The Sisters of Mercy and St. Mary’s Home
N 32° 02.423 W 081° 03.700
17S E 494177 N 3544913
Historical marker located in Savannah, GA.
Waymark Code: WM186AX
Location: Georgia, United States
Date Posted: 06/07/2023
Views: 0
The Sisters of Mercy came to Savannah from Charleston in 1845 to care for the sick and poor. During the turbulent years of Civil War and Reconstruction (including the devastating 1876 yellow fever epidemic), the Sisters cared for students and orphaned girls at their Savannah boarding school, St. Vincent’s Academy. They also opened a residential facility for girls at White Bluff in 1875 – the first St. Mary’s Home. With growing numbers, they moved to a larger facility on Habersham Street. In 1938 they moved here, their third location. Responding to changing needs, St. Mary’s was integrated and began accepting boys in the 1960s. Shifts in child welfare practices, including a focus on foster care instead of residential care, led to St. Mary’s closure in 2010. The renovated building reopened in 2015 as the Catholic Pastoral Center.
Type of Marker: Building
Marker #: 25-52
Date: 2015.3
Sponsor: Georgia Historical Society and the Catholic Diocese of Savannah
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