Overview of Provincial Archives collections
The provincial archives are the official repository for all records of permanent historical value created or received by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Joseph’s and the St. Louise province of the Daughters of Charity in the pursuit of its ecclesiastical and legal obligations and in the accomplishment of its mission and the transaction of its business. Gifts from individuals not associated with the company that relate directly to the history and works of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Joseph’s and the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul are welcome and documented by a deed of gift. Other materials from within the company should be arranged with the appropriate individual department, or subsidiary corporations. The collection encompasses the period from the establishment of the community by Elizabeth Seton in 1809 to the present.
The Province of St. Louise consists of the states and provinces of the United States and Canada east of the Rock Mountains.
You can search our online database at this link, where you can find certain digitized materials, featured collections, and searching by keywords, subjects, or collections.
We have prepared research guides for subjects below. More forthcoming
You can also locate finding aids for individual collections at links below.
docarchivesblog.org 
Thanks to Denise Gallo and the Archives staff for posting these finding aids. I’m especially happy to see the scope of your material on St. Joseph Orphan Asylum, Philadelphia. A number of Sisters who eventually became part of the independent NY community served there, including Sr. Elizabeth Boyle.
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Just looking for information,on my previous years..spent time in St Joseph Gonzaga, n St Joe’s on 29th n Allegheny Ave..from bout 60 till 67..any information bout me would be appreciated
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Unfortunately we have no information on individuals who lived at St. Joseph’s Gonzaga. Suggest that you contact Catholic Charities at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
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Any thoughts on where to find any information about our relatives who were residing in Religious community at Convent Station in the early 1900s? I found one great aunt with her family in the 1880 census, and then found Sr M Carmela (Mary Agnes Phelan, born in Brooklyn in1873) in the NJ State Census in 1905 and the Federal Census in 1910, listed as a Latin teacher, but have been unable to find anything more. I also have Rev. Henry C Phelan, DD listed on the 1920 Federal Census as the chaplain at St Elizabeth Cottage at Convent Station, but have been unable to find more. Do you know if s there a publication in your archives that lists their death dates and their burial location? Thanks for any direction you might be able to share!
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The Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth in Convent Station, New Jersey are a separate community of women religious (although one with a common founder and shared early history). They can be contacted through this form: https://www.scnj.org/index.php/contact-us
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It appears that my great grand aunt Blanche Lathrop was one of the nurses who was part of the base hospital 102 staff. I would love to know more about her. I was wondering if the diaries or other materials mention her name at all. I am just now realizing that she may have been a very remarkable woman for her time. She started a hospital in Los Angeles in the late 1920s. She later lived in Coos Bay Oregon. I would love to know more about her
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She is not referenced in the diaries, but we do have some snippets of information about your great grand aunt. If you send an email to archives@doc.org we can send it to you!
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I am searching for information relating to my stay as a premature infant, born at Providence Hospital, at the Sarah Fisher Home, Detroit, in 1951. Would these records be available?
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Unfortunately, we do not have any adoption or sacramental records from Sarah Fisher Home. If you are looking for adoption records, you may want to contact Catholic Charities of Southeast Michigan. If you are looking for baptism or sacramental records, you may want to contact Church of the Transfiguration, Southfield (inquire about St. Michael Parish records). These should at least get you some next steps.
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My third great grandmother is Eliza Seton Maitland, half sister of William Magee Seton and husband of Elizabeth Bayley Seton. I am researching my family history, specifically William Seton Sr. How may obtain copies of specific correspondence of Mother Seton’s in “SETON PAPERS AND RELATED DOCUMENTS CONTENTS, BOOK XVIII 1-3-3-18 SETON – LETTERS AND MEMOIRS.” 1. Seton, Elizabeth Ann, [New York] to William M. Seton, Eulogy of father-in-law, unsigned, n.d., c 1798.
From the SETON- JEVONS LETTERS – SJC COLLECTION,
19. Seton, Elizabeth [Mother of William Seton, Sr.], England to Mr. William Seton, Esquire, the superintendent’s office, New York, June, 1783.
20. New York – not signed, but handwriting of William Seton, April 1, 1786.
21. B. Seton, Cavenham Hill to William Seton, Sr., New York, America, September 4 1787.
22. Curson, Richard, Baltimore, MD to Messrs. William Seton & Company, New York, July 27, 1788.
23. Curson, Richard, Baltimore, MD to William Seton, Sr., New York, June 8, 1791.
24. Filicchi, Philip, Leghorn, Italy to William Seton, Sr., New York, October 29, 1793.
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Please copy and paste this request in an email to archives@doc.org. We would love to help you out!
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: I am researching my family history and was wondering if you have any information about the convent in Donaldsonville, LA. My grandfather , Frank Lawrence Sullivan, worked for the convent for years. I was looking for info on his employment. There is a possibility that he was also one of the orphans at the convent that was run by the Daughters of Charity. His DOB would have been 5/18/1868, 1869 or 1875 in St. Gabriel, LA. His mother was Francis Hewit (not sure of last name) and father was Frank Sullivan (an Irish immigrant). They were an interracial couple so no marriage records would be available. If there is any information or if you can point me in a direction where I may possibly find some info, it would be greatly appreciated.
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Our school lists are actually copies of documents in the Louisiana State Archives. We did not find a match for the name Sullivan for the specified years. We do not have any personnel lists. You may want to investigate with the LA State Archives, the Parish, or with a local Historical Society
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My grandmother was in an orphanage in Philadelphia Pa in early 1910 – 1915. She was a child of German immigrants. Her name was Ella/Ellen Noll. Her sister was also there ( Anna or Christine). Her sister was older and left at age 18. My grandmother stayed until her sister could care for her, when my grandmother was about 18. Where can I find this information. And would it say why she was placed here ( possibly St. Vincent’s orphan asylum or St. Joseph’s). Her date of birth was February 1895. I m trying to gather information for my family tree. My grandmother told me as a child that she could only pray in German. Thank you.
Donna Geist Wawrzyniak
dwawrz625@gmail.com
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Can you please send an email with this information to archives@doc.org?
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