It was during Mother Cabrini’s last visit to the foothills in 1912 that she and a builder, Thomas Eckrom, drew up the plans for the Stone House that would serve as a dormitory for the girls. The house was to be built of native rock. She called the sisters who were with her and said, “daughters, I dropped my cane… go back and find it. Where you find it make a sign with stones because that is where the house is to be built.” The cane was on a level spot overlooking the city of Denver.

Each evening the girls would load a cart, drawn by a donkey, with stones from a nearby quarry for the next day’s building activity. The construction of the Stone House commenced in the fall of 1912 and was finally completed in 1914. The house was used as a summer camp for the girls from the Queen of Heaven orphanage.

The ground floor of the Stone House has the chapel, sleeping quarters for the supervising Sisters, a living room, an entry area with main staircase, a back staircase, and several small utility areas which remain basically unchanged. The second and third floors were open dormitory areas. Upon the closing of the Queen of Heaven Orphanage in 1967, the summer camp became a year around retreat facility, and a place for small prayer gatherings.

Today, the Stone House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Colorado Historical Society has granted over $138,000 to restore and renovate the Stone House. Extensive work has been done to the roof, windows, electrical system and wood work.

In 1954, a twenty-two foot statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, carved by an Italian artist was mounted on an eleven foot base and erected above the Heart of Stones. Beginning September 11, 1954, 373 steps leading up to the top of the Mount of the Sacred Heart were placed and completed in just 67 days.

The stairway follows the path Mother Cabrini, the sisters and the children took to the top of the mountain. This stairway following the Saint’s footsteps is also symbolic of the pathway Christ took on His sorrowful way to His crucifixion and death, through the Stations of the Cross. Each station is made of stone mosaics made in Italy and depicts the suffering of our divine Lord as He gave His life for our salvation.

Mary, through the mysteries of the rosary, invites the faithful to continue the journey begun with the Stations of the Cross reminding us through recitation and meditation on important events in the life of her Son, each mystery brings us closer to the Heart of Christ. In 1955, the Knights of Columbus placed terra cotta benches along the stairway, thus allowing pilgrims to rest, pray and meditate. At the entrance to the stairway is a large crucifix.

The beautiful stained-glass windows just off the main chapel, depict Mother Cabrini’s life, her birth, her confirmation, her missionary vocation, the founding of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, her meeting with Pope Leo the XIII, her devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the voyage to America, working with Italian immigrants, crossing the Andes, Mother Cabrini’s death, her miraculous cure of infant Peter Smith, and her canonization to sainthood. The windows originally came from Villa Cabrini in Burbank, California, which was a school formerly sponsored by the Missionary Sisters.

Today’s Shrine embodies the fulfillment of Cabrini’s foresight when she wrote, “I can envision many small chapels here where many pilgrims will come to pray.”