Although the sisters may have been wanted, no one came to welcome them. Cholera had quarantined St. Louis, so the bishop could not even send a letter to tell anyone they were coming. They were eventually taken to the former Kaskaskia Hotel which became the first Visitation Academy in "the West." Sr. Josephine, the diarist of the early days, wrote: "We had the counter removed from the barroom which was in future to serve the triple purpose of refectory, play room, and class room for the children." The first graduate was Sophie Menard in 1838; she received a crescent pin for excellence in her studies, now a tradition for every Visitation graduate.

Eight years later, the diocese was divided. Bp. Kenrick, the new bishop of St. Louis, wanted Visitandines in his diocese, so six sisters left for St. Louis, saying what they thought was a permanent farewell to the Kaskaskia sisters.

The following spring, the waters of the nearby Mississippi River began to rise, and when bricks began shifting under the cook's weight, the Sisters moved to the upper floors. Bp. Kenrick, coming to introduce the new bishop to the sisters, prevailed on the steamboat captain to take the sisters to St. Louis.

Sr. Josephine wrote: "The boat [was] lashed to the house through the doors and windows. The bishops and priests assisted in carrying the furniture on board. Pianos, harps, stoves, desks and benches, etc. were put in the hold to serve as ballast. This was June 26th, 1844."

In 1849, another cholera epidemic struck St. Louis. At Visitation, 17 of the students became ill, but all recovered; however, one sister died. By 1858, the area had become primarily commercial so the monastery and academy moved a few blocks west. During the Civil War, there were a record 160 boaders. Children of Confederate and Yankee soldiers sat beside each other in classes. One of the students later wrote: "..Sisterly love reigned within the convent walls, not withstanding the lack of brotherly love outside of them."

In 1871, a group of sisters left for Dubuque to begin a new house; the community had "come of age." Two years later, another group went to St. Paul at the request of several Catholics in that area. In 1887, a second academy was begun for those girls who lived in the west end of St. Louis.

As the country moved west, so did the city of St. Louis, and in 1892 the Cass Avenue monastery and academy moved out to 10 acres at the edge of the city. Later, an outdoor shrine to the Sacred Heart was added. In 1933, notwithstanding the Depression, the centennial year of the arrival of the first sisters in Kaskaskia was commemorated by three days of celebration.

By the mid-'50s, thoughts began to turn again to a move because the Cabanne location was becoming unsafe. In 1960, 28 acres of land were purchased and the whole community and academy moved to Ballas Road in 1962; there were 60 sisters in the community and 350 students from K-12. One year later the first Montessori class was begun.

Vatican II called religious communities to return to their roots. Since Visitation had no central governing body, each monastery began renewal at its own pace.

A decline in the number of religious led to more lay teachers in the academy. Its graduates were entering careers never dreamed of by women of earlier generations. The Sesquicentennial in 1983 began a yearlong celebration including trips to Kaskaskia. In 1986, the structure of the school was changed with the appointment of a Board of Trustees and the first lay Administrator.

In 1989, three sisters from St. Louis and a sister from St. Paul began a new monastery in Minneapolis to be a prayer presence in the midst of the poor. In 1992, five sisters from the Rock Island, Illinois, Visitation merged with the St. Louis community. In 1994, the Sisters renovated the monastery to fit the needs of our present community. In 2001, there are 24 Sisters and 650 students from pre-school through Grade 12.