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Quirky tale #5:
Facing a nun-too-subtle challenge
For amateur photographer Max Loudon, who documented his lively bachelor life in the early years of the 20th century, this snapshot of six Benedictine nuns in their habits during a visit to Seattle’s first world’s fair, the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exhibition of 1909, is one of a kind. What expressions! From grin to grimace, the sisters’ enjoyment of the AYPE seems … mixed. Loudon noted their provocative question: “How do you tour a city like Seattle?”
Loudon preferred cheesecake to church and made April Fools of us all. His original inscription labeled the nuns as “Cabrini Sisters.” (Founded by Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini, the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart built orphanages and hospitals, and even exhibited at the AYPE.) The unnamed sisters were not Cabrinis, says Father Michael Ryan, pastor of St. James Cathedral. More likely Dominicans. But Dominican Sister Sharon Casey begs to differ. Her educated guess initially was — cue Julie Andrews — Benedictines. But hold the presses! A second trip down the habit/rabbit hole into church archives produced Sr. Sharon’s final answer: “They’re Presentation Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”