In 1996, Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz established a task force to examine the idea of creating a seminary in the diocese.

[1] During the Pope John Paul II's visit to the United States in 1999, Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz drove with the cornerstone of the seminary chapel in the trunk of his car to St. Louis, Missouri, to have the pontiff bless it after a Mass at the TWA Dome.

[3] Monsignor John Folda became rector of the seminary in 1999, a position he would hold until his appointment as bishop of the Diocese of Fargo in 2013.

[6] The seminary underwent a major expansion in 2017, adding fourteen dorm rooms, two classrooms, and a science laboratory.

[6][8] The new wing was blessed by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, on April 22, 2018.