The Extraordinary Contributions of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet :: Essays Papers

The Extraordinary Contributions of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet There are commonly held stereotypes that women in the early twentieth century were passive or unimportant in affecting the development of the Western Frontier. However, women in Arizona during this time period helped shape history in a multitude of ways. One area impacted by the role of women during the early twentieth century was medicine. An area greatly dominated by males, medicine may not have advanced as successfully in Southern Arizona if it had not been for the efforts of seven women from St. Joseph, Missouri. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet made profound contributions to the Western Frontier in many ways. They severely impacted both areas of education and medicine in Arizona. By exploring the Sisters’ various contributions, this paper will uncover the significance of the Carondelet Sisters’ role in the development of the Western Frontier. In the early twentieth century, pioneers began to inundate the area of Southern Arizona. Among them were the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet; Emerentia Bonnefoy, Monica Corrigan, Euphrasia Suchet, Hyacinth Blanc, Martha Peters, Ambrosia Arnichaud, and Maxine Croisat (Bryne and Cammack). In 1870, these seven women began the exhausting and rigorous journey from St. Louis to Tucson, traveling by rail, sea and wagon. The Sisters came to Tucson on a mission to help Jean Baptiste Salpointe, who was a Bishop in the area. They were to teach in Tucson’s first school, which would transform the ways of education in the Western Frontier. Before the Carondelet sisters’ arrival, little had been done in the state of Arizona in the means of education. The Sisters established education in the area and contributed to the demise of the negative attitudes that parents had about raising their children in the West. Before these contributions, many parents found it necessary to move to a town or settlement where there would be more advantages for their children. "Mother did not let any of the unusual life about us interfere with our bringing up," a young Arizona girl recalled. "Except for the desire of giving us a more extended education than we could get in the state at that time, I am sure my father and mother would have remained†¦instead of removing to New Mexico" (Myres, pg.