She was born Ellen Whitty at Pouldarrig, near Oylegate, a village seven miles from the town of Wexford in Ireland. She was the fourth of the six children of William and Johanna Whitty. Of her two sisters one also became a Sister of Mercy, known as Sister Mary Agnes; the other married the brother of a famous convert and publicist, Frederick Lucas. Father Robert Whitty, S.J., leader of the Jesuits in Great Britain, was her brother.
Whitty joined Catherine McAuley, the founder of the Sisters of Mercy, at the convent in Baggot Street, Dublin, in 1839. Serving as Whitty's spiritual guide through her novitiate, Catherine McAuley was extremely close to her and requested Mother Vincent to sit by her side in her dying hours. She was made Mistress of novices in 1844, and in 1849 Superior General of the religious congregation, third in succession to Mother McAuley. While she was served in that office, the Crimean War was being waged and she offered the services of the congregation to nurse the sick and wounded soldiers. Her own sister, Mary Agnes, was one of those who went to the seat of war. Involved in the planning of the Mater Hospital in Dublin, Whitty was especially skilled in organisation and as such was considered invaluable to the Sisters of Mercy community in Ireland. Additionally, she founded five new convents and established three institutions in Dublin for the care of underprivileged women and children.
Religious life in Queensland
It was this that held Whitty in Ireland until Bishop James Quinn, who had recently been named as the first Bishop of Brisbane for Queensland, encouraged her to come to his pioneer diocese. The new diocese, as large as France, Spain and Italy together, had then only two priests and four churches. She was appointed as the Superior of the group. Whitty arrived in Brisbane with five other Sisters on 10 May 1861 and that following November founded All Hallows' School, a Catholic girls school. Although the bishop removed her as Superior in 1863, the community of Sisters she founded soon spread throughout the new colony, with more than 20 convents founded before her death Bishop Quinn's decision to include Whitty in his pastoral plan proved to be inspirational, and under her leadership the Sisters of Mercy were able to make a positive contribution to the growth of the Catholic community throughout Queensland.
In addition to the various educational institutions founded under her leadership, the Sisters of Mercy of Brisbane form an independent congregation within the tradition of Catherine McAuley.
