Ursulines Brown County Ohio History Marker Dedication
A dedication ceremony for a new Ohio History marker commemorating Ursulines of Brown County will be held in Saint Martin, OH. The unveiling will begin at 12:30 p.m. on September 17, 2021 at Ursuline/Chatfield Collegue Campus.
THE URSULINES OF BROWN COUNTY
On July 21, 1845, eleven Ursuline sisters from Boulogne-sur Mer and Beaulieu, France, arrived
in St. Martin, Brown County, Ohio. A Catholic order of sisters known for providing quality
education to young women, the Ursulines were invited by Cincinnati Archbishop John Baptist
Purcell (1800-1883) to establish a school in the diocese and granted approximately 400 acres in
St. Martin for that purpose. Led by Mother Julia Chatfield (1808-1878), the sisters quickly
established their convent, a day school, and, within the year, admitted their first boarders.
Originally known as The Saint Ursula Literary Institute, the school operated for the next 136
years. The Ursulines educated local students from their adopted Brown County as well as many
who came from across the U.S. and farther abroad to board on campus. (Continued from other side) Between 1845-1981, the School of the Brown County Ursulines
taught 4,262 students from the Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish faiths. An 1858 prospectus
announced the school’s intention “to form young ladies to virtue, ornament their minds with
useful information, and cultivate those qualities which render virtue attractive, not only in the
family circle but in society.” That vision expanded in 1974 to include young men. In 1958,
Ursuline Teacher Training Institute was established to prepare novitiates for their careers in
education. It incorporated as Chatfield College in 1971 offering two-year Associate of Arts
degrees to the wider public, and now boasts a second campus in Cincinnati. Chatfield College
continues the legacy of the Ursulines of Brown County with a modern mission rooted in faith,
community, and collaboration.