University of St. Francis Library Archives

Conceptual drawing of CSF Library - 1965 With the construction of the new USF science building underway, I think it’s a good opportunity to look back at another building on campus. Specifically, the Library , home to the USF Archives. Coincidentally, construction of the two buildings fall fifty years apart.   Plans for a new and modern library began several years before any dirt was moved. The previous CSF library was in the Motherhouse, the first building on campus. The collection grew steadily over the 1930s-1960s, with a total of 70,000 volumes by 1964. The amount of undergraduate students increased over this period to around 1,100 students, which gave a compelling reason to build a standalone library building. Library during construction - 1966 Another reason to move forward with construction was due to the new Higher Education Facilities Act of 1963. It states:  "To authorize assistance to public and other nonprofit institutions of higher education...

The fall semester is underway and the USF Library Archives is as busy as the rest of campus. ** August 31st saw the release of the book The University of St. Francis , a pictorial history of the school. There are copies for sale in the USF Bookstore or the Joliet Area Historical Museum as well as copies available online at Amazon , Barnes & Noble and Borders . ** Founder's Day was September 8th and once again the Archives created displays in various buildings on campus. These displays will be up for the month of September so take some time to visit the Library (just inside the interior doors), the Motherhouse San Damiano hallway (across from the Solutions office) and the Moser Performing Arts Center gallery space. ** Homecoming is the weekend of September 24th-26th . Linnea Knapp, Archives Librarian, and Sister Marian Voelker, Archivist for the Sisters of St. Francis, will be presenting at the Senior Saturdays event , Saturday the 25th at 10:00am in the Library. The...

In 1997 the St. Joseph College of Nursing joined the College of St. Francis and on January 1, 1998 became the College of Nursing and Allied Health at the newly renamed University of St. Francis. But before this storied nursing school joined USF they had been training nurses in Joliet for almost eight decades. Here's an abbreviated timeline about the history of St. Joseph School of Nursing. 1866 - 4 women form the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Seelback, Germany 1876 - Those 4 Sisters arrive in Avilla, Indiana 1881 - The Sisters traveled to Joliet to care for those affected by an epidemic of typhoid fever 1882 - Joliet donates $600 towards the creation of a hospital to be run by the Sisters 1882 - The Sisters of the Sacred Heart purchase the Motherhouse on Broadway from the Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate to use as the St. Joseph Hospital *** So begins the relationship between the two congregations. The Sisters of St. Francis provided education for the Si...

The University of St. Francis has a long tradition of celebrating the accomplishments of our graduating students. In the early years of the school the highest honor for a graduating senior was to be named "Miss St. Francis." Elected by secret ballot by the student body and the faculty, this senior was most representative of St. Francis ideals. In 1935, Grace Maguire, president of the senior class, was crowned the first "Miss St. Francis" at a formal coronation ceremony held in the College Auditorium on May 19th. She had 11 ladies in waiting and four local children who formed her court. The tradition continued until 1960 when it was decided that the Baccalaureate Graduation and Honors Day should be combined onto the same day. This merger of events left no room for the ceremonies involved with crowning a senior "Miss St. Francis" so the event was dropped. In the 1954 photo below Sister Elvira Bredel (president - 1953-1962) crowns Geraldine Knowles who ...

The Joliet Area Historical Museum is hosting a special exhibit: Sisters of Saint Francis of Mary Immaculate - 145 Years Serving God, Serving Community . "The Sisters of Saint Francis of Mary Immaculate transformed the landscape of Joliet through their ministry and the Congregation's building of a Motherhouse, an academy, a college, an orphanage, and a retirement home. This exhibit features facts pulled from their rich history, continuing the journey that Mother Alfred Moes began 145 years ago." Visit the Museum from June 6 through October 10, 2010 to view this amazing collection of photographs, information, artifacts, artwork and more about the Sisters' century and a half in Joliet. The Motherhouse of the Sisters of Saint Francis of Mary Immaculate - ca. 1912