Our History

Catholic Health was formed in 1998, bringing together five Western New York hospitals founded by several religious orders.

Sisters of Charity Hospital

The 1840s was a decade of firsts. Buffalo was a booming transportation hub. Canal and lake shipping were about to be overshadowed by the first railroad route connecting through to the east. The first grain elevator, first university, first elected mayor and first Roman Catholic bishop claimed their roles in the growing town.

Newly appointed Bishop John Timon wasted little time in traveling to Baltimore to request the services of the Sisters of Charity – a religious community of women established in America by Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton – to create the city’s first hospital. Six Sisters returned to Buffalo with him – three for the hospital and three for an asylum and school.

In a house at the corner of Pearl and Virginia Streets, Sister Ursula Mattingly (who tackled 22 assignments in 44 years as “one of God’s trouble shooters”) took matters in hand as the first President of the Board of Sisters of Charity Hospital. Chartered as the first regional hospital in October 1848, it was sorely tested by a devastating cholera outbreak in 1849. Sister Ursula’s willingness to take a chance on new therapies resulted in an astounding recovery of 80 of the 134 cholera patients admitted to the small center.

No task, medical or political was beyond her challenge. When the No Nothing Party insisted there be no public payment to religious institutions for public services, she fought alongside her friend Bishop Bernard O’Reilly to win a $9,000 reimbursement from the state legislature.

And thus began the local tradition of medical, spiritual and fiscal stewardship still celebrated daily throughout Catholic Health.

Mercy Hospital of Buffalo and Kenmore Mercy Hospital

In 1858 Bishop Timon reached out to the Sisters of Mercy for assistance in ministering to the 10,000 Irish immigrants who had arrived in South Buffalo in the past two decades.

The Sisters of Mercy were founded in Ireland in 1831 by Catherine McAuley, a beautiful heiress who gave herself to the church and the care of the poor at the age of 52. Her selfless spirit of comfort infused the young order.

Bishop Timon brought the first four Sisters of Mercy from nearby Rochester to assist with schooling and support at the new St. Brigid’s parish, but they soon saw a clear need for a hospital in the burgeoning community. They opened a 30-bed hospital in a home on Tifft Street in 1904, launching Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, a South Buffalo commitment to community and care now more than a century in the making.

The beginnings of suburbia in Western New York brought the vision and commitment of the Sisters of Mercy to the northtowns with the founding of Kenmore Mercy Hospital in 1951.

Our Lady of Victory Hospital / OLV Senior Neighborhood

Just a few miles from the original Mercy Hospital, Father Nelson Baker opened Maternity Hospital to care for the mothers and infants housed at the adjacent Our Lady of Victory Infant Home. Father Baker was a Civil War veteran and well-established businessman before entering the priesthood. His ever-growing ministry of social and human services was fueled by his faith, courage and business acumen. When his advisors suggested it was necessary to expand the new hospital to the general community, Our Lady of Victory Hospital was born in 1920.

After the hospital became a part of Catholic Health, Our Lady of Victory (OLV) was combined into Mercy Hospital as the new system re-imagined the possibilities of bringing together the founding values with the shared strength and services of each location.

In 2008, the facility became the Our Lady of Victory (OLV) senior neighborhood, a comprehensive, state-of-the-art living facility for senior citizens.

St. Joseph Hospital / St. Joseph Campus

St. Joseph Hospital in Cheektowaga was opened in 1960 by the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph.

Mother Colette Hilbert of Poland founded the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph in 1897 and was missioned to Pittsburgh. When the others were recalled to Poland, Mother Colette chose to stay and minister to the growing Polish immigrant population in the United States, eventually settling in Buffalo, primarily to teach in the schools. The ministry grew to include healthcare and social service ministries throughout the U.S. and overseas.

Following the release of New York State’s "Healthcare Facilities in the 21st Century" Report, also known as the Berger Commission, in 2006, St. Joseph Hospital was slated for closure. The decision was later overturned after the State agreed to keep the Cheektowaga hospital open as part of Sisters Hospital.

Sisters of Charity Hospital successfully merged with St. Joseph Hospital in April 2009, forming a two-campus acute facility. The hospital site is now known as Sisters of Charity Hospital, St. Joseph Campus.