New York street named after Dominican foundress

Image: OP.Org

Source: Dominican Order

The City of New York honoured Venerable Rose Hawthorne, foundress of the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, on 1 October 2026 by co-naming a section of East 68th Street in Manhattan 'Rose Hawthorne Way.' The designation recognises her dedication to people living in poverty with incurable cancer and the mission of free care continued by her sisters.

The stretch between First and York avenues lies beside Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and St Catherine of Siena Church. The date marked 130 years since Rose welcomed her first patient into her own home on 1 October 1896. This year also marks the centenary of her death on 9 July 1926.

Mother Marie Edward, superior general of the Hawthorne Dominicans, expressed gratitude for the recognition of the congregation's foundress.

"It is a tribute to her total dedication to the sick poor," she said. "We thank you for this honor for our foundress. Her work continues 130 years after she began."

Recalling the inspiration behind that work, Mother Marie Edward quoted Rose's words from 1896: "A fire was then lighted in my heart, where it still burns. I set my whole being to endeavour to bring consolation to the cancerous poor."

To prepare for this mission, Rose completed a three-month nursing course at New York Cancer Hospital, then located at 106th Street and Eighth Avenue. The hospital was the predecessor of today's Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Born in Lenox, Massachusetts, on 20 May 1851, Rose was the daughter of author Nathaniel Hawthorne and Sophia Peabody. She married writer George Parsons Lathrop, and the couple entered the Catholic Church in 1891. Her concern for people with cancer who lacked care and financial resources eventually led her to dedicate her life to their service.

Her nursing work gradually took on a Dominican form. Brother Clement Thuente, OP, encouraged her to become a Dominican tertiary and accompanied the development of her vocation. Known in religious life as Mother Mary Alphonsa, she founded the Congregation of St Rose of Lima, commonly known as the Hawthorne Dominicans.

Mother Marie Edward highlighted the continuing connection between the friars who encouraged Rose and those who now serve hospital patients.

"Providing the essential spiritual care to the patients at Sloan Kettering are the Dominican Friars," she said. "They are members of the same community that introduced the Dominican Order to Rose Hawthorne and encouraged her work among the cancerous poor."

She also acknowledged those whose efforts brought about the public recognition. "The kindness and work of Patrice Hannon and the Dominican Friars have brought about the renaming of this street. We are privileged to share this."

Brother Hyacinth Grubb, OP, situated the dedication within the Dominican Family's longstanding service to the sick in Manhattan.

"Dominican friars have cared for the spiritual needs of the sick as hospital chaplains in Manhattan for almost a century," he said. "Healthcare ministry, whether in the direct care of patients and their families, support for medical staff, or as a centre of Thomistic bioethics, is a powerful opportunity to preach the Gospel in the public square."

The Hawthorne Dominicans continue to provide care free of charge for people with terminal cancer. Their apostolate carries forward the mission of their foundress, whose heroic virtues were recognised by Pope Francis on 14 March 2024, granting her the title Venerable.

For Br Hyacinth, the street dedication honours a witness that remains relevant to the daily work of healthcare ministry.

"It is a privilege to work for the salvation of souls in moments of sickness and vulnerability," he said.

Rose Hawthorne Way now places that witness before patients, families, healthcare workers and passersby, recalling a Dominican life devoted to caring for the sick in body and soul.

LINK

Dominicans: www.op.org/