Father Holzer invited the Sisters of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary to come to Guelph. On June 10, 1856, four Loretto sisters arrived. Mother Berchmans Lalor, the Superior, and St. M. Ignatia Lynn, Sr. M. Stanislaus Hennigan, and Sr. M. Ita Cummins. They stayed at the home of a local parishioner, Mr. John Harris (who later became Mayor Guelph) until 2857, when the convent was completed. Mr. Downey moved his class of boys to the rectory, while the Sisters taught the girls in the convent. Thus began Catholic education in Guelph.
In 1856 the Diocese of Hamilton was established, with Bishop John Farrell as its first bishop, and Guelph came under the jurisdiction of the new diocese. During these years the Jesuits of Guelph were responsible for the territory north and northwest of the town to Georgian Bay and Lake Huron. They established 56 mission stations in that area. Among these missions were Arthur, Kenilworth, Ayton, Carlsruhe, Chepstow, Deemerton, Neustadt, Elora, Formosa, Hanover, Markdale, Mildmay, Riversdale, and Owen Sound. Under the direction of Father Holzer churches were built in Hanover (1852), Fergus (1854), Morriston (1856), Deemerton (1856), Hespeler (1857), Mount Forest (1857), Acton (1857), Georgetown (1858), Neustadt (1860) and Carlsruhe (1860). Gradually, over the years, the mission stations attached to Guelph became independent parishes.
The great missionary who travelled tirelessly establishing the Church throughout the vast area of the Guelph Mission was Father Caspar Matoga, who died at the age of 33 in 1856. He was born in Poland in 1823 , and came to Guelph on September 1, 1852. Except for a few months, when he had the use of a hose to carry clothing and other necessities for the poor whom he encountered, Father Matoga walked on his missionary journeys, covering the circuit of Mission stations five or six times a year. he would arrive in the morning, hear confessions, baptize, marry, anoint the sick, settle disputes, and teach catechism. Then at noon he would celebrate Mass, preach a sermon, give Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, and continue with pastoral visitation throughout the afternoon. He endured great hardships and exhaustion, and survived two attempts on his life. Often he would simply lie down by the side of the road, to get a bit of rest, and then move on. One of his trips this saintly priest became very ill, and walked 30 miles to Guelph, where he died on August 21, 1856. He is buried in the Church of Our Lady, beneath the Canadian Martyrs chapel. He was known as "indeffus animarum venator" - the indefatigable hunter of souls.
In Guelph itself Father Holzer continued his activities. In 1857 he built the rectory and completed the convent. He intended the rectory to be the site of Ignatius College, and on May 7, 1862, a Bill was passed incorporating the College. But there were not enough students, and in a few years the College closed. In 1862 Bishop Farrell gave the Jesuits 6 acres of land for a residence and a future college. In 1861 Father Holzer founded St. Joseph's Hospital. He asked the St. Joseph Sisters of Hamilton Diocese to be responsible for the Hospital, and on November 21, 1861 Sr. Alphonsus Sr. Antoinette, and Sr. Ignatius arrived to begin this work. At first they cared for the sick in a small stone building known as the Gate house, with room for 16 patients. In 1862 and 1877 this building was expanded, and a new Hospital was built in 1895. A new wing was added in 1925, and another in 1951. In 1956 a home for the aged was constructed. As we enter the final years of the twentieth century, a new Hospital is planned, the latest location for the work of caring for the sick which was begun in Guelph in 1861.