History & Legacy

HISTORY OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION IN UNION COUNTY, KY

1870 – co-educational grade school was started in Uniontown under the leadership of Rev. G.A. Vantrooslenberghe, pastor of St. Agnes Church; teachers were provided by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth.
1905 – new brick school was constructed, the name was changed to St. Agnes School.
1920 – St. Agnes High School opened in the little brick chapel opposite St. Agnes Church.
1924 – first high school graduating class.
1937 – the Ohio River flood rendered the high school building uninhabitable.
1938 – new high school was added to the grade school.
1962 – new grade school constructed.
1963 – St. Agnes High School closed; high school students transferred to St. Vincent Academy.
1989- St. Agnes Grade School closed; students transferred to St. Ann School in Morganfield. 1989 ended 119 years the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth taught in Uniontown.

1910 – St. Peter’s Church and School was started in Waverly; the school was on the ground floor and church was in basement. Ursuline Sisters provided teachers.
1918 high school added to school.
1923 – church and school burned.
1924 – church and school were rebuilt with the school in basement and church on ground floor.
1947 – St. Peter High School closed.
1967 – St. Peter Grade School was moved to the St. Vincent Academy grounds as St. Vincent closed in 1967.
1973 – St. Peter School closed.

1912 – Fr. Robert Craney oversaw the construction of St. Ann’s parochial school and convent for the Sisters of Charity who would come to teach the children. Original school contained three rooms for fifty students and a fourth room was added in 1923.
1925 – 150 students attended St. Ann’s with 5 teachers.
1949 – middle section of the building along with the cafeteria were constructed; 286 students were enrolled.
1958 – 379 students were enrolled, prompting another addition.
1962 – behind the efforts of Fr. Joseph Spalding, two classrooms, offices, lavatories and a multipurpose hall on the ground were added.
1976 – 255 students were enrolled; faculty consisted of four Sisters of Charity and eight (8) lay teachers.
1998 – parish center that contained a cafeteria was built.
2005 – 228 pre-school through eighth grade school students were enrolled.
2011 – 231 enrolled.
1913-1986 – Sisters of Charity taught.
1986-1996 – Ursuline Sisters taught.
2015 – May 22, 2015 school closed for the final day of instruction. Enrollment: 204 PK – Grade 8
- 11 full time teachers; 2 teaching assistants; principal; receptionist/nurse tech; administrative assistant/book keeper; 1 custodian/maintenance; 2 cafeteria personnel

1943 – school for African-Americans started in the living room of St. Agnes janitor Sam Hammond by new St. Agnes pastor Rev. Raymond G. Hill.
1944 – decided to consolidate independent Catholic African-American schools in the county in Waverly; school was named Blessed Martin.
Students integrated into the local Catholic schools.

1820 – on a small farm donated to the church, a colony of three(3) Sisters of Charity nuns from Bardstown, KY built a boarding school for girls.
1856 – three story brick building constructed.
1870 – addition added
1877-78 – additional three story building constructed; this included the bell tower that now sits in Alvin Lyons yard.
1900 – St. Vincent Boys School, located across from Sacred Heart Cemetery, offered education through the eighth (8th) grade.
1920 – St. Vincent Academy celebrated 100 years of operation.
1963 – St. Agnes students consolidated with St. Vincent.
1964 – last boarder graduated.
1967 – St. Vincent Academy closed at the end of the 1967 school year after 147 years of operation by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth.

March 15, 2013 – Ground breaking ceremony with Bishop William Medley
2015 – Opening of school for the first day (August 13, 2015)
May 2020 - Our first 8th grade class from JPII graduated from high school this May. Congratulations to all JPII/UCHS/OCHS graduates!
May 2020 - We held a very different celebration for our 2020 8th grade graduates by hosting a drive through parade to celebrate each student in the midst of the Coronavirus School Closure period.