Maryville Academy

Originally known as St. Mary's Training School for Boys, the facility was the vision of Chicago archbishop Patrick A. Feehan and served as an orphanage for many decades.

Following a rebuild after a massive fire in 1899, St. Mary's new director, Reverend James Doran, opened the facility to girls in an effort to reunite orphaned brothers and sisters.

[1] The appointment in 1970 of Father John P. Smyth, a former all-American basketball player at the University of Notre Dame, as director was significant, as he overhauled the way Maryville was managed, reducing costs and changing the facility to a more home-like setting that was conducive to the facility's newly acquired role as a home for children who experienced trauma and neglect.

Subsequently, the State of Illinois removed residents from the facility, a move which almost resulted in Maryville being permanently closed.

Maryville operates six service areas,[clarification needed] with campuses in Bartlett, Chicago, and Des Plaines.