The pioneering work of religious congregations who came to Parramatta in the early days of the colony – and who contributed to the area being known as the ‘cradle of Catholicism’ – has been recognised with the unveiling of a new heritage trail and website.
Sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, the trail is a self-guided walking tour on the site of St Mary’s Convent, the first convent in Australia. It is situated at 6 Victoria Road, Parramatta, the present-day Convent of Mercy, opposite St Patrick’s Cathedral.
The sisters wanted to remember those religious from different orders, including the Sisters of Charity, Sisters of the Good Samaritan, the Sisters of Mercy North Sydney, as well as their own congregation, who nurtured Catholicism in Parramatta through their many charitable works, such as looking after female convicts, educating the young and helping the sick and dying.
The official opening of the trail was held at the Victoria Road site on 11 June and was attended by many of the Sisters of Mercy who were instrumental in setting it up, as well as Vicar General Fr Peter Williams, representing the Diocese of Parramatta, representatives of the pioneer congregations, and other guests.
One of the signs along the route of the Heritage Trail. Image: Alphonsus Fok/Diocese of Parramatta
Sr Catherine Ryan, a Parramatta Sister of Mercy, led the project which took more than three years to bring to fruition.
She said the site of the trail was significant for the development of Catholicism in Australia because not only was it where many of the earliest Catholic buildings were located, but it was also where “a dramatic and historic revolution in religious life” first took place in Australia, “as the Church struggled to respond to the huge pastoral needs of the times”.
“Un-cloistered and non-monastic, as well as self-governing and with papal approval, the Sisters of Charity ministered first to the convict women of the Parramatta Female Factory,” Sr Catherine said of the pioneering order. “Till then it was unheard of for religious sisters to leave their convent to minister to those in need.
“The active religious groups who followed them to Parramatta, the Good Samaritan Sisters, the Sisters of Mercy and the Marist Brothers, were the workforce, generously supported by the Catholic laity, that built the Australian Catholic education and health systems, at a time when all state aid had been withdrawn from church endeavours.”
The three buildings on the Pennant Street (now Victoria Road) site in 1889 were from left, – St Joseph’s Hospital for Consumptives, now incorporated into the present Convent of Mercy, St Mary’s Convent (demolished in 1921) and St Patrick’s Primary School, demolished after the school was relocated to its present site in Ross Street. Image: Supplied
Another member of the project team, Margery Jackman, said they were fortunate to have such a rich trove of material to show “the struggles and joys experienced by our early pioneers, often in quite personal terms”.
“We hope that this heritage site will not only honour our courageous women pioneers and their contribution to establishing Parramatta as the ‘cradle of Catholicism in Australia’, but that it will inspire future generations to continue their work in education, health care and community service in this region,” she said.
The trail follows a route around the Victoria Road site, beginning at the eastern end near the corner of Villiers St, with 10 illustrated plaques and audio stops that briefly explain the history and importance of each part of the site.
The map of the Heritage Trail. Image: Diocese of Parramatta
For example, it describes how the Sisters of Charity established the first convent in the colony on the site in 1840, after becoming the first nuns to set foot in Australia just over a year earlier. These nuns went on to work for many years helping female convicts at the nearby Female Factory, before returning to Parramatta in 1886 to set up the first specialist hospital in the colony, St Joseph’s Hospital for Consumptives, next door to their convent.
Another stop on the trail gives some of the history of the Mercy Sisters in Parramatta, who first arrived in Parramatta from North Sydney in 1874. Following the withdrawal of the North Sydney Sisters in 1888, nine Sisters of Mercy from Callan Ireland arrived to take over the mission. Both congregations taught infants and older children on the site, as well as ministering in the parish. Today St Patrick’s Primary School and Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta continue the educational work of these sisters.
The trail also highlights other important Catholic history of the Parramatta area, including that Parramatta was the place of the official proclamation which allowed the first Mass to be celebrated in the colony in 1803; it was where the first Catholic school was opened in Hunter Street in 1820; and where Sister Frances Xavier Williams became the first woman to profess religious vows in Australia, at St Patrick’s Church (now Cathedral) in 1839.
Sr Catherine Ryan, who led the Heritage Trail project, shows guests through the Memorial Chapel at the trail’s opening. Image: Alphonsus Fok/ Diocese of Parramatta
The accompanying website, www.mercyheritageparramatta.org.au, provides access to a wealth of information and resources, including to the beautiful Mother Mary Clare Memorial Chapel, built to honour the memory of the pioneer sisters.
The Sisters of Mercy are planning to add more information to the heritage trail in future, such as a more detailed account of the lives and ministry of the Sisters of Mercy Parramatta since 1888, and a history of Our Lady of Mercy College.
The heritage trail enables visitors, who have booked a time and day with the Sisters of Mercy beforehand, to use their mobile phone to listen to the audio information while they walk along the route. The trail takes between one and two hours to walk and is wheelchair accessible. Details for Open Day events and Group Tour bookings will be made available on the website from September 2025.
For bookings and more information on the heritage trail, including accessing the map and audio tour, to go www.mercyheritageparramatta.org.au
To view all the images from the official opening of the Heritage Trail, click here.
This Heritage Trail project is an example of the Church in Parramatta working towards the Diocesan Pastoral Plan objectives of ‘a Church walking together’, and of ‘being renewed in spirit and prayer’.
