In July of 1946, a native of Boston named Francesca Bertolami traveled to Rome to be present at the canonization of her namesake, Mother Francesca Cabrini. While there she wrote three letters to friends back in the U.S. describing her experience. Today, to honor the day when Mother Cabrini was…
Cardinal Spellman Arrives for the Dedication of the Shrine On May 10, 1960, eight hundred Mother Cabrini High School girls lined Fort Washington Avenue, while those in the senior class stood in the driveway. When Francis Cardinal Spellman arrived and saw the sight he unexpectedly had his car stopped. He…
Mother Cabrini Arrives in Nicaragua In 1891, Mother Cabrini traveled with 28 Missionary Sisters from Italy to New York. Most of the group was bound for Nicaragua, where Mother Cabrini had been invited to establish a school for girls in Granada. Once in the U.S. they boarded the steamer New…
It’s easy to imagine that because Mother Cabrini founded 67 missions in 40 locations across three continents, everything went smoothly. The reality was that nearly every mission began with challenges. This did not trouble Mother Cabrini in the slightest. Her attitude toward obstacles was rooted in her certainty that if…
Photo above: 701 Fort Washington Avenue as it looked when Mother Cabrini purchased the property. Mother Cabrini led an extremely productive life, founding schools, hospitals, dispensaries, and orphanages in nine countries on three continents. The “little nun” (as she called herself) had a single focus: to draw hearts to Jesus….
A tragedy unfolded in New Orleans on March 14, 1891: the largest mass lynching in United States history. The eleven men killed were Italians. The day before nine Italians accused of murdering city police chief, David Hennessy had been acquitted. Two were declared not guilty because no evidence had been…
For centuries, immigrants and migrants have provided the labor that drives New York City’s economy, the families that fill its neighborhoods, and the creativity that animates its culture. Join us at the Shrine for an illustrated lecture by Robert W. Snyder, Manhattan Borough Historian and professor emeritus at Rutgers University,…
Giuseppe Sarto began his papacy as Pius X on August 4, 1903. Like Francesca Cabrini, he was a native of Lombardy. We know he was acquainted with Mother Cabrini; in a letter from New York dated October 2, 1903 she wrote, “I will turn towards Europe to Rome where I…
Much has been written about Mother Cabrini’s care for children and the sick. Less well-known is that her compassion extended to caring for the souls of prisoners. “The sisters go regularly to the American prisons to visit the inmates and to teach Christian doctrine. They take special care to prepare…
Poverty in New York, 1889 Sometimes it’s hard to grasp how incredibly difficult life was for the Italian immigrants Mother Cabrini came to serve. In 1889 orphans slept in the streets. Decrepit tenements teemed with families and vermin. Parents worked 12-hour days in dangerous jobs. There were few workplace safety…