Colonial Despatches

The Sisters of St. Ann are a congregation of religious women, whose society was founded in 1850 in Vaudreuil, Québec by Marie Esther Blondin.1

On 5 June 1858, four sisters/nuns arrived in Victoria to begin their work in educating the children of the colony. The first of their work included the opening of a school and helping the sick and orphaned. The nuns' arrival to BC coincided with the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush and its associated societal changes. Due to this, the women were tasked with responding to new community circumstances.2

The Sisters of St. Ann were known as the “pioneer nuns” whose provision of education and health care established them as a vital part of the Victoria community. During their time in BC, these women were responsible for establishing St. Ann's Academy and St. Joseph's Hospital which both still exist as historical sites.3

• 1. Sisters of St. Ann Archives, Royal BC Museum.
• 2. Ibid.; The Sisters of St. Ann: The First Ten Years, University of Victoria.
• 3. The Sisters of St. Ann: The First Ten Years.