Ursuline Academy
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Bishop Claude Marie Dubuis, wishing to establish a Catholic school in the rapidly-growing area of North Texas, assigned six Galveston-based Ursuline nuns to the task in 1874. In January of that year Bishop Dubuis traveled with the sisters to Dallas and assisted them in opening the school. The first facility available to the new academy was a small four-room frame cottage located near Sacred Heart Church in downtown Dallas. The church's pastor, Father Joseph Martiniere, worked closely with the nuns in establishing the school, which officially opened on February 2, 1874, with seven students. As enrollment grew, plans were made to build a larger facility. In 1884 the school moved out of the downtown area to a new brick building located at Bryan, Haskell, and Live Oak streets. That building served the academy until 1949, when the school relocated to this site. Generations of Dallas girls have attended Ursuline Academy. One of the city's first kindergartens opened as part of the academy's program in 1918. Its grammar school section was discontinued in 1976, and the emphasis after that time was placed on high school education.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1874 Bishop Claude Marie Dubuis, eager to bring Catholic education to fast-growing North Texas, sent six Galveston Ursuline nuns to Dallas and helped open their school in a four-room frame cottage. Ursuline Academy welcomed its first seven students on February 2, 1874, and grew steadily — moving to a large brick building in 1884, opening one of the city's first kindergartens in 1918, and relocating to this site in 1949. Generations of Dallas girls have been educated by the Ursuline sisters.
Why it matters
Founded and run by women religious, Ursuline Academy is a landmark in both American Catholic immigration and the long history of women shaping girls' education in the growing cities of the West.
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Related people
- · Bishop Claude Marie Dubuis
- · Father Joseph Martiniere
Related events
- · Opening of Ursuline Academy (1874)
Themes & tags
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