Mother M. Frances Warde is known as the Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy in the United States of America. She led a founding group of seven sisters from Carlow to Pittsburgh in 1843. It is worth noting that Frances was already a foundress before she left for America. In 1837, Catherine McAuley appointed her as superior of the foundation in Carlow. From there, Frances established Mercy communities in Naas (1839), Wexford (1840), and Westport (1843). In America, Frances displayed great courage and generosity in making many foundations. Her foundations, which were established as or became autonomous, included Latrobe (PA) (1845), Chicago (IL) (1846), Loretto (PA) (1848); Providence (RI) (1851), Hartford (CT) (1852?), New Haven (CT) (1852), Newport (RI), Rochester (NY) (1857), Manchester (NH) (1858), Philadelphia (PA) (1861), Omaha (NE) (1864), Bangor (Me) (1865), Yreka (CA) (1871), North Whitefield (Me) (1871), St Johnsbury (VT) (1872), Portland (Me) (1873), Bordentown (NJ) (1873), Princeton (NJ) (1878), and Deering (NH) (1882).

Frances was born in Abbeyleix, County Laois, most likely around 1810, to a prosperous and respected family. The daughter of John and Mary (Maher) Warde, Frances was the youngest of their six children. Her mother fell ill and died shortly after Frances was born, and the four youngest siblings were raised by a maternal aunt. Despite experiencing significant loss as a child, she earned an excellent education. Described as lively, stern, charming and queenly (even regal), Frances enjoyed a vibrant life as a young adult in the fashionable circles of Dublin.  Frances met Catherine McAuley in 1827, the same year that Catherine opened the House of Mercy on Lower Baggot Street. Frances was seventeen and Catherine nearing fifty. Despite their differences in age and personality, Catherine and Frances grew close, and their friendship lasted until Catherine died. Frances was one of seven sisters who made their profession at Baggot Street Convent in 1833.

Despite their age gap, Catherine McAuley and Frances Warde were close companions and confidants. Catherine's letters demonstrate how frequently they corresponded and the level of trust that existed. Frances followed in the footsteps of Catherine McAuley by bringing Mercy's life and works to a wider audience, and, like Catherine McAuley, she responded to each need as best she could. In addition to her work founding convents, Frances established numerous houses of Mercy, schools, and facilities to care for the sick (including the first Mercy hospital in America) and a refuge for orphans. Moreover, she established several ministries for indigenous peoples of the Americas.

Frances faced many challenges. Women travelling alone faced danger and extraordinary discomfort. Frances nearly lost her life returning from her foundation to Chicago. In her biography of Frances, Kathleen Healy outlines how she often refers to the dangers of the "know-nothings," a political movement stridently opposed to Catholicism. In addition, Frances had to defend the interpretation of the Mercy Rule against bishops who wished to replace the chosen sisters as superiors.

All of Frances Warde’s foundations were subsequently incorporated into the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. Pittsburgh was not the only foundation that came straight from Ireland to America, and it appears that Frances and the other foundresses collaborated in bringing Mercy to numerous locations in America. It must be said that the Sisters have had an extraordinary impact on education, health, and social ministries in the United States and the other countries to which they carried the Mercy story. The sisters were instrumental in bridging the gap between Catholics and those of other faiths. They also did a lot to promote cultural activities such as music and art in the towns and cities where they served.

Paula Diann Marlin, "Earliest Pioneer Sisters of Mercy in the Americas", Mercy International Association, Accessed 29th of April, 2024. https://www.mercyworld.org/catherine/mercy-foundresses/earliest-pioneer-sisters-of-mercy-in-the-americas/

Healy, Kathleen. “Frances Warde: American Founder of the Sisters of Mercy” The Seabury Press, NY, United States of America, 1973.

Mary C Sullivan (Ed) “The Correspondence of Catherine McAuley 1818 – 1841. Four Courts Press, the Catholic University of America Press, Baltimore, 2004.

Mary C. Sullivan “Catherine McAuley and the Tradition of Mercy” Four Courts Press, Dublin, 1995.

Upton, Julia. “FRANCES WARDE: THE GREAT MOTHER”. Sistersofmercy.org, September 14, 2022. https://www.sistersofmercy.org/frances-warde-the-great-mother/