois convents and rural churches.
In June 2008, the Society of Friends of St. Ann’s Academy, in conjunction with the Provincial Capital Commission, held a four day commemoration to mark the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Sisters of St. Ann in Victoria. The celebration included many happy reunions between former students, as well as poignant recounting of the untold stories of devotion of these “daughters of Blessed Marie-Anne” to the people of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest. More tales of courage and strength were further revealed in the year 2009 during observations of the 200th anniversary of the Founder, Blessed Mother Marie Anne.
In the same spirit of celebration, the Association historique francophone de Victoria (the French Historical Association of Victoria) will be celebrating its 25th anniversary in September 2010. At the heart of this commemoration will be the contribution of the Sisters of St. Ann, originally from Quebec, to health and education in the Pacific Northwest.
STRONG FOUNDATIONS
In celebration of International Museum Day May 18, 2010, St. Ann’s Academy, in conjunction with the Sisters of St. Ann Archives, is pleased to present the opening of a new exhibit “The Architects of St. Ann’s Academy.” This is an opportunity to learn about the men—and the woman!–who designed the nationally, provincially and municipally designated St. Ann’s Academy building, as well as schools and hospitals throughout BC, Alaska and the Yukon. The exhibition includes historic photographs and reproductions of rare original blueprints from well known local architects John Teague and Thomas Hooper, as well as Sister Mary Osithe,—one of BC’s earliest female architects—and a Sister of St. Ann!
St. Ann’s Academy was built as a school and convent for the Sisters of St. Ann between 1871 and 1910. Over the years, it has become a landmark in Victoria’s cultural landscape, brick and mortar testimony to the early Francophone presence in Victoria. Even before the construction of the Academy, there is a connection with Brother Joseph Michaud, CSV, who brought his own experiences in rural Quebec to the west coast of Canada to his design for the original Catholic Cathedral in Victoria in 1858, which later became the chapel at St. Ann’s Academy. Brother (later: Father) Michaud’s influence at St. Ann’s Academy continued long after his return to Quebec in the 1860s.
Without any formal training as an architect, Sister Mary Osithe, SSA designed many buildings for her congregation, including a hospital in Smithers, St. Ann’s School for Boys in Duncan (now Providence Farm) and Foundress Hall at Little Flower Academy in Vancouver. A woman of diverse interests and talents in addition to her training as an artist and teacher, Sister Mary Osithe was also an accomplished photographer and china painter.
Wherever the Sisters of St. Ann’s mission led them throughout the West, they commissioned the leading architects of the day to build their schools and hospitals. This is an excellent opportunity to learn how John Teague, Thomas Hooper, C. Elwood Watkins and Samuel Maclure, among others, helped the Sisters of St. Ann build the “strong foundations” of their education and healthcare mission in BC, Alaska and the Yukon. “The Architects of St. Ann’s Academy” exhibit continues until April 1, 2011.