Mount Saint Joseph in Hamilton, Ontario was a residence purchased by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamilton in 1933. The building was originally the residence of Bishop J. T. McNally. Under the supervision of Sister M. Ambrosia, the building was used as a residence for the girls from St. Mary’s Orphanage. Two years later the building was demolished and a new one erected in its place. This new building, named Mount St. Joseph Girl’s Division of St. Mary’s Orphanage, officially opened on Easter Sunday, April 12, 1936. Sisters attending Normal School and teaching t St. Vincent’s Commercial also resided there. In 1951, the boys from St. Mary’s Orphanage also resided here after the move of the Motherhouse to Bridgeview and the demolition of the old St. Mary’s Orphanage facility. It was one of the first institutions in the province to house boys and girls together, ensuring that brothers and sisters would not be separated. In 1960, Mount St. Joseph Orphanage closed, and the building became Mount St. Joseph Centre for Emotionally Disturbed Boys. In 1980, Mount St. Joseph Centre moved to 69 Flatt Street, Burlington. The name was changed to Woodview Children’s Centre. The Sisters were not involved with the centre once it moved. Martin’s Manor, a home for unwed mothers, temporarily operated out of the building in 1980. In 1982, Chedoke-McMaster’s Cool School, an alternative education to for troubled youth and those with learning disabilities, leased two floors of the former Mount St. Joseph Centre. Other tenants included a pastoral counselling centre, St. Joseph Hospital Foundation, a bereavement group sponsored by the Sisters, Moeller and Hassell Architect and Engineer, and Martin-Stewart Contracting. In 1986 and 1987, Latin American Refugee families were housed here. The property was sold in 2005.
Hamilton is located on the traditional territories of the Erie, Neutral, Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee and Mississaugas. The land is covered by the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant and the Between the Lakes Purchase of 1792.
This series contains historical summaries, house meeting minutes, news clippings, photographs, and the annals from Mount St. Joseph in Hamilton, Ontario. The annals recount the uses and activities at Mount St. Joseph, the activities of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamilton, and historical events in Hamilton, Canada, and beyond.
