Boston College has begun construction on the Catholic Religious Archives (CRA), a two-story, 44,000-square-foot facility on Brighton Campus that will preserve records and other archival materials from Catholic religious orders.
Preliminary work began in early January, and the project is slated to be completed in June 2026, according to Mary Nardone, associate vice president of capital projects.
“The CRA will collect, process, and preserve unique archives from religious communities—many of them women religious—from the USA and Canada,” University Librarian Tom Wall and CRA Director Thomas Lester wrote in a statement to The Heights.
The building will contain 100,000 linear feet of storage space and connect to the Theology and Ministry Library, according to a University release.
Wall and Lester said the CRA will primarily house documents, photographs, and other print materials, as well as some religious artwork. The exact contents and arrangement of the artifacts are still being finalized, they added
“Most archival collections are paper-based although we have received a limited number of material culture items as well as artwork,” Wall and Lester wrote. “As we are just now processing the collections, it’s too early to determine where and if the items will be displayed.”
The Boston Planning and Development Commission approved the project in September. Boston-based contractor Suffolk Construction, which also managed the construction for 245 Beacon Street, will oversee the project, according to the release.
The CRA will primarily house records from Catholic religious orders and congregations that have dissolved or are planning to dissolve, the release added. They focus especially on the orders’ work in health care, social services, and education throughout North America’s history.
The building is intended to complement BC’s existing archival collections, including Burns Library and the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies, Wall and Lester said.
Designing the building posed unique challenges, according to Nardone.
To prevent natural light from harming the archival materials, Nardone said the building was designed to be windowless.
“The exterior design was an interesting challenge,” Nardone wrote in a statement to The Heights. “But we are pleased with the attractive precast facade design that the architects developed.”
Nardone said the CRA would include specially designed, climate-controlled storage areas to protect the contents of the archives.
Nardone also highlighted the facility’s emphasis on sustainability, with plans for a fully electric structure and LEED certification, a globally recognized standard for environmentally sustainable buildings.
The idea for the CRA originated from a 2018 conference hosted at BC that brought together 160 archivists, historians, and religious leaders to discuss how to preserve records from religious orders for future generations.
“The BC-hosted conference brought together archivists and scholars from around the nation to discuss and propose solutions to preserve these archives,” wrote Wall and Lester. “The BC-CRA represents a significant institutional commitment to preserving, documenting and celebrating the legacies of these communities.”
Following the conference, the University launched a Catholic Religious Archives Repository in 2018.
Wall and Lester said the CRA’s collection will be available to students and researchers from BC as well as institutions worldwide.
“We look forward to making many of these materials discoverable and accessible for teaching, learning, and research,” Wall and Lester wrote.
Additionally, Wall and Lester emphasized that the CRA closely aligns with BC’s Jesuit mission, particularly through its focus on the contributions of women’s religious orders.
“The CRA demonstrates a significant commitment to Catholic history and acknowledges the centrality of women religious communities in American history,” Wall and Lester wrote “We will proudly preserve and honor their important legacies.”
