Our Lady of the Highlands of the Good Shepherd
Highland Avenue-Ft. Thomas
Information comes from research by Jim Reis and is on file
at the Campbell County Historical Society
Our Lady of the Highlands of the Good Shepherd traces its history to the early 1800s when the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd organized an American unit in Louisville in 1842. In the 1850s the order expanded to Cincinnati and opened a day nursery for working women.
Diocesan records indicated the sisters moved to Northern Kentucky after Robert Beaton of Cincinnati donated a house and a farm to them in 1873. The 18-acre site was then in the District of the Highlands, which would later become the city of Fort Thomas, with the site being off Alexandria Pike on Highland Avenue.
Initially the site served as a convent. A landmark on the property was a 19-foot high statue of St. Joseph, which was erected in 1879. A chapel was added in 1881 constructed by Charles Limerick in the shape of a cross. The cornerstone was laid September 20. It was dedicated October 19, 1884.
By the 1800s Good Shepherd was also serving as an orphanage. Accounts say 72 children were being housed there in 1881. The focus of the home shifted to "problem girls" in 1885 with a special wing added onto the complex in 1890. A rectory for a priest was added in 1895 and a new convent building was started in June 1903 and dedicated on May 15, 1905. The complex expanded further in 1908 with a school building to teach vocational skills, such as sewing and fine embroidery, for which the school and convent would alter become well known.
In the early 1900s Good Shepherd started annual lawn parties and chicken dinners to raise money. By 1934 the annual festival had grown to a three-day event in September with a volunteer staff of more than 100 people. During this time 25 nuns at Good Shepherd cared for 125 orphans and 105 problem girls.
A new four story wing with 27 classrooms was dedicated April 9, 1949. On November 22, 1949 Good Shepherd marked the 75th anniversary of the convent and school. A facility for retired Sisters of the Good Shepherd was started in 1981 called Peltier Hall. At the time there were only 17 nuns serving there with only 25 young women. In June 1982 it was announced that the home would be closed. An auction took place on September 21, 1985 to sell items from the convent.
Good Shepherd was torn down and a nursing home opened in
1993 Today the nursing home and the Peltier building for retired nuns sit
on the former Good Shepherd site.