)
Saint Mary's Industrial School for Boys (1866–1950) Saint Mary's Industrial School for Boys was opened in Baltimore City in 1866 by the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The school served as both an
orphanage and
boarding school for boys, teaching them life and labor skills. At the time, Archbishop
Martin Spalding pointed out the need for such a school, and enlisted the aid of the
Xaverian Brothers to assist in running the school for the Archdiocese. As attendance at the school grew, the large original granite Victorian building was constructed and in use by 1868. He learnt the game of baseball at St. Mary's under the tutelage of Brother Matthias and became one of St. Mary's most notable alumni. In 1919, a fire destroyed much of the old
Victorian-styled campus. Alumnus Babe Ruth, who at the time was playing for the
New York Yankees, asked to take the St. Mary's School band along on "road trips" to several major league ballparks around the Northeast, in an attempt to raise money to replace the main school building. The numbers of pupils and orphans requiring the services of the industrial school declined; it finally ceased operations in 1950. Although much of the original St. Mary's campus was demolished, one building remained from the original construction during the 1866-1868 period and another from the reconstruction after the 1919 fire. The athletic field that Babe learned to play baseball on was utilized by the Cardinal Gibbons baseball teams from 1962 until closing, and affectionately called "Babe Ruth Field".
Cardinal Gibbons High School (1962–1988) Cardinal Gibbons High School opened in September 1962. On the corner of Wilkens and Caton Avenues, where the large old Victorian-styled stone walls of the old Industrial School once stood, another Catholic institution was founded and constructed to succeed St. Mary's Industrial School. In 1959 Archbishop
Francis Keough chose the ground of the vacant St. Mary's buildings for a new diocesan high school campus, with ample room for athletic fields and religious community housing. A considerable construction and renovation project ensued, utilizing buildings from the original and rebuilt St. Mary's campuses, along with new buildings for the school. Archbishop Keough contacted the
Marianists, who had previously taught at several local grammar schools in the diocese; they agreed to return to Baltimore and take charge of the new
high school. Brother Matthew Betz, S.M., was appointed the first principal of the new school. In September 1962, the school was operating with a working faculty of nine, including a secretary, janitor, and 150 freshmen. On September 8, 1963, Archbishop
Lawrence Cardinal Shehan presided over the sealing of the main building's cornerstone and the dedication of the new school to former ninth
Archbishop of Baltimore James Cardinal Gibbons, said to be Baltimore's and America's most distinguished Catholic churchman at the turn of the century. Over the years, the Cardinal Gibbons High School continued to grow. By the 1968–1969 school year, the Crusaders made sports headlines with the championship play of both the varsity
basketball and
baseball teams. Long-time coach O. Ray Mullis established a
Maryland Scholastic Association and later a
Baltimore Catholic League basketball dynasty at Gibbons over the next decade. It was during this time that frequent meetings on the basketball court sparked a fierce rivalry with another local Catholic high school,
Mount Saint Joseph. Gibbons made a name for itself as a powerhouse for academics and athletics in the southwest Baltimore region.
The Cardinal Gibbons School (1988–2010) In 1988, the Cardinal Gibbons School added a Middle School Program, enrolling students in grades 6 through 8. Formerly known as Cardinal Gibbons High School, the school adopted its final name, the Cardinal Gibbons School. In 2001, Gibbons switched to the President-Principal model, naming Brother Kevin Strong, F.S.C., the first President of the school. The school joined the
LaSallian Network of Schools that year. The middle school program continued successfully until the end of the 2009 school year, graduating its last eighth grade class the following year. Due to decreased enrollment and financial strains on both the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the surrounding communities, Gibbons headed toward closing its doors. On March 3, 2010, the
Archdiocese of Baltimore announced it would close Gibbons at the end of the 2009–2010 school year, as part of a broader consolidation of twelve other Baltimore parochial schools in the face of declining enrollment and reports of Archdiocesan financial losses.
Gibbons Commons In March 2012, it was announced that next door
St. Agnes Hospital reached an agreement with the Archdiocese to purchase the property. Plans for the property include subsidized apartments, office space, retail and restaurant space, and a
YMCA location. In 2016, the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation finished renovations and reopened "Babe Ruth Field," given its significance to Baltimore and American baseball history. In 2017 the property was still under development and construction. ==Campus==