Year by year, each local community keeps a running, dated account of important and significant events; the list of members in residence; the ministry/apostolic work of each member; discussions and decisions, especially those of scheduled house meetings; and names of faith group members. Annals of local communities are one of the main sources of Congregational history. In the days when convents were more common, an annalist was appointed for each community. Today, there are many cases where Sisters live much more independently and are responsible for writing their own annals. A great deal of SCN history would be lost if not for the Sisters who have taken the time over the past 211 years to record their stories and the stories of those around them.

Over the next few weeks, the SCN Archival Center will be sharing excerpts from the Annals to demonstrate how they bring SCN history to life. We hope that you enjoy them as much as we do!

Have you written your annals this year?

The annalist of St. Mary’s Academy in Leonardtown, Maryland tells of their struggles to procure enough wood for the fires in April 1917.