As parochial schools in Connecticut consolidate and close doors, Milford’s Lauralton Hall continues its mission: to empower young women to pursue their highest potential. That credo resonates especially strong as the all-girls high school celebrates its 120th anniversary.
“For 120 years we’ve been an all-girls school, and we’re dedicated to remaining one,” says Beth Coyne, head of school. “We find for this age, for girls, it’s a transformative experience.”
Lauralton Hall was founded in 1905, when the Sisters of Mercy purchased the High Street property where the campus stands today. The Roman Catholic order dates back to the 1800s in Dublin, Ireland, when social reformer Catherine McAuley established a settlement house for women and children.
Today, the 25-acre campus spans four buildings, including the Pond-Taylor Mansion, a Victorian Gothic-style property listed on both the Connecticut and National Registers of Historic Places. The mansion was built in 1864 for businessman Charles Hobby Pond, a descendent from a long line of Milfordites.
Pond later sold it to Henry Augustus Taylor, a banker from New York, who dubbed the mansion “Lauralton Hall” after his mother and daughter, both named Laura. Taylor carried out a large-scale renovation of the property, adding a tower, veranda, and the gleaming mahogany staircase that greets students and visitors today.
Then came January 17, 1905. On that day, Lauralton Hall changed hands again, this time to the Sisters of Mercy, for $35,000 and an agreement to retain the Lauralton name. The Academy of Our Lady of Mercy, Lauralton Hall became the first Catholic college prep school in Connecticut. Twenty-five students enrolled that first year, with four graduating in 1906.
120 years later, on January 17, 2025, the Lauralton community celebrated the anniversary of that purchase with big half-chocolate, half-vanilla cupcakes, adorned in blue and white frosting, the school’s colors. The celebrations continued throughout the year with anniversary-themed events and a City of Milford Proclamation.
The anniversary will culminate this May with the school’s 120th graduation. Over the years, many remarkable women have crossed that threshold, including longtime Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (’60), the first woman superintendent of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Joanna Nunan (’83), and New York Times(ital) -recognized authors Kerry Howley (’99) and Krystal Marquis (’05).
Lauralton has preserved many traditions alive over the past 120 years. The Pond-Taylor Mansion is still a central fixture, with rooms now serving as administrative offices and classrooms. Students today receive the same class ring as those from years ago, a black onyx stone bedecked with the Lauralton crest. Seniors also participate in tree plantings on campus and around Milford, a nod to their roots at the school, and to the historic trees on the property.
One of the most enduring traditions, though, is the Lauralton uniform: a navy-blue jumper with a front pleat.
“The uniform has evolved over the years, but it’s certainly one of our traditions that’s most recognizable,” says Kathleen Kearns Donahue, director of advancement and a 1980 alumna. “If our girls are downtown grabbing a coffee or pizza or on the train, people know them, and they take pride in that uniform.”
The school now educates more than 250 students from over 30 cities near and far, and the curriculum encompasses both core academics—math, reading, and writing—as well as the arts and emerging technologies such as AI and new media. “The Mercy tradition includes curiosity, personal accountability and critical thinking,” Coyne says. “Those three attributes are embedded in every class.”
As the years pass, generation after generation return to Lauralton, either as legacy students or alumnae eager to give back. “I work with alumnae across the decades, and it’s been very interesting to see the common bonds that we all have and can relate to, whether someone graduated in the ‘40s or in 2025,” says Kearns Donahue.
“My mother was Class of 1948, along with my sisters and my aunt, Sister Marylouise (Weezie) Fennell, RSM,” says Mary Lou Auger (’76). “While Lauralton wasn’t initially my first choice, it was very much a part of my family’s story, and I am deeply grateful it became part of mine. In my junior year, I lost my mother, and the support I received from my classmates and the school was extraordinary…It truly is a special place.”
Current students echo the sentiments of the classes that came before. “Lauralton has blessed me with new friendships and wonderful teachers, but the greatest gift of all has been the sense of community I’ve found here,” says Grace Dubin, Class of 2029, whose mother, Missy is an alumna of the Class of 1997.
“Seventh- and eighth-graders don’t always want to go to an all-girls school,” says Beth Coyne. “Then they get here and realize they’re getting a sisterhood. We have a lot of legacy families; I think those grandmothers and mothers want to gift that to their daughters.”
—Suzanne Johnson
