The school was founded by the Christian Brothers, a monastic order, and is named in honor of the Bishop James Walsh, a Cumberland-born missionary and member of the Maryknoll order, who preached in China and was imprisoned in solitary confinement by its Communist government for twelve years.

[1] When Walsh was finally released from prison in 1970 he was greeted by Pope Paul VI on August 25, 1970.

(St. John Neumann school, located on the corner of Fayette and Smallwood streets, has since been torn down.)

[2] The school's sports teams are called the Spartans after the warriors of ancient Sparta.

They also compete against rivals Fort Hill High School and Allegany High School for Cumberland City championships in all sports except football.