Archives and the Civil War

The Sisters of Providence Archives has several historical documents and photos related to the Civil War. The Congregation, of course, provided nursing service at the Military Hospital in Indianapolis as well as the emergency hospital in Vincennes, Ind., during the conflict. Of the 11 sisters who served during the Civil War, our Archives has images of three sister-nurses: Sisters St. Felix Buchanan, Helena Burns and Henrietta MacKenzie.

Every Memorial Day the Congregation recognizes all Sisters of Providence who served in the military. The photograph above is an undated image of students from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College placing flowers at the grave of one sister-nurse. See more images on Flickr.