On September 1, 1869, six sisters from the Convent of Mercy in Chicago arrived in Harrisburg. Their mission was to help the founder of the Harrisburg Diocese, Bishop Jeremiah Shanahan, strengthen the Catholic presence within the city. There was no convent available for them upon their arrival, so the sisters stayed at the residence of Reverend Shanahan at 214 State Street.Shanahan detailed that the labor the sisters would do would be difficult and strenuous; however, he felt that their passion for service would overcome such hardships. The sisters arrived with the understanding that they could return to Chicago if their work in Harrisburg proved undesirable. Within a year, two sisters departed for Chicago, while a third left the community altogether, returning to life as a layperson. This left three sisters, including Sister Mary Clare Grace, as the only remaining members in Harrisburg. Sister Grace was soon appointed as Superior by Mother Scholastica, the Mother Superior of St. Xavier’s Convent in Chicago, who believed that God had appointed Sister Mary Clare Grace to this position. Sister Mary Clare Grace was born Mary Ellen Grace in County Waterford, Ireland, in 1833 into a devout and prosperous family. Her father, Thomas Grace, was the nephew of Thomas L. Grace, Archbishop of St. Paul’s Church in Dublin. Despite her wealthy upbringing, Mother Clare dedicated herself to a life of holy poverty, seeking to embody the example of Jesus Christ. Before moving to Harrisburg, she taught as a sister at St. Xavier Academy, a private school in Chicago for nine years. After being appointed by Mother Scholastica as Superior of the Harrisburg Foundation, she devoted herself to training aspiring young women and girls to become Catholic nuns. During her time at the Harrisburg Foundation, Mother Clare was known for her deep humility and compassion, as well as her strict religious discipline. Some women chafed at her strong expectations and left the Harrisburg Foundation program. As one of the Sisters’ later biographers noted, “To many, Mother Clare seemed too rigid, too severe in the enforcement of religious discipline…many aspirants who entered the program did not remain.” Those who stayed “entered for the sole purpose of seeking their own perfection to make themselves worthy instruments of God.” Mother Clare was uncompromising in her belief that a holy life should include strict discipline, humility, selflessness, and a service to one’s community. Her strict religious stance also made her a successful institutional leader. She established and led institutions such as St. Genevieve’s Academy on McClay Street, which was known as the Motherhouse and a main revenue source of the diocese. Here, she worked closely with Very Reverend John Vincent O’Reilly to set up a boarding school for women that would educate in religion and the arts. She also founded the Mercy Home residence on the corner of Second and Liberty streets, which provided low-income housing to girls and women. Next, she spearheaded the Sylvan Heights Orphanage on the corner of Twelfth and Derry streets to serve as an orphanage for girls from infancy to age seventeen. A central building used by Mother Clare and the Sisters of Mercy was the James Russ House, located at the corner of North and Fourth Streets. The largest mansion in the Eighth Ward, the James Russ House contained the Keeley Institute, which was known at the time for its pioneering treatment for alcohol addiction and drug use, serving as a place for patients to receive care during their recovery. The Keeley Institute operated in the James Russ House from 1892 to 1896 and again from 1901 to around 1908. After the Keeley Institute temporarily relocated to a property at the corner of North and Capitol streets, the Russ House served as St. Clare’s Infirmary. Founded in 1897, the Infirmary provided medical care, particularly to soldiers during the Spanish-American War, and was highly regarded by the local community. The layout of the infirmary included the kitchen, refectory, and offices on the first floor, while the second and third floors contained twelve private rooms and an operating room. The fourth floor contained two large rooms used for wards. There was, however, no room for a chapel in the building. Due to a desperate need for nurses and overflowing hospitals during the Spanish-American War, many soldiers from nearby Camp Meade were treated at the infirmary until financial trouble forced it to close in 1899. The sisters were known for their hospitality and compassion. Addressing the family of John Sholly, a Civil War veteran and patient at the Infirmary, Sister Pauline said, “We will take the poor man gladly and do all in our power to make him comfortable.” Indeed, the infirmary left a positive legacy in treating 260 civilians and 70 soldiers from nearby Camp Meade. The War Department recognized their excellent hospitality by paying the institution a sum of three hundred and four dollars. After the Infirmary’s closing in 1899, the Keeley Institute moved back into the James Russ House in 1901, where it likely remained until about 1908. The James Russ House then served as a boarding house until the building’s destruction around 1913 as part of the demolition of the Eighth Ward and the creation of the new Capitol grounds. Despite the infirmary’s closure, the sisters continued their work at the Mercy Home and St. Genevieve’s Academy, where they provided low-income housing to women and children in the community. Mother Clare retired as Superior of the Harrisburg Foundation in 1902, but continued to serve in the Mercy Home and St. Genevieve’s Academy until her death on June 16, 1911. Although the infirmary and the community no longer exist today, the compassion of Mother Clare and the Sisters of Mercy added to the positive reputation of the infirmary and created a space of unity and care in Harrisburg. Mother Clare’s strong religious beliefs, combined with her emphasis on helping the poor, established a notable Catholic presence in the city that remains to this day. J. Howard Wert, a well-known columnist for the Harrisburg Patriot, described the Infirmary’s excellent service:
During the Spanish-American war . . . the work of this St. Clare Infirmary became especially conspicuous. Many a stricken soldier had reason to bless its shelter and thank God for the ministering care of those devoted Sisters of Mercy. Mother Clare now rests beneath the low green tent toward which we are all trending, but I would be recreant in my duty, if, in this connection, I did not place a wreath of recognition and laudation on her tomb.
A full list of the resources used in this story can be found here.
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