<p>ANSWER:</p>
<p>Boston’s Protestant leaders thwarted the Jesuits attempts to open a Catholic College in Boston so the Jesuits looked elsewhere. They were finally able to purchase land which the Protestants thought would be impossible to build on on a steep hillside in Worcester. Anti-Catholicism was in full force throughout New England at this time. Petitions to secure a charter for the college from the state Legislature were denied in 1847 for a variety of causes, including anti-Catholicism on the part of some legislators. Initially, Holy Cross diplomas were signed by the president of Georgetown University. After repeated denials, a charter was finally granted on March 24, 1865.</p>