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From its humble beginning in the mid-1850s the land between Fenwick Terrace on the East and Adams Street on the west developed into a substantial educational and religious complex. For more than a century, this complex dominated the landscape of Adams Street. The history of this educational complex began with the arrival of the first five sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in 1852. By 1879, there was a literal “wall of brick” on the east side of Adams Street comprising the convent of the sisters of Notre Dame, a female academy for boarding students and a parochial school for girls. Rules of the religious order prohibited teaching boys.
By 1882, a chapel was also erected within the walls which enclosed the area, which was approximately 1 & ¼ acres (52183 sq ft). The girls’ boarding school, St. Patrick's Academy, moved to new quarters in Tyngsboro, while the girls’ and boys’ school continued as separate entities until the opening of the present school in 1958. The original boys’ school on Suffolk Street closed ca. 1937 and the Xaverian Brothers left. The sisters of Notre Dame received permission to teach boys. The Adams Street building adjacent to the church became the boys’ school. The photo above was taken ca. 1939. North Common Village was in process as shown by the empty lots on the left. The schools, convent, and chapel were demolished in 1958 and was replaced by a new two-story brick school as seen in the current satellite image below. |
