Before becoming an autonomous community, the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph were a part of the Ursuline Sisters of Louisville. Less than 40 short years after arriving to Mount Saint Joseph, the MSJ Ursulines made the courageous move to break away from the larger Ursuline community of Louisville and become a separate community.

Each year, The Western Kentucky Catholic (WKC) takes a small two-month hiatus in June and July. I have been told this is the result of Mel Howard’s, the publication’s founding editor, preferred schedule to focus on his farm over the summertime. This schedule makes me feel as though the paper starts a new season following the break. There are several new additions to the archives that should make this next 10 months of articles quite interesting.  

On May 3, 1946, Bishop Francis Ridgley Cotton – the first bishop of the Diocese of Owensboro – received an unexpected letter. The author of the letter was Mother Mary Agnes of the Mother of God, a Passionist nun located in Scranton, Pa.

A woman once called the archives looking for genealogical information.

Most of us have heard stories of how much more demanding the Church was in our grandparents’ time. How much different was it though, really?

It’s February and the stores are no doubt filled with chocolates, roses and more heart decorations than a cardiologist convention. St. Valentine’s Day is just another day that Catholics can stand back and truly appreciate how deeply rooted and influential our beloved faith is on Western culture. Catholic or not, it is a feast day that nobody wants to be left out of.

The year is 1996. 13,859 postcards depart from the Diocese of Owensboro and make their way to the elected representatives of Kentucky. The message of the postcards is clear: the Catholics of western Kentucky choose life.

The Diocese of Owensboro’s first Christmas really does have all the makings of a classic Christmas tale. Through the final cold days of a hard year, parishioners remain prayerful, and faith-filled and are given a blessing that renews the spirit of hope and joy.

The St. Pius V relic and reliquary, made from a former alarm clock. COURTESY OF ARCHIVESBY EDWARD WILSON, ARCHIVES In the November 2020 issue of the WKC, the archives featured a relic of St. Veneranda as “The most remarkable relic in the Diocese of Owensboro’s...

Pictured are three side rosaries that belonged to Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph from the Mount's collection. Left to right: Sr. Angela Marie Krampe I, OSU (7/25/1899-2/15/1930); Sr. Mary Uriel Logsdon, OSU (8/18/1872-9/30/1966); and Sr. Mary Lucy Mattingly,...