History and Loretto Heritage

St. Mary's Academy was founded by the Sisters of Loretto in 1864 in what is now Downtown Denver.

When the Colorado Territory was formed in 1861, a key necessity was missing in Denver: a stable educational experience for the children of families new to the frontier. In 1864, three Sisters of Loretto, traveled by mail coach to Denver from their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to open St. Mary’s Academy. Like their predecessors who started the Sisters of Loretto, a Catholic religious community founded in 1812, their commitment to this new endeavor was marked by courage and selflessness. In the introduction to St. Mary's Academy - 150 Years, former Colorado State Historian William J. Convery described the founders as transplanting knowledge from the East, and “tolerance and respect for diversity, and a commitment to justice”.

St. Mary’s Academy conferred the first diploma in the Colorado Territory to Jessie Forshee in 1875, a year before statehood. Since those early days, the founding values and ethos of spirituality and mission continue in our Loretto School Values where faith, justice, community, and respect serve as touchstones for all aspects of school life.

St. Mary’s Academy is one of four schools continuing Loretto’s long and vital tradition of education begun by the first sisters in Kentucky in 1812, joining Havern School in Denver, Loretto Academy in El Paso, and Nerinx Hall in St. Louis. They honor their historic roots while addressing the needs of 21st century learners. Every year St. Mary’s Academy provides experiences for students, teachers, and administrators to deepen the bond with Loretto and with these other schools. Since 1988 teachers have traveled each spring to the Motherhouse in Kentucky for an intensive weekend immersion in the community’s rich history and vibrant mission of today. Likewise, high school students from the Loretto schools spend a week of service at the Motherhouse, learning advocacy skills in El Paso, and participating in a leadership conference in Denver that culminates in a Loretto Leadership Statement to guide their year’s work.

As a school dedicated to educating young people to be powerful agents of change, we embrace this commitment of the Sisters of Loretto that encourages us to “educate others as well as ourselves to truth, beauty and the ways of peace, in the spirit of Jesus".

160 Years of St. Mary's Academy

1864

March 1864
Father (later Bishop) Joseph P. Machebeuf purchased the George W. Clayton residence at the corner of 14th & California for $4,000. Locals referred to the residence as “The White House.” Today the location is the site of the Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center with a plaque that commemorates SMA as the site’s first resident.

June 27, 1864
Sisters Johanna Walsh, Ignatia Mora and Beatriz Maes-Torres departed Santa Fe with all their possessions in one trunk. After an arduous five-day journey, they arrived in Denver and prepared to open the first “select school for girls.”

August 1, 1864
Twelve years to the day before Colorado became the 38th state, St. Mary’s Academy for girls opened with 20 boarders and a handful of day students. In the spirit of the first Loretto School Rule in 1812, St. Mary’s Academy welcomed students of all faith traditions.

1875

SMA issued the first high school diploma granted in the Colorado Territory to Jessie Forshee. She became a Sister of Loretto and her religious name was Sister Mary Vitalis. She went on to earn a masters of arts at the Catholic University of Washington, D.C. and a music degree from the Chicago Conservatory. She served as dean of Webster College in St. Louis.

1880s

The first campus expanded to take up nearly half a city block. The school had 100 boarding students enrolled and 25 faculty.

Sister Pancratia Bonfils was chosen as Mother Superior of the school in 1882. Under her guidance and devotion, the Academy continued to expand and diversify its course offerings, including classes in science and math.

1888
The school purchases 45 hilltop acres southwest of Denver, intended to house the Sisters and the boarding students of SMA. This land would be home to Loretto Heights Academy.

1891

1910

Mother Pancratia oversaw the purchase of new land for the second SMA campus, this time in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. The new site, at 1370 Pennsylvania Street, was on the same block as the home of Margaret "Molly" Brown of Titanic fame. Molly Brown was a social activist and donor to the school.

Today, the building serves as the headquarters for The Salvation Army Intermountain Division.

1920s

1925

Sister Helen Sanders graduated from SMA. She became a visionary leader in the Sisters of Loretto and in Loretto schools.

A strong advocate for learning, Helen played a critical role in ensuring the future of SMA by opening the Board of Trustees to lay members and by defining the board's critical role in financial leadership. Sister Helen chaired the Board of Trustees for six years, and continued serving on the Board another 18 years.

1938

The iconic white Italian marble statue of Mary was given to the school by the mother of student Alice Cook, in memory of her daughter who died during her sophomore year in 1936 after an eleven-month illness. The statue was installed in a grotto at the the Pennsylvania Street campus.

1942

Students participated in community service to help World War II efforts. The SMA Alumnae Auxiliary formed a Red Cross Unit and work was begun by the Sisters, alumnae and students to make hospital garments and bandages, and to knot scarves, blankets, and socks for hospitalized soldiers. The senior class hosted a benefit dance and raised $100 for the War Work Fund.

1951

In the post-war years, a realization began to take hold that the Academy's location might be limiting the full experience for its students. Dreams grew of a campus that would be near flourishing neighborhoods, have enough land to include sports and outdoor activities, and offer easy transportation options. In 1951, SMA purchased the home of late Denver automobile executive Alan Hickerson, and moved to its present campus on South University Boulevard. At the time, University Boulevard was still a dirt road and the house was situated on farmland.

1964

1977

1986

The Bishop Evans Sports Center was completed, named in memory of Auxiliary Bishop George R. Evans. The 26,940 square foot physical education center was the seventh building to be occupied by the school and fourth addition to the current campus, serving active students with facilities to complement the athletic fields.

1991

2000

2014

St. Mary's Academy celebrated its 150th Anniversary and the Community Center opened. The Community Center marked the ninth building occupied by SMA since 1864.

SMA marked its sesquicentennial with a year of events for students, families, and graduates including Mass, celebration at the Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center, a commemorative book "St. Mary's Academy — 150 Years" in collaboration with History Colorado of former SMA campuses, visits with Loretto members, and an All-Academy picnic.