Mission Hill Convent

Mission Hill Convent History

This convent was part of the Mission Church Complex in Boston, which also consisted of the Mission Church Basilica, a rectory, grammar school, mission school, and an auditorium called St. Alphonsus Hall. It was built during a flurry of construction at the site in the late 19th century, and was completed in 1889, concurrent with the mission school next door. Designed by architect Henry Burns, the convent is constructed chiefly of red brick with granite trim. A third story and roof terraces were added to the structure in 1901. The building housed the Sisters of Notre Dame, who instructed the students of the mission and grammar schools.

The convent was closed some time in the late 1970s or early 1980s, and the building was rarely used except for a single room where children occasionally waited for transportation from the grammar school next door. It also seemed to be a storage area for surplus or outdated equipment belonging to the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, located only two blocks away. Eventually the Redemptorist Fathers sold the building in 2003; the developers Weston Associates plan to raze the structure and build an eleven story tower. A site study of the Mission Hill complex, including the convent, can be found online.