Two early lithographs show what the village of Carondelet looked like in the 1840s. The more panoramic view shows two structures on a hill in the background. The building on the left is the first wing of the school established four years after the arrival of the French pioneer sisters in America. As St. Joseph Academy, it offered a solid education to young women whose families were able to pay the tuition and costs. This money helped subsidize services to the poor and provide for the fledgling community. Most of the building costs of the first wing were given by Elizabeth Mullanphy, widow of John Mullanphy who is considered the area’s first millionaire. The steepled church in the other lithograph is the stone church of the village: Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. Joseph of the Angels. Americans over time shortened that to Saints Mary and Joseph.
Notice the bell outside and in front of the church. It was later moved to the Carondelet Motherhouse chapel. Two other close views show the same bell and its inscription. Sr. Delphine Fontbonne was the first superior of the small band of pioneer sisters who arrived in 1836. The bell arrived in 1838 sent by Delphine’s aunt, Mother St. John Fontbonne from Lyon, France.
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