St Aloysius Church at the Oaks
St Aloysius Roman Catholic Church in Merlin Street was built in 1864/5. Almost complete, the small Gothic Sandstone church was opened by Archdeacon McEnroe in November 1865 with a number of locals attending this very special occasion.
The building has undergone a number of changes and additions over the years , one most noteworthy is the addition of the Stations of the Cross, originally created for St Joseph’s Coxs River, Burragorang Valley. These were installed in St Aloysius in the late 1950’s. The impressive Convent building was designed by Camden architect G.F. Furner and erected by local builders J. Devitt and A. Roberts in 1905/6 and opened on 20th June 1906 by Archbishop Kelly, who on the same day opened Camden Convent.
The sisters of St Josephs had begun their work at The Oaks in the 1880’s and the convent , their new home became a school and also serving as a boarding school until 1964. The foundation stone was laid in 1913 for the new convent school in the church grounds. The denominational school always had an excellent reputation, was well attended with enrollments throughout the years averaging 40 pupils.
The convent school closed on January 1st 1965 and the building now serves as the Catholic Church Hall.
