Influence

The Sisters trace their roots to Saint Walburg’s Monastery in Eichstätt, Bavaria. Six of them emigrated to St. Cloud in 1857, moving to St. Joseph in 1863. They came to teach children of European settlers and to live a monastic life on the frontier. In time, eleven daughter monasteries were founded, four in other countries.

Mount St. Scholastica Monastery, Atchison, Kansas, 1863
St. Scholastica Monastery, Duluth, Minnesota, 1892
Annunciation Monastery – Bismarck, North Dakota, 1947
Saint Bede Monastery – Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 1948
Saint Paul’s Monastery – St. Paul, Minnesota, 1948
Saint Placid Priory – Lacey, Washington, 1952
Saint Benedict’s Monastery – Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan, 1985
Saint Benedict Monastery - Tanshui, Taipei, Taiwan, 1988
Saint Martin Monastery – Nassau, Bahamas, 1994
Mount Benedict Monastery – Ogden, Utah, 1994
Monasterio Santa Escolastica – Humacao, Puerto Rico, 2000

A commitment to education led the Sisters to open and staff schools in Central Minnesota and abroad. Since 1857, 1,653 Sisters have taught in 163 elementary and secondary schools located primarily in the Diocese of St. Cloud. Recognizing the need for higher education, they founded Saint Benedict’s Academy in 1878, which evolved into the College of Saint Benedict in 1913. In 1961, the Sisters transferred ownership to the College, constituting it a separately incorporated institution. As two fiscally independent corporations, the College and the Monastery share adjacent, overlapping campuses but are governed by two separate Boards (the Monastic Council governs the Sisters).

In response to the Gospel and the Rule of St. Benedict, the Sisters’ devotion to caring for the sick and elderly began at the same time as their work in education. They established homes for the elderly and six hospitals, including the St. Cloud Hospital. In 1962, the St. Cloud Hospital was separately incorporated, making it fiscally independent. In 1964, the Sisters transferred all of the Hospital’s assets to the new corporation.

Education

The Sisters have served in schools throughout the state of Minnesota, depending on where the need for teachers was great. In all, they have established or served at 163 schools in the United States, including 72 in the Diocese of St. Cloud. (The following is only a partial list illustrating the extent and variety of the Sisters’ early and ongoing involvement in education.)

Saint Benedict’s Academy, St. Joseph, Minnesota (later Saint Benedict’s High School), 1880-1973
Indian Industrial School, St. Joseph, Minnesota, 1884-1896
Saint Benedict’s Boys’ Boarding School, St. Joseph, Minnesota, 1897-1948
Cathedral High School, St. Cloud, Minnesota, 1902
St. Mary’s Academy Boarding School, Altoona, Wisconsin, 1906-1948
College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph, Minnesota, 1913 (separately incorporated in 1961)
St. Boniface High School, Cold Spring, Minnesota, 1919-1968
Pierz Memorial High School, Pierz, Minnesota, 1952-1968
St. Mary’s Boy’s Boarding School, Altoona, Wisconsin, 1938-1948
White Earth/Red Lake Reservation Schools, 1878-1969, 1888
St. Cloud School for Exceptional Children, Avon, Minnesota, 1945-1948
Benedictine Institute of Sacred Theology, St. Joseph, Minnesota (now Saint John’s University School of Theology), 1958.
Saint Anselm’s College, Manchester, New Hampshire, 1968

The Sisters have also served in schools throughout the world, including China, Japan, Taiwan, Puerto Rico and the Bahamas.

Health Care

The Sisters’ care for the sick and elderly is reflected in the establishment or staffing of

St. Cloud Hospital, 1886 (separately incorporated in 1962)
St. Cloud School of Nursing, 1908
St. Cloud School of X-ray Technology
St. Cloud School of Anesthesiology
St. Cloud School of Laboratory Technicians
St. Benedict’s Center (Division of St. Cloud Hospital, now St. Benedict’s Senior Community), 1978
St. Alexius Hospital in Bismarck, North Dakota, 1885
Mauston Hospital in Mauston, Wisconsin, 1934
St. Benedict’s Hospital in Ogden, Utah, 1946
School of Nursing in Ogden, Utah
Queen of Peace Hospital in New Prague, Minnesota, 1952
St. Michael’s Hospital in Richfield, Utah, 1960
St. Joseph’s Home for the Aged in St. Cloud, Minnesota, 1900
St. Raphael’s Rest Home in St. Cloud, Minnesota, 1928
St. Ann’s Home in Dickinson, North Dakota, 1944
St. Benedict’s Home in Dickinson, North Dakota, 1944
Mary Rondorf Home in Staples, Minnesota, 1953
St. Mary’s Home in Long Prairie, Minnesota, 1957
Mother of Mercy Nursing Home in Albany, Minnesota, 1959
Assumption Nursing Home in Cold Spring, Minnesota, 1964

Ministry and Social Services

St. Benedict’s Orphanage, St. Joseph, Minnesota, 1881-1893
St. Joseph’s Orphanage, St. Paul, Minnesota, 1877-1948
St. Benedict’s Indian Mission, White Earth, Minnesota, 1878-1980
Kaifeng Dispensary for refugees and soldiers wounded in the Sino-Japanese War, Kaifeng, China, 1937-1941
Little Flower Indian Mission, Onamia, Minnesota, 1941-2001
Saint Benedict’s Home for Children, Tanshui, Taiwan, 1960-1975
School for Handicapped Children, Shimizusawa, Japan, 1966-1980
Benedictine Mission in Recife, Brazil, 1977-2001

Agriculture, Domestic and Fine Arts

In addition to education and health care, the Sisters have engaged in a rich variety of work, from diversified farming to the domestic and fine arts. They baked, cooked, cleaned, laundered, sewed, bound books, wove cloth, designed vestments and made candles. They tended turkeys, chickens, bees, orchards, vineyards and gardens. They created works of art and music, did research and wrote books. They were administrators, organists, liturgists, catechists, archivists, librarians, poets, mentors, tutors and advocates for the poor.