St. Joseph Convent and Academy

St. Joseph Convent and Academy
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	Due south of current-day Oklahoma SH-33, Guthrie, Oklahoma
Coordinates	35°52′16.9″N 97°27′39.5″W
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built	1892, expanded 1905
Built by	J.T. Brickmap
Architect	Joseph Foucart
Architectural style	Second Empire^[citation needed]
Demolished	1995[2]
NRHP reference No.	79002000[1]
Added to NRHP	December 19, 1979

The St. Joseph Convent and Academy was a historic Roman Catholic church convent and school located off of State Highway 33 in Guthrie, Oklahoma, United States. It was added to the National Register in 1979.[1]

The Second Empire-style building was completed in 1892, with a northern expansion being built in 1905.[3] Starting in 1897, it housed the Benedictine Sisters and the St. Joseph Academy, a boarding school for girls operated by the Sisters. St. Joseph Academy was believed to be the first school of its kind in the then-established Oklahoma Territory.[4]

As Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the school grew larger in pupils and sensed a need for higher education. In 1917, the school started a four-year college curriculum and changed its name to Oklahoma Catholic College for Women, achieving another first by becoming the fledgling state's only Catholic college. The school remained open to women of all ages and grades until 1949, when the school once again changed its name to Benedictine Heights College, and began a student-by-day program for men.[5]

In 1965, the Sisters and school moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, forming what would later become St. Joseph Monastery,[6] and sold the original convent and academy property to the City of Guthrie for US$150,000 (equivalent to US$1,450,264 in 2023). As of July 2024, the property and surrounding areas have continued ownership by the City of Guthrie, with the Job Corps building and opening a Guthrie center in 1966,[7] while also utilizing the old St. Joseph facilities until their demolition in 1995.[2]

References

1. "National Register Information System – St. Joseph Convent and Academy (#79002000)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
2. Oklahoma Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office; Oklahoma State University, Department of Geography. "Oklahoma National Register". nr2_shpo.okstate.edu. Oklahoma Historical Society. Archived from the original on July 9, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
3. Everman, Diane; Gottfried, Herb; Cheek, Annetta L. (October 15, 1979). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: St. Joseph Convent and Academy accompanying photos from 1892 and 1978". National Park Service. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
4. Everman, Diane; Gottfried, Herb; Cheek, Annetta L. (October 15, 1979). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: St. Joseph Convent and Academy text form". National Park Service. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
5. United States Department of the Interior; National Park Service; Oklahoma Historical Society (November 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for St. Joseph Convent and Academy" (PDF). nr2_shpo.okstate.edu. Oklahoma Historical Society. pp. 3–4. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 9, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
6. White, James D. (January 15, 2010). "St. Joseph Monastery". The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Oklahoma Historical Society. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
7. Lobban, Sarah (August 30, 2014). "Guthrie Job Corps Center program celebrates 50 years of success". The Oklahoman. Oklahoma Publishing Company. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 9, 2024.