A Brief History...
Originally acquired to serve as the Novitiate
(a training centre for young men to become Brothers), the property was purchased in 1905 from Dr Edwin Chisholm. After the Novitiate was transferred to Sydney in 1985, the vacated premises were renamed ‘Marist Farmhouse’ and used for young adult ministry. The Juniorate,
(a secondary boarding school for boys aspiring to become Brothers) moved to Mittagong in 1917 and remained there for 55 years. With its closure at the end of 1972, the vacated premises were then used for school retreats and the site was renamed the ‘Marist Retreat Centre’. From the beginning of 2006 both sites were merged to form The Hermitage, the original name given to the property in 1906 when the Brothers first bought it. It was given this name in honour of the Mother House of the Marist Brothers near Lyon in France, built by the founder of the Brothers, Marcellin Champagnat, in 1824-26.
Click here for a summary of the main dates concerning the Marist Brothers’ property and buildings at Mittagong.
To order a copy of the history of the
Marist Brothers at Mittagong (A Hermitage in the South) click here.
Integral to the life of The Hermitage is the resident community of Brothers who live on the property. The Brothers’ community is eight in number, the same number that was asked to establish the foundation community in 1906!
Of the eight, two of the Brothers manage the farm and vineyard, two maintain The Hermitage property and grounds, three oversee hospitality and welcome, and one offers hospitality from the Brothers’ monastery.
A ‘Working Property’
The Hermitage property extends for 155 hectares (about 383 acres). The property supports 80-100 head of cattle, 20 head of sheep and 13 hectares of grape vines. It is very much a ‘working property’ as is readily evident to visitors and guests as they make their way from the front gate to the retreat and accommodation facilities. In addition to the livestock and grapes, the property also supports an orchard, an olive grove, a citrus grove and a poultry farm of chickens, ducks and geese.
Located on Diamond Fields Road, this cemetery was once part of the Edmund Burke
and family estate “Rose Vale”. It was given to the Catholic Church by
Mary and Susan Burke, and later to the Trustees of the Marist Brothers who now use and maintain it.
From 1907 until 1917 the cemetery was closed. In 1919 the first Marist Brother, Br Papinien, was buried in the Brothers’ Section. For further details about those buried in
this cemetery click here
