Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy

"S" is for Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy. In 1829, Catholic Bishop John England founded the Sister of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy in Charleston—using the Sisters of Charity in Emmitsburg, Maryland, as a model for the new religious community. By the 1840s the sisters operated an orphanage, an academy, and a free school for girls, and a school for free children of color. They later established St. Francis Xavier Hospital in Charleston and Divine Savior Hospital in York. In 1989 ownership of the hospitals transferred to Bon Secours Health System and opened a community center to provide education, housing, and outreach services to the residents of James, John, and Wadmalaw Islands. The mother house for the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy is located on James Island.