“From the Archives” The Holy Cross Sisters
The Holy Cross Sisters teaching at Saint Mary School did not have a leisurely life in the 1950s. Their usual day began before dawn, walking in the cold dark morning from their convent at 623 South Fairfax Street up to the church for very early Mass. And a lot of them were not young! Several of the teachers from this decade, including Sister Constantia, Sister Joanne and Sister Osmana, were well into their 70s or older. On holidays or holy days when there were no classes to teach, they enjoyed a special privilege—sleeping in until 6:30 a.m.!
The sisters had a chapel in their convent so they could pray before the Blessed Sacrament at any time. But they did not have Mass there on a regular basis. It was a memorable day when a priest, frequently a visitor to the parish and not on the regular Saint Mary Mass rotation, would come to the convent for daily Mass. One frequent visitor was Fr. Michael Igoe, a life-long Old-Towner. When he retired as pastor of nearby Saint Louis Church, Fr. Igoe lived in his family home on Duke Street. He could walk to either the church or convent to celebrate his daily Mass. One of the sisters in the Holy Cross motherhouse recalled a quaint old Christmas custom they observed when Fr. Igoe was with them—three consecutive “low Masses” on Christmas morning!
After attending early Mass at Saint Mary on school days, the sisters walked the six blocks back to their convent for breakfast. Then they walked to the school, three more blocks, to begin a day of teaching. Even Sundays were not days of rest. Until other nearby parishes (including Saint Louis, Saint Rita and Blessed Sacrament) built their own parochial schools, the Holy Cross Sisters taught Sunday school each week for the children of those growing Northern Virginia parishes.
The tireless Holy Cross Sisters also had to deal with laundering, starching and “fluting” (pleating) the “paper plate haloes” they wore as part of their habit. One or two sisters were the officially designated “fluters” each year, an additional duty besides teaching. Like all teachers, they also had lesson plans, paper grading, etc., to keep them busy after school. In those days, there were few breaks for art, music or gym during the school day. And they usually had 60 children in their class. Occasionally the priests of the parish would visit the classes, always a respite enjoyed by the sisters and children.
Many thanks to Holy Cross Sister Alice Condon, formerly Sister Louise Therese, who taught at Saint Mary School in the 1950s, for sharing these memories. A native of Alexandria, she is a very active senior citizen now living at the Holy Cross Sisters’ Motherhouse at Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana.
— Kitty Guy, Parish Historian
Throughout 2020, the Basilica of Saint Mary will present “From the Archives.” It is a weekly feature online and in our bulletin spotlighting the history of the parish. All of our “From the Archives” features are located here.