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 In 1854 Marie Antionette Potier (who became Mother Madelaine) founded the Sisters of the Holy Humility of Mary in France. In May 1864, three months after Mother Madelaine passed away, the entire group of eleven sisters, led by Mother Anna Tabourat and accompanied by four orphans and Father John Joseph Begel, came to eastern Ohio to teach French immigrants. They were quickly in action tending to sick people during an epidemic in the New Bedford area. The group was soon provided this former farm (pictured above) in Pulaski Township, which had been donated to the Catholic Church in 1846, for use as a motherhouse to continue their humanitarian efforts. (c1890) Full Size |
 An aerial view of the Villa Maria Community Center south of New Bedford, with Evergreen Road visible in the top left corner. The facility grew in the late 1800’s to include 726 acres and became a thriving community named Villa Maria in 1889. The self-supporting facility provided all sorts of spiritual-based educational programs, housed orphans and other disadvantaged people, provided medical assistance, sponsored religious retreats, and maintained a working farm. Today the Villa Maria campus is home to farmlands, nature trails, a bird sanctuary, a holistic retirement home, and a religious retreat center for girls. (c1980) |
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 Another aerial view of the campus of Villa Maria. (c2012) Full Size |
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