The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth moved from their first home at St. Thomas Farm in Nelson County to this site, which would become Nazareth, Ky., 195 years ago this month. The SCNs purchased the plot of land from a Presbyterian minister. The preacher’s home was outfitted as a temporary chapel and the sisters built a school. Within a decade, the school known as Nazareth Academy could accommodate one hundred boarders.
Sister Anna Blanche McGill described the scene on June 11, 1822: “And now again across the Kentucky meadows of that early time the community made one of its historic and picturesque pilgrimages; sisters and students passed in procession to the new Nazareth which promised to be a permanent abiding-place.”
Today the Motherhouse and central offices of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth are still located on this property, which encompasses more than 300 acres. Nazareth Villages, an apartment facility for the elderly and disabled; St. Joseph Montessori Children’s Center; the SCN Visitor Center; Heritage Museum; and the Nazareth Retreat Center are also located on the campus.
(Information provided by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth)
