St. Ann's Convent School

“The devoted women who look after such institutions and the helpless little ones whom Providence has entrusted to their care do not expect a reward in the world, yet it was a source of pleasure and gratification for them and to the rev gentlemen now here to know the community appreciated and encouraged their good work.” – His Excellency, Lieutenant Governor J.W. Trutch – The Daily Colonist 13 September 1871

St. Ann's Convent School, as it looked after completion of the first part of the building in 1871. Photo courtesy of St. Ann's Archives

The laying of the cornerstone at St. Ann’s Convent School on 13 September 1871 was a monumental occasion that has left many questions. Lieutenant Governor J.W. Trutch laid the cornerstone for the Sisters of St. Anns. And H.L.Langevin was present, as part of what marked the first visit of a federal minister to the province of British Columbia. The 1871 convent is the first section of the larger expanded building on the historic site today. It was reported on in the Daily Colonist, but the remaining records reveal numerous inconsistencies with the practices of the Sisters of St. Ann’s.

First, the Sisters of St. Ann’s kept meticulous records of all that occurred at the convent, the school, the orphanage, St. Joseph’s hospital, and the Catholic community of British Columbia as a whole. As early as the turn of the century, the St. Ann’s Academy kept a museum or cabinet of curiosities and always emphasized their history of pioneering ecclesiastical work in the province. Yet, despite the Lieutenant Governor’s presence and the Sisters’ self-professed patriotism, photos of the cornerstone laying ceremony remain impossible to find.

The museum at St. Ann's Academy in 1914. The Sister's of St. Ann's have kept meticulous records of their time and work in British Columbia and Alaska for more than 100 years. Photo courtesy of St. Ann's Archives

Second, with the later additions to the present building, the original cornerstone has since disappeared with no evidence of the time capsule ever being recovered. Both the time capsule and the cornerstone were laid at the Northeast corner of the building, to which renovations were made in 1882 and 1886, taking out the East wall and, presumably, the cornerstone with it.

To view a pictoral timeline of the subsequent additions to the present day St. Ann's Academy, click here.

Click here to view the St. Ann's Ceremony
Click here to view the St. Ann's Cornerstone
Click here to view the St. Ann's Timeline
Click to view St. Ann's References