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Sr Cecelia Barbara Seton

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Sr Cecelia Barbara Seton

Birth
New York, New York County, New York, USA
Death
18 Apr 1810 (aged 18–19)
Emmitsburg, Frederick County, Maryland, USA
Burial
Emmitsburg, Frederick County, Maryland, USA Add to Map
Memorial ID
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On 25 January 1794, at age 19, Elizabeth Ann Bayley married William Magee Seton,
aged 26, a wealthy businessman in the import trade. Samuel Provoost, the first
Episcopalian bishop of New York, witnessed the wedding vows of the couple.

Five children were born to the marriage: Anna Maria (Annina) (1795-1812),
William Jr (1797-1868), Richard (1798-1823), Catherine (1800-1891) (who was to
become the first American to join the Sisters of Mercy) and Rebecca Mary
(1802-1816).

After the death of Elizabeth's husband in Italy, she eventually settled in rural
Maryland and found the Sisters of Charity of St Joseph, at the request of Bishop
John Carroll. The Sulpicians assisted Elizabeth in adapting the
seventeenth-century French Common Rules of the Daughters of Charity (1672) for
the Sisters of Charity of Saint Joseph, in accord with the needs of the Catholic
Church in America. Elizabeth formed her sisters in the Vincentian spirit
according to the tradition of Louise de Marillac (1591-1660) and Vincent de Paul
(1581-1660). Eighteen Sisters of Charity, including Elizabeth, made private,
annual vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and service of the poor for the
first time, July 19, 1813; thereafter they made vows annually on March 25.

Divine Providence guided Elizabeth and her little community through the poverty
and unsettling first years. Numerous women joined the Sisters of Charity. During
the period 1809-1820, of the ninety-eight candidates who arrived in Elizabeth's
lifetime, eighty-six of them actually joined the new community; seventy percent
remained Sisters of Charity for life. Illness, sorrow, and early death were
omnipresent in Elizabeth's life. She buried eighteen sisters at Emmitsburg, in
addition to her two daughters Sr Annina (a novice in her mother's order) and
Rebecca, and her sisters-in-law Harriet and Sr Cecilia Seton.

Cecilia Barbara Seton (1791-1810) was the daughter of William and Anna Maria
(Curson) Seton, and a half-sister of William Magee Seton. She accompanied her
older sister to Baltimore in June 1809 for a visit with their sister-in-law
Elizabeth Seton. As her health improved, Cecilia offered herself to Elizabeth's
rising community as a Sister of Charity. She died April 28, 1810.
On 25 January 1794, at age 19, Elizabeth Ann Bayley married William Magee Seton,
aged 26, a wealthy businessman in the import trade. Samuel Provoost, the first
Episcopalian bishop of New York, witnessed the wedding vows of the couple.

Five children were born to the marriage: Anna Maria (Annina) (1795-1812),
William Jr (1797-1868), Richard (1798-1823), Catherine (1800-1891) (who was to
become the first American to join the Sisters of Mercy) and Rebecca Mary
(1802-1816).

After the death of Elizabeth's husband in Italy, she eventually settled in rural
Maryland and found the Sisters of Charity of St Joseph, at the request of Bishop
John Carroll. The Sulpicians assisted Elizabeth in adapting the
seventeenth-century French Common Rules of the Daughters of Charity (1672) for
the Sisters of Charity of Saint Joseph, in accord with the needs of the Catholic
Church in America. Elizabeth formed her sisters in the Vincentian spirit
according to the tradition of Louise de Marillac (1591-1660) and Vincent de Paul
(1581-1660). Eighteen Sisters of Charity, including Elizabeth, made private,
annual vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and service of the poor for the
first time, July 19, 1813; thereafter they made vows annually on March 25.

Divine Providence guided Elizabeth and her little community through the poverty
and unsettling first years. Numerous women joined the Sisters of Charity. During
the period 1809-1820, of the ninety-eight candidates who arrived in Elizabeth's
lifetime, eighty-six of them actually joined the new community; seventy percent
remained Sisters of Charity for life. Illness, sorrow, and early death were
omnipresent in Elizabeth's life. She buried eighteen sisters at Emmitsburg, in
addition to her two daughters Sr Annina (a novice in her mother's order) and
Rebecca, and her sisters-in-law Harriet and Sr Cecilia Seton.

Cecilia Barbara Seton (1791-1810) was the daughter of William and Anna Maria
(Curson) Seton, and a half-sister of William Magee Seton. She accompanied her
older sister to Baltimore in June 1809 for a visit with their sister-in-law
Elizabeth Seton. As her health improved, Cecilia offered herself to Elizabeth's
rising community as a Sister of Charity. She died April 28, 1810.


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