122 Years of Catholic Education in Orlando

ABOVE:  May 1894. Gold medal presented to St. Joseph Academy student, Ellen Mahoney of Sanford, Florida.  Side one: Awarded to Miss E. Mahoney for Good Conduct. Side two: St. Joseph’s Academy Orlando, Fla. May ’94 [1894].

ABOVE:  Photo of St. Joseph’s Academy on the corner of Main (Magnolia Avenue) and Robinson Street in downtown Orlando. According to church history, “Father Creed’s first priority was to get a school built, even before wrapping up construction of the church….” Rev. Joseph J. Creed served as Pastor of St. James Church from 1888-1892. St. Joseph’s Academy opened in 1889 with 30 pupils. It would grow to include a day school, a boarding school, a convent and a chapel. St. James School which replaced St. Joseph’s Academy opened on Ridgewood Avenue in 1929. Today, St. James Cathedral School is a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon School located in the heart of downtown Orlando.

St. James parish has a tremendous impact on education… we are now into 122 years of Catholic education. The Sisters of St. Joseph from St. Augustine had a tremendous impact and contribution. They opened up St. Joseph’s Academy which eventually was turned into a school and we have had that school for more than 122 years…. Learn more about the significant contribution of the Sisters of St. Joseph to Orlando’s development in this excerpt from an oral history interview with religious educator Frank Sevick at St. James Cathedral in downtown Orlando, August 11th, 2011.

St. Joseph’s Academy opened at the corner of Main (Magnolia Avenue) and Robinson Street in downtown Orlando in 1889 with 30 pupils. St. James School on Ridgewood Avenue opened in 1929.

LISTEN (4:50)

ABOVE: Three generations of Bunings are featured on the cover of St. James Cathedral School, Fall 2007, vol. 2, Issue 1, newsletter. The Buning family, longtime members of St. James Cathedral, lived in the last family home on Lake Eola at the corner of Robinson Street and Rosalind Avenue. Mrs. Buning said in an oral history interview on April, 21st, 2011, “St. James was a major part of our life in Orlando. We had eight children. They all went to St. James School…. We just felt very close to the church. My husband and I were very much for Catholic education, so we made a real effort to have the children go to a great school. They’ve all done very well and were very proud of them.” Mr. Buning received the National Catholic Education Association Distinguished Graduate Award for 1996.

See additional photos below under Attachments. Click on the first image to begin the slide show.