LOREtto
Welcome to LOREtto, a blog created by Loretto Heritage Center to share insights into the rich history of the Loretto Community. Learn more about our Heritage Center and archives.
Despite the fact that Loretto established three different schools in Arkansas, they all vie for some of the shortest-lived Loretto houses. None lasted more than four years. They were all…
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Back in January, the Heritage Center staff were asked about an oil painting of the Epiphany that hangs in the Motherhouse Infirmary. This work, showing the three Magi visiting the…
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On June 9, 1864, a Sister once lauded as “the idol and admiration of all those under her care” walked out of the Loretto convent in Cairo, Illinois, taking with…
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Imagine having an income of $1000 a day and an inclination to be helpful to the most neglected communities of people. What would you do with your money? In 1885,…
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The holiday season is once again upon us, and the Heritage Center would like to share one of the many treasures in our collection. The Heritage Center houses a large…
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August 15, September 8 and 15, October 25, December 8, April 25, May 24, May 31. What do these dates have in common? By the zodiac, they loosely demark the…
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I am coming to the end of my first month at the Loretto Heritage Center, and in my quest to learn about Loretto history I have read many interesting and…
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Placed in the bottom of a display case in the Heritage Center museum is a “vexillum” or standard, a marble base and orb from which extends a metal pole with…
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We have two interesting artifacts at the Heritage Center that nearly bookend the 15 years that Sister Grace Clare Shanley, SL, spent serving in China. The first is a small…
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(Editor’s Note: The Loretto Community is working to understand its complicity in systemic racism. We thank the Loretto Heritage Center staff for providing important research about Loretto’s history of slaveholding. We…
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by Ayla Toussaint and Mary Frances Lottes SL It’s November, which means it is election month in the US! This blog post was written with the help of one of…
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Throughout Christianity, there have been stories of people who have seen signs of spirits, demons, and other malevolent beings. The frequency of these experiences, the imagery in them, and how…
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