Mary Frances Clarke

Mary Frances Clarke, B.V.M. (c. 15 December 1802 – 4 December 1887) was an Irish nun who founded the Catholic order of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Initially started in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to provide educational opportunities for immigrants' children, the order relocated in the 1840s to Dubuque, Iowa, and established prairie schools across the high plains. One of those initial schools later became Clarke University. She was posthumously inducted into the Iowa Women's Hall of Fame. Provided by Wikipedia