Archives
Saint Benedict’s Monastery maintains a physical and digital archive for use by scholars, genealogists and the general public to learn more about the lives of Benedictine women in the 19th century to the present day. Inquiries should be addressed to sbmarchive@csbsju.edu.
The archive staff uploads videos to our YouTube channel. This is an ongoing project, so keep checking back to learn more about the community’s history. You can also view digitized films that have been submitted to Minnesota Digital Library (Minnesota Reflections).
Location
The Archives is located on the lowest level of the 1983 addition to Sacred Heart Chapel. A receptionist in the Gathering Place directs visitors to the Archives.
Hours
Monday – Friday: 8 – 11:15 a.m., 1 – 4 p.m.
Appointments are preferred.
For more information, contact:
Mariterese Woida, OSB
Archivist
(320) 363-7034
sbmarchive@csbsju.edu
Archives Collection
The Archives houses documents, photographs, sound and video recordings and motion picture film. The ongoing oral history program has, at present, approximately 600 transcriptions of audio tapes of interviews with sisters and lay associates.
The materials are descriptive of religious life and ministries of the sisters of Saint Benedict’s Monastery from the 19th century until the present. Although the sisters have had a presence in more than 100 places, those for which there are a significant number of records include the following:
From the Chronicles
In 1903, “The sisters built a separate house to be used as an infirmary for students on St. Benedict’s Convent campus. Because of its segregation from other buildings, it was ideal for isolating patients with contagious diseases; hence dubbed the ‘pest house.’ A few years after it was built, more than 100 students and candidates were stricken in the diphtheria epidemic.”
This building still exists today. It was moved closer to Minnesota Street in St. Joseph and renovated for use as the convent guest house. Today a group of sisters live in there and call it the Light House.