Founded in 1727 by the Ursuline Order of nuns, the Ursuline Convent is the oldest and most complete example of French Colonial architecture in America and oldest building in the Mississippi Valley.

The Ursuline Order came to New Orleans at the request of Louisiana's first governor, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, in order to establish a school for local girls and create a community hospital.

When the first group of nuns arrived in the summer of 1727 the Company of the West Indies had not yet completed the large Louis XIV style convent promised the Ursuline Order. While they awaited the completion, Governor Bienville allowed the nuns to use his personal home as their headquarters.

The Ursulines occupied the convent and school on Chartres Street in 1734 and the building was completed in 1753. The nuns remained here throughout the colonial period despite the various regime changes between the French, Spanish, and Americans within the territory.

The large structure also survived a series of devastating fires that destroyed most of the French Quarter during the late 18th century.

During the Battle of New Orleans in 1815, the convent opened it doors to wounded soldiers of the American Army and were praised by General Andrew Jackson for their support.

The Ursulines donated the building to the Archdiocese of New Orleans in 1824 and relocated to the Dauphine Street Convent until 1912. Since then, the Academy has been located uptown on State Street.

After the Ursulines donated the structure to the Archdiocese, the Archbishop of New Orleans utilized the building as his personal residence, the Louisiana legislature met here, and the Archdiocese use the structure as its archives.

Today, the public can tour the building as part of the Catholic Cultural Heritage Center of the Archdiocese of New Orleans.