Photo © Matt Kulbacki – All rights reserved
Today’s pictures were scanned and send along by Tim Swaddling, via Matt Kulbacki who shot these photos of the old St. Mary’s academy prior to demolition. St. Mary’s was demolished in April 1977, so these must have been from winter 1976-1977.
A neat view of St. Mary’s looming over south Windsor. While I had seen photos of the academy before, this is the first one I’ve seen in context of its surroundings.
Photo © Matt Kulbacki – All rights reserved
Another great shot, this one of the tower.
Matt took some amazing pictures, a HUGE thank you to him and Tim for sharing them with us here. Matt, these pictures are amazing.
Stay tuned for Friday, this is just the teaser… more of Matt’s photos to come Friday.
love it!
bring back railroad fridays
Check this out. Changed a little?
http://goo.gl/maps/NDGSX
I’m slightly too young but I would have loved to have seen this place.
Thanks for sharing these photos. Still can’t believe this beauty was destroyed. Windsor is so smart! SMRT!!
Windsor’s tear down record stems back farther than when I was born that’s for sure!
Shameful.
This building could just about be seen from my house. (One street over) It was my sister’s day care and my mother’s high school. The floors creaked. Just a magnificent landmark. You’d never know anything of it’s kind was ever there. Finally my obsessive-compulsivity as photographer pays off! Much thanx and great appreciation to this site and it’s curator for keeping history alive.
Matt, thank you for sharing the pictures with us.
I lived one street over from Academy Drive at the very end of the 3200 block of Morris Drive until I was 12 years old – I could see this magnificent building every time I stepped out the front door… we played ball, caught frogs and flew kites in the huge field in front of it, and when brave enough, climbed the trees in the orchard, and visited the Groto. It was tradition for my father to take us for a walk around the building at least once a month. I took private after school art lessons in the Academy when I was in grade 5, the Sister that taught it was strict. I remember the day they demolished it, I was there, with many memories. I have photos as well, and should dig them up. Great post Andrew, and Matt.
Hi purchased a Marion – Tower 1956 yearbook so interesting this lead me to your history site ..not sure why it was at a church basement sale in Downingtown Pa. US. But it is a wonderful book. It really make you wonder ho this went the way it did. Such a wonderful tradition and great school. Such a shame in the demise of it all. Pat
Why was this building torn down???
It was torn down to build more houses – the development is now called St. Mary’s Gate. The only thing remaining from the original building are the gates that sit at the entrance to the newer subdivision.
Sad to think it was torn down to build more houses – as if they couldn’t have built those houses in so many other locations around one of the biggest sprawled cities in Canada.
This is the demolition though that finally got some people to wake up though and start to form an opinion that, wait a minute, our great history is being destroyed and we’re letting this happen, let’s start to get organized and not let this happen again. Of course it did, but at least it started to remind people that we were given this great history by our ancestors to enjoy and be proud of and tearing it all down for short term gain does nothing for the long term viability and appeal to the city.
Sad to say but the gates no longer exist to the entrance of St Marys Gates.
Mike, I have not been by there for years, but to think they couldn’t maintain the gates at least, they were architectural monuments.
Yea its very sad Scott
I drove by the other day. There are two little brick “pillars” in the place where the gates used to be.
The gates are on Normandy Rd at the entrance to a private residence. The husband bought them and gave them to his wife as a gift. The wife and daughter both had attended St. Mary’s Academy as students.
The copy of the year book found in PA would probably have belonged to one of the many students who came from the USA to attend school and board at St.Mary’s Academy.
The little brick pillars are not the originals either. The originals were “oops” knocked over by accident when they were building the subdivision. They were suppose to remain but “oops” the bricks were hauled to the dump too.