On July 16, 2025—125 years to the day since arriving in Antigonish, NS—the Sisters of St. Martha kicked off their anniversary celebrations with a unique event that both celebrated their history and recreated one of their founding moments.
Before a crowd of more than 100 people, the Antigonish Heritage Museum opened a new special exhibit entitled "Gospel Hospitality in Action: The Sisters of St. Martha in Antigonish Town & County." The exhibit, a mixture of artifacts and interpretive panels, highlights the remarkable record of service of the Congregation to StFX and local communities.
The Sisters of St. Martha were founded in 1900 to assume the responsibility of household management at StFX at a time when the university was struggling. On July 16th of that year, the first Marthas arrived by train from Halifax at the local Intercolonial Railway Station - now the Heritage Museum. "The first sisters arrived to an absence of fanfare," noted Dr. Barry MacKenzie '07, museum curator and longtime friend of the Marthas. "They collected what little luggage they brought with them and walked up Main Street and to their new home at the university."
In the years that followed, the Sisters cooked, cleaned, and mended for the students, and even ran the infirmary. Eventually, they expanded their ministries to include education, social work, and health care, and moved far beyond the reaches of Antigonish.
At the conclusion of the opening of the museum's new exhibit (which also features interactive elements that encourage visitors to engage with the sisters' charism of Gospel Hospitality), many of the Marthas present retraced the steps of those first foundresses and made their way on foot or on the StFX bus to the Coady Institute, which is now housed in part in the Congregation's original motherhouse in Augustine Hall.
"We are very proud of the new exhibit," Mr. MacKenzie notes, "but the walk/bus ride to StFX was absolutely the icing on the cake. To see so many Marthas recreating that journey (including Sr. Jovita MacPherson '72, '73, wearing a replica of the Marthas' habit, which they ceased wearing after the Second Vatican Council) was absolutely incredible. StFX may have been remiss in not laying out the welcome mat in 1900, but seeing that branded bus pull up to transport the Sisters in luxury to and from campus really brought everything full circle."
The exhibit will be on display at the Antigonish Heritage Museum, which is open Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., for the next several months. All are welcome and encouraged to visit it and learn more about the contributions of this incredible group of women to StFX and beyond.
Story compliments of Dr. Barry MacKenzie, StFX Ceremonial Officer, history professor, and curator, Antigonish Heritage Museum.
