Origins & Early Life

Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (August 28, 1774 – January 4, 1821) was an American Catholic educator, known as a founder of the country's parochial school system. Born in New York and reared as an Episcopalian, she married and had five children with her husband William Seton. She converted to Catholicism in 1805 and established the first Catholic girls' school in the nation in Emmitsburg, Maryland. There she also founded the first American congregation of religious sisters, the Sisters of Charity.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

On September 14, 1975, Seton was the first person born in what would become the United States to be canonized by the Catholic Church. Elizabeth Ann Bayley was born on August 28, 1774, the second child of Richard Bayley and Catherine Charlton of New York City. Both parents belonged to wealthy Protestant families that were among the earliest European settlers in the New York area. Richard's parents were of French Huguenot and English descent and lived in New Rochelle, New York. Numerous Huguenots had emigrated to North America in the late 17th and early 18th centuries due to religious persecution in France.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

A surgeon, Richard served as the chief health officer...

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