École Saint-Vincent

Around 1853, the neighbourhood known at the time as Pied-du-Courant numbered only a few households. A chapel was built on the corner of Sainte-Catherine and Fullum Streets, but there was no school. It was then that the sisters of the Congrégation de Notre-Dame started their work among the children in the area. The sisters taught in various wooden houses until they rented a stone house, in 1863, on Sainte-Marie Street which became Notre-Dame Street. In 1866, the Saint Vincent Convent also became a residence. The following year, the Pied-du-Courant neighbourhood broke away from Notre-Dame Parish and established its own parish which was named Saint-Vincent-de-Paul. The pastor of the new parish, Father Louis-Moïse Lavallée, built a church and convent on Sainte-Catherine Street. In 1881, Saint Vincent School was transferred there. The convent was divided into two sections: Saint Catherine Academy and the parish school. The stone building on Sainte-Marie Street was rented to individuals pending an offer to purchase. After many hardships because of insolvent debtors, the house was sold in 1888.

NB: This text was written using documents found in the archival holdings in our possession and does not constitute a complete administrative history of the teaching establishment.