Daughters of the Cross

When their mother died in 1820, the sisters wanted to enter a religious community, but were not able to do so due to the restrictions of Church law at the time.

[1] The creation of an independent Kingdom of Belgium the following year allowed them to establish the school officially as a Catholic institution.

Two other companions, Sisters Clara and Constance, made their temporary vows for one year and two postulants began their novitiate.

[1] The Daughters of the Cross of Liège took over the administration of a women's prison in 1841 and a house for the rehabilitation of prostitutes the following year.

After the Civil War's end in 1866, Pierre advised the order about a parcel of land south of Shreveport that would be an excellent location for a girl's boarding school.

Subsequent growth was mostly due to the efforts of Napoleon Joseph Roulleaux, who was chaplain of the convent and school.

In 1906, a fire destroyed the school but the buildings were rebuilt with a gothic design from clay bricks on the same property.

In September, 1962, the academy was transferred to a new site on Fairfield Avenue, where it remained until its closure due to economic struggles at the end of the 1987–88 session, culminating in 119 years of devoted service by the Daughters of the Cross.

St. Vincent's Academy declined to consider a merger at the time with Loyola College Prep, which was a local all-male Catholic high school founded by the Jesuits in 1902.

Over the years their ministry expanded to Angel's Camp, Lockford, Manteca, San Andreas, and Stockton, but having gained no new recruits, they have since left Tracy.