Ursuline Sisters Ursulita O’Bryan and Dorothy Payne are seen in Aztec, New Mexico, in 1920. COURTESY OF ARCHIVES
The Kentucky Mesa
How there came to be a Catholic, Daviess County, Kentucky, settlement in New Mexico
BY EDWARD WILSON, ARCHIVES
A young Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph makes her way to the little schoolhouse one morning.
After stepping out of the Model T, she thanks Mr. Stallings for the ride, waves to Mr. Wethington and stops to thank Mrs. Drury for the delicious sweets she dropped off earlier that week. This scene could have taken place in countless little towns in western Kentucky.
However, this Kentucky Ursuline and these fine Kentucky people are not in Kentucky at all: they are in New Mexico, in a place dubbed the Kentucky Mesa.
This is a truly interesting tale. It is one that spans decades and cannot be told in its entirety in a single small article. But it is a story that many of you may find fascinating and one that few outside of the Mount are even aware of. This is the story of how there came to be a Catholic Kentucky settlement in New Mexico.
In 1909, two brothers from Daviess County, Kentucky – Joseph and Lorenzo Stallings – found their way to San Juan County, N.M. The brothers were devout Catholics and would often meet with and host the Franciscan friars in their humble accommodations. After a few years of this life, the men began to speak with the friars about the possibility of starting a Catholic colony on the mesa.
The pioneer Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, who served the Kentucky Mesa in the early 1900s, are seen in this undated photo. Shown are (with Mother Agnes O’Flynn in the center) Ursuline Sisters Margaret Mary Barrow, Mary Bartholomew Walsh, Elizabeth Kelly, Florence Monarch, Gertrude Pike, Andrew Lamkin, Antionette Krampe, and Veronica Benedict. COURTESY OF ARCHIVES
About five years after their arrival, the Stallings brothers invited four other Daviess County bachelors to experience life out West. The men all moved into a house that came to be known as “Bachelors’ Hall.” The men took their faith very seriously and a room was fitted for the friars to say Mass when they were in the area.
Gradually, due to a process called chain migration, the men’s families and perspective colonists started to move from Kentucky to join them. Things truly began to move along. Naturally, with women now settling in, the colonists began to marry. With babies being born and families growing, the obvious question of education was raised. This is, of course, where the Ursuline Sisters import even more Kentucky influence.
Lead by Mother Agnes O’Flynn, nine Ursulines of Mount Saint Joseph board a train and head to New Mexico. After the long journey, they are warmly welcomed. The land, however, was not as hospitable or familiar as the people.
The environment was very foreign to the Kentucky sisters and the accommodations were rough. The sun would break through the cracks in the wood slat wall and the wind sailed through the small makeshift convent freely. This led the sisters to wallpaper the house with newspaper supplied by the town’s people. Undeterred by the harsh conditions, the sisters persisted. They taught numerous children and further entrenched Kentucky culture and the Catholic faith 1,400 miles west of western Kentucky.
This very short recounting is the origin story of how a colony of Kentuckians and numerous Mount Saint Joseph Ursulines firmly established the Kentucky Mesa. Over the years more than 70 Ursulines labored in New Mexico and many Ursuline vocations also came from the venture. As often happens, this was a case when the Holy Spirit and the Kentucky pioneer spirit moved in the same direction.
Edward Wilson is the director of the Diocese of Owensboro’s Archives and the Archives of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph. Comments and questions may be sent to [email protected].
Ursuline Sisters Veronica Benedict, Margaret Mary Barrow, Florence Monarch are seen at their original convent in Farmington, New Mexico, between 1919 and 1920. COURTESY OF ARCHIVES
Originally printed in the May 2026 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.
