Culture

Sister A. Catherine Murphy, CSJ, looks through a window at Regis College in Weston in the cover image used for the "Throw Open the Windows" project. Pilot photo/courtesy Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston

Digitizing the experiences of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the Vatican II era

Friday, August 30, 2024Culture

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The project opens a window for those who have always been curious about the lives of the sisters.

The Boston CSJ Archives is committed to bringing to life the voices of the past as we envision choices for the future. This has led to an exciting project titled "Throw Open the Windows! Digitizing the Experiences of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston During the Era of Vatican II." Audio from the archives of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston, recorded on open-reel and cassette tapes and therefore susceptible to deterioration, is finally preserved in a digital format and made accessible to listeners eager to hear the stories told within!
"Throw Open the Windows!" is a project led by former CSJ Archivist Katie McNally and current CSJ Archivist Ava Doogue. The project digitized 237 tapes, including oral history interviews conducted in the 1970s-1990s and audio from the congregation's Chapter Meetings in 1968 and 1969. The recordings offer personal experiences of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston, which illustrate the movement of the 20th century and shed light on the impact that the Second Vatican Council had on religious communities. Of particular interest are interviews of sisters who describe their work pursuing social justice for marginalized groups in Boston, such as Sister Eustace Caggiano, who came to be known as the "Saint of the South End" as she ministered to immigrant communities living in the neighborhood surrounding Boston's Cathedral of the Holy Cross.
The project opens a window for those who have always been curious about the lives of the sisters. Select audio is in the process of being made publicly available on the Boston Public Library's online repository, Digital Commonwealth, as well as on the Digital Public Library of America, to gain a wider audience. Announcements will be made when that initiative is complete. In the meantime, archivist Ava Doogue has created an online exhibit at bostoncsjarchives.omeka.net/collections/show/8 to showcase a rotation of oral history interviews for listeners to enjoy. Former students of the sisters, researchers interested in American social history, and individuals curious about 20th-century religious life will want to tune in!
A finding aid for the project is available on csjboston.org.

Ava Doogue and Katie McNally are the current and former archivists of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston, respectively.