Thanks in part to Library and Archives Canada’s Documentary Heritage Communities Program, the archives has been able to preserve, arrange, and describe the majority of the annals from the Congregations of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Pembroke, Hamilton, and London!
These annals are written logs documenting the day-to-day activities of the Sisters while fulfilling various ministries across Canada and abroad. Many of the annals also include photographs, news clippings, and ephemera from the missions.
The finding aid for the Pembroke annals is available on Archeion, Ontario’s Archival Information Network. Keep an eye on our Archeion page as we work to upload the finding aids for the annals of London and Hamilton.
Preserving and caring for records of enduring value means that the legacy of a person or community is kept for future generations. This is the mission of our archives. We hope this short video captures this.
From August to October, I had the pleasure of working with Mary Grace Kosta, Congregational Archivist, and Noelle Tangredi, eLearning Developer/Graphic Designer and caretaker of the St. Joseph’s Health Care Medical Artifacts Collection, to create an exhibit highlighting Mother Ignatia Campbell and the Sisters of St. Joseph’s first endeavours in healthcare in London. I had previously assisted with in-house exhibits and a traveling exhibit, so I was excited to put my newly learned skills to work.
The Monsignor W. T. Flannery Radio and Television Broadcasts, known as the “School of Christ,” was a radio and television program that aired from 1939 to 1963.
In 1868, shortly after their arrival in London, Ontario, the Sisters of St. Joseph founded Mount Hope to provide a home for Sisters, the elderly and orphans. It was renamed House of Providence, and continued to provide care for the elderly until 1966.
In 1971, a group of citizens in London met to discuss setting up a detoxification clinic. Sr. Mary Doyle, of the Sisters of St. Joseph, chaired the group which included representatives from hospitals, social service agencies, the Addiction Research Foundation, the police, the Salvation Army, and Mission Services.
The Associates had their official beginning in 1987 when Chapter approved the movement toward having an Associates program. In 1988, Sr. Doreen Kraemer was appointed by Council to be the Director of Associates.
Although in the 21st century differences between different Christian denominations are mostly no longer a source of antagonism, these differences had a significant impact on the young town of Peterborough toward the end of the 19th century.
In recognition of the 170 years since the Hamilton foundation, I was asked to reflect on why Mother Martha is so significant to the Hamilton sisters. Her story is poignant and instructive, and its meaning is still unfolding.
Since 2016, the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in Canada Consolidated Archives has participated in the medical artifacts cataloguing project with St. Joseph’s Health Care in London, Ontario.
On April 19, 1852, at the request of the Very Rev. E. Gordon, Vicar General of Hamilton and with the approval of Bishop de Charbonnel, the only Bishop in western Ontario at that time, three Sisters of St. Joseph came to Hamilton from Toronto.
There are many reasons to like old houses--the architecture, the decorative details and high ceilings. but many old home lovers feel a connection to the history of their old home. Every house has its story.
Recently there has been an explosion of interest in the field of family history research (otherwise known as genealogy). One reason could be the uncertainty of tomorrow’s future,...
This year marks one hundred years since the Sisters of St. Joseph formed a community in Pembroke, Ontario. This slideshow celebrates their century of service in the Ottawa Valley.
The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in Canada administered a number of hospitals in Canada, including in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario, as well as in Brazil.
The Pembroke Sisters established the Radville Community Hospital in Radville, Saskatchewan, and administered St. Joseph's Hospital in Barrhead, Alberta and St. Francis Memorial Hospital in Barry's Bay, Ontario.
Sisters' residence and first hospital in Radville, Saskatchewan
The Peterborough Sisters founded several hospitals in Ontario including St. Joseph's Hospital in Peterborough as well as St. Joseph's Hospital in Parry Sound, and St. Joseph's Hospital in North Bay. They also journeyed to Estevan, Saskatchewan to establish St. Joseph's Hospital. Travelling even further, they opened St. Joseph’s Hospital in Itacoataria, Brazil.
St. Joseph's Hospital, Parry Sound, Ontario
The London Sisters founded St. Joseph's Hospital in Chatham, and St. Joseph's Hospital in Sarnia, Ontario. In London, they established St. Joseph's Hospital and St. Mary's Hospital. They also set up several western hospitals including Stettler Hospital, Galahad Hospital, St. Paul's Hospital in Rimbey, and Killam General Hospital, all in Alberta.
St. Joseph's Hospital, Galahad, Alberta
The Hamilton Sisters established St. Joseph's Hospital in Guelph, St. Joseph's Hospital in Hamilton, St. Mary's Hospital in Kitchener, and St. Joseph's Hospital in Brantford, Ontario.
St. Joseph's Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario
Our archives has records relating to some of these hospitals. We are also engaged in cataloguing medical artifacts from the time the Sisters administered St. Joseph's Hospital in London.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Sisters of St. Joseph community in Pembroke, Ontario. The Sisters departed their second Motherhouse in Pembroke in 2019, after faithfully serving Pembroke and the nearby rural communities for one hundred years. During their time in the Ottawa Valley, the Sisters served as music teachers, elementary and secondary school educators, and healthcare workers. They administered St. Francis Hospital in Barry's Bay for many years. They established a Normal School, later St. Mary's Teachers' College, in Chapeau, Québec. They also branched out from Pembroke and administered hospitals and long-term care facilities in Barrhead, Alberta and Radville and Regina, Saskatchewan. They established a mission in Chincha Alta, Peru serving as nurses and educators. While the Sisters no longer live in the Motherhouse in Pembroke, they are still actively involved in serving the "dear neighbor" where ever they still reside - whether in Pembroke, Barry's Bay, Ottawa, or Peru.
We are happy to launch the new website for our consolidated archives on the eve of St. Joseph's Day in the Year of St. Joseph. We hope you will keep checking back as we add new content each month!
St. Joseph is our patron saint. St. Joseph was by birth of the royal family of David, but lived as a carpenter. He found Mary pregnant when he married her, and planned to quietly divorce her. However, an angel told him the child was the son of God and conceived by the Holy Spirit, so he took her as his wife. After the visit of the Magi, an angel warned him of violence against the child Jesus by King Herod, and so the family fled to Egypt, returning to Nazareth only after Herod’s death. Along with Mary, he searched for Jesus in Jerusalem and found him in the temple. Joseph died before the crucifixion and his feast is celebrated on March 19, the traditional day of his death. St. Joseph is the patron saint of the universal church, workers, social justice, and of Canada.
Birth of Jesus window
Angel visit to St. Joseph window
Death of St. Joseph window
Dream of St. Joseph window
St. Joseph chapel windows
Birth of Jesus with angels window
Holy Family window
St. Joseph in center of community patrons window
Artistic representations of St. Joseph in our community
