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Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Montreal, part of our history

This is a picture of a street in Montreal. It will take us several moves before the Society of the Sacred Heart is finally established in the heart of the city. The new foundation was still not in the city but on a beautiful site with about sixty arpents of land. The "acquisition is almost a gift, since it is made on the condition of our paying an annual rent of 740 francs to an elderly spinster, with whose death the rent expires. And even now, the income from the land pays the rent." Soon a stone edifice, a 120 feet long, four stories in height and with two lateral wings, was built and there were forty-five boarders; the nuns hoped the number would be tripled when they moved into the new building. The house is just nine miles from Montreal and can be reached in an hour by carriage as the roads are excellent. The community of St. Jacques was divided then in 1846 with Mother Sallion taking the majority to the new boarding school at St. Vincent de Paul, Ile Jesus, which was separated fro the island of Montreal by the Riviere des Prairies. (Sorry but I cannot put in the accents).
It turned out not to be near enough to Montreal, but more about that tomorrow!

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