Mother Theresa Maxis Duchemin (1810-1892)
Susquehanna Depot, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
The first American-born African American Catholic nun in the nation and charter member of the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first congregation of religious women of color in the world. In 1845 she helped found the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) in Michigan. At the request of Bishop John Neumann of Philadelphia, she established an IHM community in Susquehanna County and Laurel Hill Academy, in operation here until 1923.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Born in 1810, Theresa Maxis Duchemin became the first American-born Black Catholic nun and a charter member of the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the world's first congregation of women religious of color. In 1845 she helped found the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Michigan, a teaching order that endures today. At the invitation of Philadelphia's Bishop John Neumann she established an IHM community and Laurel Hill Academy in Susquehanna County, which operated here until 1923.
Why it matters
Duchemin's life broke barriers of race and gender in American Catholicism and helped build teaching orders that educated generations of children.
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Related people
- · Theresa Maxis Duchemin
- · Bishop John Neumann
Themes & tags
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