St Mary's College

Welcome to St Mary's College, a Reception to Year 12 school in the heart of the city, educating girls in the Catholic Dominican tradition since 1869.

The oldest continuously running school for girls in South Australia, the College was established on February 2 1869, following the arrival in Adelaide from Dublin, Ireland, of seven Dominican Sisters. They came in answer to the call of the Bishop of Adelaide, Rt Rev. L. B. Sheil, who wanted 'a select school for girls whose parents could afford to pay for education beyond the elementary stage'. They took up residence in three small cottages on the corner of West Terrace and Franklin Street. In December 1868 the foundation stone for a building known as St Catherines was laid. This early building is remembered in facilities built in 1996 which carry the same name. In 1871, the Dominicans were invited to move into the building now known as the Convent, and, in 1898, substantially extended it to include the Boylan Building, which remembers Sr Columba Boylan, an early Prioress. Read more...