Today in Wheeling History: May 31--Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy graduated its last class and closed after 160 years of operation (2008).
Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy was a private Catholic all-girls school in Wheeling, West Virginia, founded in 1848 by Bishop Richard V. Whelan. Initially named the Wheeling Female Academy and located at 14th and Eoff streets, the school moved to a new building on the former Steenrod Farm in 1865 and was renamed Mount de Chantal after Saint Jane de Chantal, co-founder of the Visitation Order. The school building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, and Mount de Chantal was known for its strong academic and fine arts programs, operating as a boarding school until 1982. However, declining enrollment and financial support led to the school's closure in 2008 after 160 years of operation. Many notable women attended Mount de Chantal, including two future First Ladies of West Virginia, Carrie Watson Fleming and Edna Hall Scott Kump, as well as Judith Herndon, one of the first women to serve in the West Virginia Senate, renowned artist Virginia B. Evans, and famous singer and actress Oriska Worden. In 2011, Wheeling Hospital purchased the property, and despite being listed as a 2011 Endangered Property by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, the school was demolished in November of that year. In honor of the Visitation Sisters of Mount de Chantal, Wheeling Jesuit University opened the Mount de Chantal Conservatory of Music in November 2013.
To learn more: (https://tinyurl.com/bddc3jd8) (https://tinyurl.com/2588m7e2) (https://tinyurl.com/bdfehwpn) (https://tinyurl.com/jty48ccu) (https://tinyurl.com/mwn37fz2)
Photo credits: Ohio County Library Archives, Wheeling WV; H.R. Page - Wheeling Illustrated; W.M.T. Nicoll
Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy was a private Catholic all-girls school in Wheeling, West Virginia, founded in 1848 by Bishop Richard V. Whelan. Initially named the Wheeling Female Academy and located at 14th and Eoff streets, the school moved to a new building on the former Steenrod Farm in 1865 and was renamed Mount de Chantal after Saint Jane de Chantal, co-founder of the Visitation Order. The school building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, and Mount de Chantal was known for its strong academic and fine arts programs, operating as a boarding school until 1982. However, declining enrollment and financial support led to the school's closure in 2008 after 160 years of operation. Many notable women attended Mount de Chantal, including two future First Ladies of West Virginia, Carrie Watson Fleming and Edna Hall Scott Kump, as well as Judith Herndon, one of the first women to serve in the West Virginia Senate, renowned artist Virginia B. Evans, and famous singer and actress Oriska Worden. In 2011, Wheeling Hospital purchased the property, and despite being listed as a 2011 Endangered Property by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, the school was demolished in November of that year. In honor of the Visitation Sisters of Mount de Chantal, Wheeling Jesuit University opened the Mount de Chantal Conservatory of Music in November 2013.
To learn more: (https://tinyurl.com/bddc3jd8) (https://tinyurl.com/2588m7e2) (https://tinyurl.com/bdfehwpn) (https://tinyurl.com/jty48ccu) (https://tinyurl.com/mwn37fz2)
Photo credits: Ohio County Library Archives, Wheeling WV; H.R. Page - Wheeling Illustrated; W.M.T. Nicoll
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