The Sisters of Charity Federation in the Vincentian-Setonian Tradition is an organization of fourteen congregations of religious women in the Catholic Church who trace their lineage to Saint Elizabeth Seton, Saint Vincent de Paul, and Saint Louise de Marillac. Members The Sisters of Charity Federation in the Vincentian-Setonian Tradition represents approximately 4,000 vowed members and 700 lay associates/affiliates from women religious congregations throughout North America. The purpose of the Federation is to facilitate collaboration in projects related to ministry and other areas of common concern. The federation of Sisters of Charity includes: Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul (France; two provinces in U.S.: the Province of St. Louise, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, and the Province of the West, headquartered in Los Altos, California.) Sisters of Charity of New York (New York City) Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth (Convent Station, New Jersey) Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception (Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada) Les Religieuses de Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Cœur, (Dieppe, New Brunswick) Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul - Halifax (Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada), also known as the Sisters of Charity of Halifax Sisters of Saint Martha (Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada) Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill (Pennsylvania) Sisters of Charity of Nazareth (Kentucky) Vincentian Sisters of Charity(VSC), (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) One of the original Federation members, in November 2008, the congregation merged with the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth (SCN). Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth (Kansas) Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Mercy (South Carolina) Sisters of Saint Martha of Prince Edward Island History Origins France The Company of the Daughters of Charity, founded in France on November 29, 1633, developed from the parish-based Confraternities of Charity, and became the first successful institute of non-cloistered religious women to serve in the active apostolate in France. United States The foundress of the American branch of the Sisters of Charity was born Elizabeth Ann Bayley, the daughter of Dr. Richard and Catherine Charlton Bayley, members of a prominent family of New York City. Elizabeth was raised in the Episcopal faith. After the death of her mother in 1777, her father married Charlotte Amelia Barclay. Their son, Guy Charleton Bayley, was the father of James Roosevelt Bayley, who converted to Roman Catholicism and later became Archbishop of Baltimore. On January 25, 1794, Elizabeth Ann Bayley married William Magee Seton in St. Paul's Church,