Pre 1856

Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley, first Bishop of Newark and nephew of Elizabeth Ann Seton, begins to plan and organize Seton Hall. Bayley purchases an estate in Madison, NJ, using money donated by Catholic Charities. A Board of Directors is chosen, consisting of five priests and eight laymen, who transform the site into a Catholic preparatory school, college and seminary.

1856

Inaugural class of five students starts on December 1, 1856.

1856-1857 &
1859-1868

President is Rt. Rev. Bernard J. McQuaid. In 1857 enrollment rises to 40. Bishop Bayley asks McQuaid to seek a larger, more convenient site.

1856-1868

Prep and College share curriculum

1860

McQuaid purchases an estate with two mansions in South Orange for $35,000. Madison site is sold to Sisters of Charity.

1861

March 8, 1861, Seton Hall is granted charter by State of New Jersey. Seton Hall joins the ranks of fewer than 40 preparatory schools in the country before the Civil War.

1866
[to 1909]

Three fires destroy several buildings on the campus over the course of three decades.

1868-1876

College President is Rev Dr. Michael A. Corrigan

1870

Prep curriculum becomes distinct from that of the College

1876-1888

College President is Rev. James H. Corrigan

1888-1897

College President is Rev William F. Marshall
Prep prepares for New York and New Jersey High School Certification

1889

The Preparatory School is organized as a distinct education unit, maintaining its close association with the College by using the same campus facilities.

1897-1899

College President is Rev. Joseph J. Synott

1899-1907

College President is Rt. Rev. John A. Stafford

1907-1922

College President is Rt. Rev. James F. Mooney

1909

Mooney Hall is completed, named in honor of Rev. James F. Mooney, President of Seton Hall College. The building serves as the main Prep building for 76 years.

1922-1933

College President is Rt. Rev. Thomas H. McLaughlin
Prep and College separate facilities, services, discipline and faculty. President of College remains Principal of the Prep School.

1927-1928

Rev. D.A. Mulcahy is [First] Director of High School Program

1928-1946

Rev. William N. Bradley is
Director, 1928-1933
Principal, 1933-1937
Headmaster, 1937-1946

1940

State-of-the-art gymnasium/auditorium completed, named Walsh Auditorium, in honor of the first Archbishop of Newark, Most Reverend Thomas J. Walsh.

1946-1953

Headmaster is Rev. William J. Duffy

1953-1968

Headmaster is Rt. Rev. Thomas J. Tuohy

1954

Newly completed building is named for Rev. William Duffy following his departure for parish work.

1968-1980

Headmaster is Rev. William M. Giblin

1969

First female faculty member hired, Sr. Regina Cordis Conboy, SC, in the Chemistry Department .

1972

New wing of Duffy Hall opens to accommodate a rapidly growing Prep School student body.

1975

Prep enrollment surpasses 1100.

1980 to Present

Headmaster is Msgr. Michael E. Kelly '57, first alumnus Headmaster

1985

After 128 years and a century and a quarter in South Orange, Seton Hall Prep re-locates its campus to a 9-acre site on Northfield Avenue in West Orange, purchased by the University for $1.6 million.

1986

Seton Hall Prep becomes separately incorporated.
First meeting of the Seton Hall Prep Board of Trustees.

1993

Seton Hall Prep purchases a 44-acre tract of land on Prospect Avenue, a short distance from the Northfield campus. It is the site of the former Carteret School.

1999

Seton Hall Prep breaks ground for construction of the Edward D. and Helen M. Kelly Athletic Complex on the Prospect Avenue site, overlooking  the New York skyline.

2004

Seton Hall Prep dedicates the Bill Persichetty Track, the Charlie Lorenzo Training Facility and the Frank Gagliano Running Course at the Kelly Athletic Complex.

2005

Msgr. Kelly celebrates 25^th anniversary as Headmaster
Seton Hall Prep prepares to celebrate its 150^th anniversary.

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