Benedictine Heritage

Maur Hill-Mount Academy has its roots in the Benedictine tradition. “In November 1863 braving the perilous conditions of the Civil War, seven Benedictine Sisters under the leadership of Mother Evangelista Kremmeter began the daring enterprise of establishing a Convent and Academy of the Benedictine Order in Atchison on the edge of the Kansas Prairie,” as mentioned in their history, 125 Years of Mount Saint Scholastica Academy. The Sisters organized grammar school classes that began December 1, 1863. By 1873, The Academy of Mount St. Scolastica was incorporated.  Enrollment at the Academy was 40 boarding students and 190 day students. On July 16, 1877 the Sisters purchased a house called Price Villa (known as St. Cecilia’s Hall) which was located on 12 acres of ground adjoining the city of Atchison. The Sisters and students occupied this building.

 In 1912, the Sisters purchased land for a new Academy. The new building was dedicated in 1926 and housed Mount Saint Scholastica Academy and the newly founded St. Scholastica College. This building was known as the Administration Building. The Academy occupied the third floor of this building for the next 40 years. The dormitories for the Academy boarders were located in St. Cecilia’s until they moved to the fourth floor of the Administration Building in 1965. The Academy moved out of this building into a new facility of its own on the west campus of Maur Hill, which was dedicated in 1970.  In 1993, the journey continued as the Academy moved back to the Mount St. Scholastica campus into the Feeney Building left vacant by Benedictine College’s move to one campus. The boarding students lived in St. Scholastica Hall then called Hemmen. The Mount remained on this campus until 2003.

With the same mission, Benedictine Monks founded St. Benedict’s Priory first in Doniphan County in 1857 and then moved to Atchison in 1858. The property where the present Maur Hill-Mount Academy campus is located was deeded to St. Benedict’s Abbey in December 1919 for the purpose of establishing a school. On this land was a group of structures including an administration building, library, gymnasium, a dining hall with an annex infirmary and a President’s House. The Gym is the remaining building of that campus. In 1920, the new school was named St. Benedict’s Maur Hill by a special chapter of the Abbey and had a student body of 43 male students. In 1961, the Father Edwin Watson Academic Building and the new Gymnasium were completed after fund raising by Headmaster Father Edwin and the community. Land south of the campus was purchased and became the present football field, tennis courts and soccer field.

Other milestones in school history include:
1967—St. Leo’s Dormitory is built named after Leo Hulseman of the Solo Cup Company.
1970—Howard Hall, named after Howard McCullough, of the Brunswich Corporation, is built.
1973—St. Michael’s Cafeteria was completed honoring the contribution of Michael Murphy. Mexican Sisters had served the school since 1949 and the  cafeteria supplied new housing for the nuns. The old cafeteria building, the former Midland College Building was used for the art department until it was demolished in 1980.
1976—St. Joseph’s Hall was named in honor of Joseph Carrigan and under the patronage of St. Joseph the Worker.
1994—Father Edwin retires after over 40 years of service to Maur Hill Prep School.