Maine Memory Network

Contributed by Acadian Archives

Description

The Acadians and French Canadians who settled in the Upper St. John Valley formed an overwhelmingly Catholic society. Van Buren was the site of the second parish (Saint-Bruno) to be established in the region. The Society of Mary came to Van Buren to care for the parish in 1884 and quickly established St. Mary's College.

A grotto dedicated to the Virgin Mary was built by Fr. Joseph Thomas, a teacher and a Marist, on the grounds of St. Mary's College in 1916. It was abandoned when the college ceased its operations in 1926. In 1980, Ernest and Melvin Soucy renovated the grotto, and this photograph reflects this latest incarnation. The signs read "Ave Maria Gratia Plena" (Hail Mary, full of grace) and "Happiness is knowing you."

Harry Rush may have taken this photograph.

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About This Item

• Title: St. Mary's College grotto, Van Buren, ca. 2000
• Creation Date: circa 2000
• Subject Date: circa 2000
• Location: Van Buren, Aroostook County, ME
• Media: Photographic print
• Dimensions: 8.8 cm x 12.4 cm
• Local Code: MCC-00357
• Collection: Harry A. M. Rush Collection on the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary and Other Materials, 1946-2006
• Object Type: Image

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Cross Reference Searches

Standardized Subject Headings

• Acadians--Maine
• Catholic schools--Maine--Van Buren
• Franco-Americans--Maine--Van Buren
• Universities and colleges--Maine

People

• Soucy, Ernest
• Soucy, Melvin
• Thomas, Joseph

Other Keywords

• Acadians
• French Canadians
• Roman Catholic Church
• St. John Valley

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For more information about this item, contact:

Acadian Archives
UMFK, 23 University Drive, Fort Kent, ME 04743
(207) 834-7535
Website

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