Marker recognizing works over 151 years of Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill dedicated in Greensburg

For 151 years, the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill have overcome many obstacles and rejections in an effort to better the many communities around the world they have served.

On Saturday, about 100 members of the congregation, Seton Hill University administrators, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and friends gathered off College Avenue in Greensburg to dedicate a permanent cast aluminum historical marker recognizing all the years the Sisters of Charity have ministered in Western Pennsylvania and around the world.

“The placement of the historical marker at the foot of Seton Hill property and near the railroad tracks is very significant,” said U.S. Sisters of Charity Provincial Board President Sister Mary Norbert Long during the marker dedication ceremony.

Sisters of Charity Founder Aloysia Lowe initially founded the congregation in Altoona as she traveled the railroad between Cincinnati, Ohio, and Altoona, while directing the expanding charitable works of the congregation.

But, according to Long, Lowe often admired the “Stokes Mansion on the Hill” as she passed through Greensburg.

“It kept suggesting itself to her mind as a site for the future Mother House,” Long said. “Finally, in 1882, the purchase was made for the property.

“Mother Aloysia named the estate ‘Seton Hill,’ first in honor of Mother Seton, foundress of the Sisters of Charity; and secondly, because being built on one of the hills surrounding the town of Greensburg, it suggested one of the hills of Rome, the center of Christianity,” Long added.

Seton Hill University President Dr. Mary Finger described the charity as “courageous and entrepreneurial women who succeeded despite the obstacles put in their path, starting with Mother Aloysia Lowe, who refused to accept subpar materials from contractors building the Mother House, and continuing to Sister Francesca Brownlee, who overcame initial rejection from the Commonwealth to successfully obtain a charter for a four-year college for women (Seton Hill),” Finger said.

Finger said the charity has left an “indelible mark” on the history of the university.

“Despite the obstacles they faced, they were always moving forward to education students to think and act critically and ethically, and go out and make a difference in the world,” Finger said.

The commissions historical marker program has identified more than 2,000 sites of historic state significance since its founding in 1946. The sites are marked with a cast aluminum marker with a state insignia and text identifying the person, place, or innovation of note.

The Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill marker states:

“Founded in Altoona in 1870 by Mother Aloysia Lowe, the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill made Greensburg their permanent home in 1882. The community initiated groundbreaking educational, healthcare, and social service programs by serving an extensive network of schools and hospitals in 12 states and create an international congregation when they expanded to South Korea in 1960.”

“The Sisters of Charity founded Seton Hill College, now University, in 1918,” the marker states.

There are five historic markers in Greensburg for subjects primarily relating to the American Revolution, government or transportation. The congregation’s marker makes a valuable addition to the markers in Greensburg under the categories of Education, Religion, and Women.

Of the 45 markers located in Westmoreland County, the Sisters of Charity marker is one of only four markers related to the history of women, according to Justin McKeel, who was representing the state commission.

In anticipation of the congregation’s sesquicentennial year, archivists Casey Bowser and Sister Louise Grundish nominated the congregation for a historic marker to recognize the contributions and historic impacts charity in the state.

Bowser and Grundish noted to the commission beginning in 1870, the congregation dedicated their lives to providing quality education and vital social service programs, serving as nurses and health care leaders, engaging in pastoral ministry, and assisting at-risk, vulnerable populations.

The Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill is an international apostolic congregation of women religious who are present in three countries, five United States dioceses and one United States archdiocese.

More information about the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill is available at scsh.org.