Original Site of St. Mary's Orphan Asylum

Original Site of St. Mary's Orphan Asylum (HM27N6)

Location: Galveston, TX 77551 Galveston County
Buy Texas State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 29° 15.772', W 94° 49.96'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 256 views
Inscription
Children orphaned by a yellow fever epidemic in 1867 were cared for temporarily in Galveston's St. Mary's Infirmary by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word.
In 1874 Galveston Bishop Claude Dubuis bought the 35-acre plantation and home of Farnifala and Laura Green located between this gulf front and Green's Bayou for use as a permanent orphanage. In early 1874 the Sisters of St. Mary's Infirmary founded St. Mary's Orphan Asylum by housing 28 children here at the site of the Greens' former residence. A 2-story facility for orphan girls was built nearby in October 1874.

The girl's dormitory was all that remained of the orphanage after the storm of 1875. A new residence for boys was built by 1879. St. Mary's was caring for orphans from throughout Texas at the time it was granted a Texas charter in 1896.

The catastrophic storm of 1900 completely destroyed the orphanage. Ten nuns and at least 90 children were tragically killed despite the nuns' valiant efforts to save the children by securing them to their own bodies with clothesline. Three orphan boys rescued at sea were the only survivors. St. Mary's Orphan Asylum reopened at 40th and Q streets in Galveston City in 1901 and remained there until closing in 1967.
Details
HM NumberHM27N6
Tags
Year Placed1994
Placed ByTexas Historical Commission. (Marker
Number 7175.)
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, May 21st, 2018 at 10:02am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)15R E 321935 N 3238501
Decimal Degrees29.26286667, -94.83266667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 29° 15.772', W 94° 49.96'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds29° 15' 46.32" N, 94° 49' 57.6" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)409, 713
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling East
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 6693-6925 FM3005, Galveston TX 77551, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. This marker needs at least one picture.
  9. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  10. Is the marker in the median?