Couvent de la Congrégation de Notre-Dame
Institution founded in 1863, West Arichat (Acadiaville).
In 1863, the convent was established at the request of Father Hubert Girroir, parish priest of the mission in West Arichat (formerly Acadiaville). Two sisters of the Congrégation de Notre-Dame, Sister Sainte-Mélanie (Mary Purcell) and Sister Saint-Romuald (Georgianna Olivier), founded the school and taught the children of the parish. Their living conditions were very difficult. The land around the convent belonged to Most Reverend Colin Francis MacKinnon, Bishop of Arichat. In 1886 the house needed major renovations but the sisters did not want to ask the parishioners, already quite poor, for financial help. However, Father Louis-Félix-Ernest Nadeau appealed to his parishioners to contribute and $1,300.00 was used for the most urgent projects. In 1891, the Mother Superior, accompanied by the Director General of Studies, visited the sisters at the convent and the students to inquire about teaching methods, study manuals and the number of registered students. The sisters were pleased to report that students regularly attended classes. During this visit, Reverend Mother noticed that the sisters lived in extreme poverty. Their residence was unsuitable and their salary was insufficient for the proper upkeep of their house. Despite their difficult living conditions, she encouraged them to continue teaching.
In early January 1892, the students presented a public concert: songs and music mixed with funny and serious dialogues made for a very pleasant experience. During this year, some one hundred students attended classes. In 1893, there were ninety-two registered students, of whom thirty-seven received their First Communion. In 1894, the number of students decreased and only about thirty were expected to enroll in the 1896 school year. In 1895, considering the small number of students, the difficult living conditions, the poverty, and the commissioners’ unwillingness to improve the sisters’ residence, the Congrégation de Notre-Dame decided to close the school.
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.
Couvent de la Congrégation de Notre-Dame
Couvent de la Congrégation de Notre-Dame
West Arichat (Acadiaville), Nova Scotia
Institution fondée en 1863
Notez que nous ne sommes pas en mesure d'indiquer l'emplacement exact de ce bâtiment. Le lieu affiché est le plus précis selon nos connaissances actuelles.