Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (August 28, 1774 – January 4, 1821) was an American
Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
religious and educator, known as a founder of the country's
parochial school
A parochial school is a private school, private Primary school, primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathem ...
system. Born in New York and reared as an Episcopalian, she married and had five children with her husband William Seton. She converted to Catholicism in 1805 and established the first Catholic girls' school in the nation in
Emmitsburg, Maryland
Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania.
Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrim ...
. There she also founded the first American
congregation
Congregation may refer to:
Religion
*Church (congregation), a religious organization that meets in a particular location
*Congregation (Roman Curia), an administrative body of the Catholic Church
*Religious congregation, a type of religious instit ...
of religious sisters, the
Sisters of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition alone, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (whose sisters are also of ...
.
On September 14, 1975, Seton was the first person born in what would become the United States to be
canonized
Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...
by the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
.
Biography
Early life
Elizabeth Ann Bayley was born on August 28, 1774, the second child of a socially prominent couple, surgeon
Richard Bayley
Richard Bayley (1745 – August 17, 1801) was a New York City physician and the first chief health officer of the city. An expert in yellow fever, he helped discover its epidemiology, improved city sanitation, and authored the federal Quarantine ...
and his wife Catherine Charlton of
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
.
The Bayley and Charlton families were among the earliest European settlers in the New York area. Her father's parents were of
French Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
and
English descent and lived in
New Rochelle, New York
New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...
. Numerous Huguenots had emigrated to North America in the late 17th and early 18th centuries at a time of religious persecution in France.
As Chief
Health Officer for the
Port of New York, her father attended to immigrants disembarking from ships at Staten Island. He also cared for New Yorkers when
yellow fever swept through the city (in one outbreak, it killed 700 persons in four months).
[Barkley, Elizabeth Bookser]
"Elizabeth Ann Seton: A Profoundly Human Saint"
, ''St. Anthony Messenger'', Franciscan Media, July 2009. Bayley later served as the first professor of
anatomy
Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...
at
Columbia College.
[
Elizabeth's mother Catherine was the daughter of a ]Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
who was rector for 30 years of St. Andrew's Church on Staten Island
Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
. Elizabeth was raised in what would eventually become, in the years after the American Revolution
The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
, the Episcopal Church.
Her mother, Catherine, died in 1777 when Elizabeth was three years old, possibly due to complications from the birth of her namesake daughter Catherine. The infant died early the following year. Elizabeth's father married Charlotte Amelia Barclay, a member of the Jacobus James Roosevelt family
The Roosevelt family is an American political family from New York whose members have included two United States presidents, a First Lady, and various merchants, bankers, politicians, inventors, clergymen, artists, and socialites. The progeny ...
,[ to provide a mother for his two surviving daughters. The new Mrs. Bayley participated in her church's social ministry and often took young Elizabeth with her on charitable rounds. They visited the poor in their homes to distribute food and needed items.
The couple had five children, but the marriage ended in separation. During the breakup, their stepmother rejected Elizabeth and her older sister. When their father travelled to ]London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
for further medical studies, the sisters lived temporarily in New Rochelle with their paternal uncle, William Bayley, and his wife, Sarah (Pell) Bayley. Elizabeth endured a time of darkness, grieving the absence of a second mother, as she later reflected in her journals.
In these journals, Elizabeth showed her love for nature, poetry, and music, especially the piano. Other entries expressed her religious aspirations and favorite passages from her reading, showing her introspection and natural bent toward contemplation. Elizabeth was fluent in French and English, a fine musician, and an accomplished horsewoman.
Marriage and motherhood
On January 25, 1794, at age 19, Elizabeth married William Magee Seton, aged 25, a wealthy businessman in the import
An importer is the receiving country in an export from the sending country. Importation and exportation are the defining financial transactions of international trade. Import is part of the International Trade which involves buying and receivin ...
trade. Samuel Provoost, the first Episcopal bishop
A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
of New York, presided at their wedding. Her husband's father, William Seton (1746–1798), belonged to an impoverished noble Scottish family. He had emigrated to New York in 1758, and became superintendent and part-owner of the iron-works of Ringwood, New Jersey. A loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...
, the senior William Seton was the last royal public notary for the city and province of New York.
He brought his sons William (Elizabeth's future husband) and James into the import-export mercantile firm, the William Seton Company, which became Seton, Maitland, and Company in 1793. The younger William had visited important counting house
Counting is the process of determining the number of Element (mathematics), elements of a finite set of objects; that is, determining the size (mathematics), size of a set. The traditional way of counting consists of continually increasing a (men ...
s in Europe in 1788, was a friend of Filippo Filicchi (a renowned merchant in Leghorn, Italy, with whom his firm traded), and brought the first Stradivarius
A Stradivarius is one of the string instruments, such as violins, violas, cellos, and guitars, crafted by members of the Stradivari family, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), in Cremona, Italy, during the late 17th ...
violin to America.[
]
Marriage and family
Shortly after they married, Elizabeth and William Seton moved into a fashionable residence on Wall Street. Socially prominent in New York society, the Setons belonged to Trinity Episcopal Church, near Broadway and Wall streets. A devout communicant, Elizabeth took John Henry Hobart
John Henry Hobart (September 14, 1775 – September 12, 1830) was the third Episcopal bishop of New York (1816–1830). He vigorously promoted the extension of the Episcopal Church in upstate New York, as well as founded both the General T ...
(later a bishop) as her spiritual director. Along with her sister-in-law Rebecca Mary Seton (1780–1804) (her soul-friend and dearest confidante), Elizabeth continued her former stepmother's social ministry—nursing the sick and dying among family, friends, and needy neighbors. Influenced by her father, she became a charter member of The Society for the Relief of Poor Widows with Small Children (1797) and served as its treasurer.
When the elder William Seton died, the Seton family fortunes waned during the volatile economic climate preceding the War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
, when the US boycotted trade with Great Britain. The couple took in William's six younger siblings, ages seventeen to seven.
The couple already had their own five children: Anna Maria (Annina) (1795–1812), William II (1796–1868), Richard Seton (1798–1823), Catherine
Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...
(1800–1891) (who was to become the first American to join the Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute for women in the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. In 2019, the institute had about 6,200 Religious sister, sisters worldwide, organized into a number ...
) and Rebecca Mary (1802–1816). The much expanded family required a move to the larger Seton family residence.[
]
Widowhood and conversion to Catholicism
A dispute between the United States of America and the French Republic from 1798 to 1800 led to a series of attacks on American shipping. The United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
's blockade of France, and the loss of several of Seton's ships at sea, resulted in William having to declare bankruptcy. The Setons lost their home at 61 Stone Street in lower Manhattan.[
The following summer, Elizabeth and the children stayed with her father, who was still the health officer for the Port of New York on Staten Island.][ From 1801 to 1803, they lived in a house at 8 State Street. This site is now occupied by the Church of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary (built in 1964).
Through most of their married life, William Seton suffered from ]tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
. The stress worsened his illness; his doctors sent him to Italy for the warmer climate, with Elizabeth and their eldest daughter as his companions. Upon landing at the port of Leghorn, they were held in quarantine
A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have bee ...
for a month, as authorities feared they might have brought yellow fever from New York. William died there on December 27, 1803. He was buried in the Old English Cemetery in Livorno/Leghorn. Elizabeth and her daughter Anna Maria were received by the families of her late husband's Italian business partners, Filippo and Antonio Filicchi, who introduced her to Catholicism
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
.
After returning to New York, the widow Seton was received into the Catholic Church on March 14, 1805, by Father Matthew O'Brien, pastor
A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...
of St. Peter's Church,[ then the city's only Catholic church. (Anti-Catholic laws had been lifted just a few years before). A year later, she received the ]sacrament
A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol ...
of confirmation
In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...
from the Bishop of Baltimore, John Carroll, the only Catholic bishop in the nation.
To support herself and her children, Seton had started an academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
for young ladies, as was common for widows of social standing in that period. After news of her conversion to Catholicism spread, most parents (who were Protestant) withdrew their daughters from her school. In 1807, students attending a local Protestant Academy were boarded at her house on Stuyvesant Lane in the Bowery, near St. Mark's Church.
Seton was about to move to Quebec, Canada, which had numerous French-speaking Catholics, when she met a visiting priest, Father Louis William Valentine Dubourg. He was a member of the French émigré
An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social exile or self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French verb ''émigrer'' meaning "to emigrate".
French Huguenots
Many French Hugueno ...
community of Sulpician Fathers and then president of St. Mary's College, Baltimore. The Sulpicians had taken refuge in the United States from the religious persecution of the Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror (French: ''La Terreur'', literally "The Terror") was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the French First Republic, First Republic, a series of massacres and Capital punishment in France, nu ...
related to the revolution in France. They were in the process of establishing the first Catholic seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...
for the United States, in keeping with the goals of their society. For several years, Dubourg had envisioned a religious school to meet the educational needs of the new nation's small Catholic community.[
]
Contribution to Hymnody
Inspired by the words of the first stanza of a well known hymn, ("Jerusalem, my happy home"), Elizabeth Seton, on her daughter Anna Marie's deathbed, added original stanzas and wrote that she "turned a music of her own from them."
The hymn was first published before 1820 and was thereafter published in several hymnals in which the tune name is JERUSALEM. A facsimile of the earliest publication with transcriptions in modern notation is available.
Possibly Seton was the first American-born woman to have an original hymn tune published and also the first to have a widely sung hymn text (stanzas 2-4) published.
Founder
In 1809, the widow Seton accepted the Sulpicians' invitation and moved to Emmitsburg, Maryland
Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania.
Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrim ...
, where they had a mission. A year later, she established the Saint Joseph's Academy and Free School, a school dedicated to Catholic girls' education. This effort was supported financially by Samuel Sutherland Cooper,[ a wealthy convert and seminarian at the newly established ]Mount Saint Mary's University
Mount St. Mary's University is a Private university, private Catholic university in Emmitsburg, Maryland, United States. It has the largest Catholic seminary in the United States. Undergraduate programs are divided between the College of Libera ...
, begun by John Dubois
John Dubois () (August 24, 1764 – December 20, 1842) was a French-born Catholic Church, Catholic prelate who served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, Bishop of New York from 1826 until his death in 1842.
Dubois was the first Bishop of ...
, S.S., and the Sulpicians.
On July 31, 1809, Seton established a religious community in Emmitsburg dedicated to the care of children of the poor. This was the first congregation of religious sisters founded in the United States, and its school was the first free Catholic school in America. This modest beginning marked the start of the Catholic parochial school system in the United States.
Seton's congregation was initially called the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph's. From that point on, she became known as "Mother Seton." In 1811, the sisters adopted the rules of the Daughters of Charity, co-founded in France by Vincent de Paul
Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was an Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor.
In 1622, Vincent was appointed as chaplain to the galleys. ...
and Louise de Marillac.
Later life and death
The remainder of Seton's life was spent leading and developing the new congregation of sisters. Seton was described as a charming and cultured lady. Her connections to New York society and the accompanying social pressures to leave the new life she had created for herself did not deter her from embracing her religious vocation and charitable mission. The most significant difficulties she faced were internal, stemming from misunderstandings, interpersonal conflicts, and the deaths of two daughters, other loved ones, and young sisters in the community.
Elizabeth Ann Seton died on January 4, 1821, at the age of 46. Today, her remains are interred in the National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Legacy
By 1830, the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph's were running orphanages and schools as far west as Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
and New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
. They established the first hospital west of the Mississippi in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
.[
Seton originally intended to join the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, but the ]embargo
Economic sanctions or embargoes are commercial and financial penalties applied by states or institutions against states, groups, or individuals. Economic sanctions are a form of coercion that attempts to get an actor to change its behavior throu ...
of France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
due to the Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
prevented this connection. Decades later, in 1850, the Emmitsburg community took steps to merge with the Daughters and become their first American branch, as their foundress had envisioned.[
Today, six separate religious congregations trace their roots to the beginnings of the Sisters of Charity in Emmitsburg. In addition to the original community of Sisters at Emmitsburg (now part of the Vincentian order), they are based in ]New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
; Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
; Halifax, Nova Scotia
Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...
; Convent Station, New Jersey; and Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 14,976 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located southeast of Pittsburgh, Greensburg is a part of the Greater Pittsbu ...
. The community at Convent Station established the Academy of Saint Elizabeth in 1860 and the College of Saint Elizabeth
Saint Elizabeth University (SEU) (formerly College of Saint Elizabeth, CSE) is a private Catholic university in Morris Township, New Jersey, United States. Portions of the campus are also in Florham Park. SEU offer 25 undergraduate degree pr ...
in 1899. Additionally, a church in Bothell, Washington
Bothell () is a city in King and Snohomish counties in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area, situated near the northeast end of Lake Washington in the Eastside region. It had a population of 48,161 reside ...
, has been named after her.
Elizabeth Ann Seton has also been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame
The National Women's Hall of Fame (NWHF) is an American institution founded to honor and recognize women. It was incorporated in 1969 in Seneca Falls, New York, and first inducted honorees in 1973. As of 2024, the Hall has honored 312 inducte ...
.
Canonization
Theologians approved Seton's spiritual writings on January 15, 1936, and her cause was formally opened on February 28, 1940, granting her the title of Servant of God
Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint.
Terminology
The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...
. In 1952, a miracle involving the healing of 4-year-old Ann O'Neil from leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...
was attributed to the intercession of Seton after a nun sought Seton's intercession for the girl. The miracle was a factor in the beatification of Seton and Seton was beatified
Beatification (from Latin , "blessed" and , "to make") is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. ''Beati'' is the ...
by Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...
on March 17, 1963. The pope said on the occasion, "In a house that was very small, but with ample space for charity, she sowed a seed in America which by Divine Grace grew into a large tree."
Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
canonized
Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...
Seton on September 14, 1975, in a ceremony in St. Peter's Square. In his words, "Elizabeth Ann Seton is a saint. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is an American. All of us say this with special joy and with the intention of honoring the land and the nation from which she sprang forth as the first flower in the calendar of the saints. Elizabeth Ann Seton was wholly American! Rejoice for your glorious daughter. Be proud of her. And know how to preserve her fruitful heritage." The miracle which led to the canonization of Seton involved the healing of a man, Carl Kalin, in 1963, who was given hours to live after contracting meningitis
Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasion ...
and having encephalitis
Encephalitis is inflammation of the Human brain, brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, aphasia, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include se ...
in his brain.
Seton's feast day is January 4, the eleventh day of Christmastide
Christmastide, also known as Christide, is a season of the liturgical year in most Christianity, Christian churches.
For the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church, Anglican Church, Methodist Church and some Orthodox Churches, Christmastide begins ...
and the anniversary of her death.
Elizabeth Ann Seton is honored on the liturgical calendar
The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year, ecclesiastical calendar, or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical days and seasons that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be obs ...
of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America
The Episcopal Church (TEC), also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (PECUSA), is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion, based in the United States. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is ...
on January 4.
Eponymous institutions
Hospital
The Daughters of Charity Health Network established Bayley Seton Hospital in 1980 on the site of the former Marine Hospital Service
The Marine Hospital Service was an organization of Marine Hospitals dedicated to the care of ill and disabled seamen in the United States Merchant Marine, the U.S. Coast Guard and other federal beneficiaries. The Marine Hospital Service evolved ...
hospital in Stapleton, Staten Island
Stapleton is a neighborhood in northeastern Staten Island in New York City, United States. It is located along the waterfront of Upper New York Bay, roughly bounded on the north by Tompkinsville, Staten Island, Tompkinsville at Grant Street, on ...
, New York. Most of the property is now the Bayley Seton campus of Richmond University Medical Center, while a portion is used by New York Foundling, a Catholic social services organization.
Schools
Seton High School is a parochial all-female, college-preparatory high school in the Price Hill neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. Seton was founded as Mount St. Vincent Academy in 1854. It was also known as Cedar Grove Academy. Cedar Grove was renamed in honor of Elizabeth Ann Seton on September 12, 1927.
Mother Seton School in Emmitsburg, Maryland
Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania.
Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrim ...
, is a direct descendant of the Saint Joseph's Academy and Free School. It is located less than a mile from the site of the original school and is sponsored by the Daughters of Charity. Mother Seton School is a private elementary school located in Emmitsburg and enrolls 306 students from pre-kindergarten through 8th grade. Mother Seton School is the 84th-largest private school in Maryland and the 3,381st-largest nationally. It has 15 students to every teacher.
In the Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, the Elizabeth Seton School in BF Resort Village, Las Piñas
Las Piñas (, officially the City of Las Piñas (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of ...
was established in 1975, the year of Seton's canonization. It is the largest Catholic school in the city in terms of population.
Elizabeth Seton College, located in Yonkers, New York
Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...
, was a college opened to assist young struggling women and men in need of furthering their education, offering Associate of Science or Associate of Occupational Science degrees. It merged with Iona College in 1989.
Seton Hall College (now known as Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...
) in South Orange, New Jersey
South Orange is a historic suburban Village (New Jersey), village located in Essex County, New Jersey. It was formally known as the Township of South Orange Village from October 1978 until April 25, 2024. As of the 2020 United States census, ...
, was founded in 1856 by Seton's nephew Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley
James Roosevelt Bayley (August 23, 1814 – October 3, 1877) was an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, Bishop of Newark (1853–1872) and as Roman Ca ...
and named after his aunt, as was Seton Hall Preparatory School
Seton Hall Preparatory School, generally called Seton Hall Prep, SHP, or "The Prep", is a Roman Catholic all boys' high school located in the suburban community of West Orange in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating under ...
, an all-boys High School in West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a suburban Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from t ...
, that was formerly associated with the university, but is now independent.
The Seton Hill Schools (now part of Seton Hill University), named for Seton, were founded by the Sisters of Charity in 1885. The university continues to operate in Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The population was 14,976 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located southeast of Pittsburgh, Greensburg is a part of the Greater Pittsbu ...
, under the auspices of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill.
Elizabeth Seton High School
Elizabeth Seton High School is a private school, private, all-girls Catholic Church, Catholic high school in Bladensburg, Maryland. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, Archdiocese of Washington.
History
Elizabeth Set ...
, an all-girls Catholic school in Bladensburg, Maryland
Bladensburg is a town in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 9,657 at the 2020 census. Areas in Bladensburg are located within ZIP code 20710. Bladensburg is from Washington, D.C.
History
Originally called Garr ...
, sponsored by the Daughters of Charity, is named in honor of Seton.
Seton Home Study School (setonhome.org) (Front Royal, Virginia), a Catholic K-12 homeschool, founded in 1983, is named in honor of Seton. It now has over 15,500 students across 54 countries, especially in the Philippines, Canada, and middle east.
Mother Seton Academy in Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...
.
Seton Academy (1963–2016) was a high school in South Holland, Illinois
South Holland is a village and south suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States, within Thornton Township. The population was 21,465 at the 2020 census. It is named after the Dutch province of South Holland.
History
The area ...
.
Seton Catholic High School
Seton Catholic Preparatory is a college preparatory, co-educational Catholic high school in Chandler, Arizona, United States. Named after St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the school was established in 1954 and is staffed by the Sisters of Charity of S ...
(1900–2007) was a high school in Pittston, Pennsylvania
Pittston is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city lies in the Wyoming Valley on the east side of the Susquehanna River and on the south side of the Lackawanna River. It is approximately midway between Wilkes-Barre, Pen ...
.
Seton School in Manassas, Virginia
Manassas (), formerly Manassas Junction, is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. The population was 42,772 at the 2020 Census. It is the county seat of ...
is also named for Mother Seton.
Seton Catholic School (K-8) Hudson, Ohio
Seton Catholic School (PreK-8) in Meadville, PA
Niagara University
Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in the census-designated place Niagara University, New York, in the town of Lewiston near Niagara Falls. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and ...
in Lewiston, New York
Lewiston is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Niagara County, New York, Niagara County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 15,944 at the 2020 census. The town and its contained village are named aft ...
, near Niagara Falls, also has a dormitory building named after her, called Seton Hall.
St. Elizabeth Seton is a K-9 school in Edmonton, Alberta
Seton Catholic College, a high school in Perth, Western Australia, was founded in 1990 upon the merging of De Vialar College and St Brendan's College. With the merge, the school was placed under the patronage of Elizabeth Ann Seton.
Churches
Several Catholic churches are named for Seton. The first parish named in her honor, Blessed Elizabeth Ann Seton, was established in 1963 in Shrub Oak, New York
Shrub Oak is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in the town of Yorktown in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 2,011 at the 2010 census.
Geography
Shrub Oak is located at (41.330178, ...
, with a school opening in 1966, staffed by the Sisters of Charity.
Upon her canonization in 1975, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church was established in Crofton, Maryland
Crofton is a census-designated place and planned community in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States, located west of the state capital Annapolis, south of Baltimore, and east-northeast of Washington, D.C. The community was established ...
, in the same Archdiocese of Baltimore where she had founded Saint Joseph's Academy and Free School.
, there are churches in her name in more than 40 states of the United States, plus Canada and Italy.
Buildings
The College of Mount Saint Vincent
The University of Mount Saint Vincent (UMSV) is a Private university , private Catholic university in New York City, United States. It was founded in 1847 by the Sisters of Charity of New York.
The university serves over 1,800 students with p ...
in Bronx, New York
The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...
, was founded by the Sisters of Charity of New York
The Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul of New York, most often known as the Sisters of Charity of New York, is a religious congregation of sisters in the Catholic Church whose primary missions are education and nursing and who are dedicate ...
and traces its lineage to Seton. It features the Elizabeth Seton Library and the Italian Renaissance-style Seton Hall, with a cornerstone set by John Cardinal Farley in November 1911.
Niagara University
Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in the census-designated place Niagara University, New York, in the town of Lewiston near Niagara Falls. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and ...
in Lewiston, New York
Lewiston is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Niagara County, New York, Niagara County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 15,944 at the 2020 census. The town and its contained village are named aft ...
, near Niagara Falls, also has a dormitory building named after her, called Seton Hall.
Sacred Heart University
Sacred Heart University (SHU) is a private, Roman Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1963 by Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart was the first Catholi ...
in Fairfield, Connecticut
Fairfield is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It borders the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Bridgeport and towns of Trumbull, Connecticut, Trumbull, Easton, Connecticut, Easton, Weston, Connecticut, W ...
, has a residence hall named after her, called Elizabeth Ann Seton Hall.
The parish hall at St. James Catholic Church in Gadsden, AL is named Seton Hall in honor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
Charities
Seton Villa, a small charity for providing accommodation for women with disabilities, was established in 1966 by the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul in Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, Australia.
See also
* Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, patron saint archive
References
Collected writings
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
* O'Donnell, Catherine. ''Elizabeth Seton: American Saint'' (Cornell University Press, 2018).
* O'Donnell, Catherine. "Elizabeth Seton Transatlantic Cooperation, Spiritual Struggle, and the Early Republican Church", ''U.S. Catholic Historian'' 29 (Winter 2011), 1–17.
*
Tributes
In 2025, in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Elizabeth Ann Seton's Canonization, Roman Mykyta created a one-act ballet about her life, originally performed by The Ballet Theatre of Maryland, titled "Elizabeth." The ballet used the music of Concerto gregoriano by Ottorino Respighi
Ottorino Respighi ( , , ; 9 July 187918 April 1936) was an Italian composer, violinist, teacher, and musicologist and one of the leading Italian composers of the early 20th century. List of compositions by Ottorino Respighi, His compositions ra ...
. Elizabeth Ann Seton valued dance as healthy exercise and her monogrammed dancing slippers are preserved for posterity at the National Shrine of Elizabeth Ann Seton, adding a special significance to the creation of the ballet.
External links
Full text
of the homily
A homily (from Greek ὁμιλία, ''homilía'') is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture, giving the "public explanation of a sacred doctrine" or text. The works of Origen and John Chrysostom (known as Paschal Homily) are considered ...
by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
on the occasion of Seton's canonization (September 14, 1975)
Full text
of the homily by Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...
on the occasion of Seton's beatification (March 17, 1963) (in Italian)
Prayers to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Online Museum
(archived January 16, 2014)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seton, Elizabeth Ann
1774 births
1821 deaths
18th-century Christian saints
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19th-century deaths from tuberculosis
American people of English descent
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Beatifications by Pope John XXIII
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Tuberculosis deaths in Maryland