8) April through August 1846: The
Jesuits begin to arrive in Fordham to take
over day-to-day operations of St. John’s
College. Mr. Michael Nash, SJ, a young
scholastic from St. Mary’s College in
Kansas, arrives on August 9th. He can be
considered the first Jesuit prefect, or
dean, of Fordham Prep.
1840s
1) Prior to June 24, 1841: Six
boarding students arrive in Fordham,
New York for a first summer session at
the soon-to-open St. John’s College.
2) June 24, 1841, on the Nativity of St.
John the Baptist, Bishop John Hughes
founds St. John’s College in Fordham,
New York – today known as Fordham
Prep and Fordham University.
3) June 1841: Fr. John McCloskey, the
first native-born New York Diocesan
priest, begins his tenure as the first
rector, or president, of St. John’s College.
He would later become the first
American-born cardinal.
4) September 1841: Mr. William
Rodrigue joins the faculty as the school’s
first art teacher. He also teaches
mathematics and penmanship on the
Prep level. As the campus architect, he
and his wife, Mrs. Margaret Hughes
Rodrigue — the sister of Bishop
Hughes— live in the small stone house
which still stands on campus today as
Rodrigue’s Coffeehouse. Rodrigue would
go on to lend his talent to several
projects, including the construction of St.
Patrick’s Cathedral.
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5) September 7, 1841: Sr. Basilia
McCann, SC arrives as the first school
nurse. Other Sisters of Charity soon join
her to staff the infirmary and
housekeeping department.
6) Mid-1840s: Tuition is $200 per year
for boarding students. There is an
additional charge of $15 for students
remaining at Rose Hill during the summer
months. While Latin and Greek are part
of the required curriculum on all levels,
there are separate fees for optional
modern language courses in Hebrew,
French, Spanish, German and Italian.
William Seton, Class of 1848, grandson
of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, is among the
early students of French.
9) May 1846: Edgar Allen Poe moves
into a cottage on Kingsbridge Road in the
area. He soon befriends Fr. Augustus
Thébaud, SJ, Fordham Prep and
University’s first Jesuit rector, and other
members of the faculty and staff.
According to school lore, Poe’s inspiration
for his famous poem, “The Bells,” was the
tolling of the University Church’s bell.
7) 1845: The University Church is
constructed under the direction of Mr.
Rodrigue. During the 1800s, the Church
would simultaneously serve as a chapel
for St. John’s College, a chapel for St
Joseph’s Seminary (which shared the
Rose Hill Campus with St. John’s until
1860), and a local church for Our Lady of
Mercy Parish.
10) July 15, 1846: Commencement
Day: On hand for Fordham’s first
commencement are the first six students
to complete their Second Division studies
— the Prep’s first graduating class: James
Carolin, Patrick Dealy, Patrick Gaynor,
Felix Kennedy, James Moran, William
Reilly, and Alejandro Troncozo. After his
Second Division days, Dealy would go on
to join the Society of Jesus, becoming the
first Jesuit Fordham Prep alum. Fr. Dealy