ST. MARY'S OF THE BARRENS: SEMINARY PRESERVES PIECES OF CATHOLIC HISTORY

A statue of Mary and the Christ child adorns the top of a manmade mound on the seminary grounds. The mound sits along a tree-lined path.

The Rev. Louis Derbes showed a collection of first edition books written by Mark Twain housed in one of the seminary's museum rooms. Many first edition books and other rare books can be found in the seminary library.

St. Mary's of the Barrens Seminary houses a collection of carvings, statues and furniture from China. The museum room is named for Bishop Edward T. Sheehan, a seminary graduate who served and died in China in 1933.

PERRYVILLE -- The Rev. Louis Derbes knows he's sitting on a treasure among the historic books and documents in the library at St. Mary's of the Barrens seminary in Perryville.

But it's a treasure few people in the area know much about.

The 180-year-old seminary is nestled amid nearly 700 secluded acres of land along Route T and Highway 51 and is filled with bits and pieces of Catholic history in Perry County.

As archivist for the seminary, Derbes knows all about the school's history and its museums. His own history is entwined with the area: He attended the seminary after graduating from St. Vincent's College in Cape Girardeau.

Derbes recalls several stories about his seminary days. He helped clear fields so that a lake could be built on the property just prior to the construction of Interstate 55, which borders the north part of the property.

He also recalls tales about the water tower. Built to hold water in case of fire hazards, the tower also provides fresh water for faculty and students,

In addition to being a parish priest, Derbes was an educator and librarian for many years, which prepared him to keep the museum exhibits catalogued and organized.

He knows where to find the rarest of first edition books, a collection which includes works by Mark Twain, Thomas Moore and five pages of the Gutenberg Bible.

He can tell you about the paperweight collection and Chinese memorabilia donated by Countess Estelle Doheny. Her collections are housed in a room designed specifically to remind students of the 17th Century, the era in which St. Vincent de Paul, French founder of the Congregation of the Mission, lived.

In addition to the vast collections and historic documents, the seminary grounds include a pool, gym and handball courts used by students. Also nearby is a working farm, a 12-acre lake, a cemetery and shrine to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.

The 53-acre campus includes several classroom buildings, a library, power plant and administrative offices.

Over the years nearly 2,000 priests and leaders have studied or taught in the classrooms at the seminary, which closed 13 years ago. Now it is home to about 28 retired priests.

The seminary began in 1818 with a few Catholic pioneers who were new to the Perry County area, which had been recently acquired as part of the Louisiana Purchase.

Though the seminary has a lengthy history, it "isn't like Europe," Derbes said, where the seminaries are thousands of years old.

"But when you realize what the country looked like when they arrived, the group that gathered here was small and had their ups and downs."

Now much of the original seminary land is for sale. More than 610 acres, not including the campus, was put up for sale last year by its owners, the Vincentian order. Funds from the sale will help seminaries and missions in other countries.