The college was set-up in early 1944 as Mount Saint Mary’s Training College Otukpo, a teachers’ training college at a temporary site in Igbanonmaje in downtown area of Otukpo town, present day St. Monica’s Girls’ Secondary School, Otukpo, under the headship of Rev. Fr. John Enright as the first principal.
In April 1948, the Franciscans (the Order of Friars Minor), who had a base in Onitsha, were invited by the then Prefect Apostolic of Otukpo Prefecture, Monsignor Joseph Kirsten, to take over the running of Mt. St. Mary’s Training College. And the first set of Friars to arrive Otukpo, were the Irish duo of Bro. Benignus O’Brien and Bro. Raphael Kinahan, with Bro. Benignus becoming the principal and Bro. Raphael the vice-principal.
The arrival of the Friars to the college came with the financial backing of the Franciscans and in 1951, upon securing land for the construction of the college’s permanent site in Eupi in uptown area of Otukpo town, the Franciscan Order Superior General, Bro. Conleth Mannion sent Bro. Isidore O’Higgins, who was an architect and master builder before he joined the order, to help with the building of the new site.
When the construction of a students’ hostel (down dormitory), a few classroom blocks and 2 staff houses were completed, Mt. St. Mary’s Training College relocated from downtown Igbanonmaje to uptown Eupi in 1952.
By 1963, Mt. St. Mary’s Training College which had 2 teachers’ training streams, a Grade II and Grade III, became St. Francis College following the addition of a secondary school stream. The name St. Francis was chosen in honour of the patron saint of the Franciscans, St. Francis of Assisi.
In 1964, the Native Authority decided that the remaining Grade II and Grade III teachers’ training classes should transfer to St. Augustine College Lafia (present day Government College Lafia), thereby making St. Francis College Otukpo, a 100% secondary school.
By the early 1970s, the college had witnessed unprecedented growth with students’ population rising to circa 300, and to cater for this number of students, the Franciscan Brothers built more dormitories, classrooms, laboratories, a Chapel and an Olympic size athletics field, the only purpose built track and field events sports ground in Otukpo. And for good measure, a pitch for the gentleman’s sport of cricket was built in the middle of the sports ground (again another first in Otukpo).
Bro. Raphael Kinahan, who was one of the first 2 Franciscans to arrive Otukpo in 1948, was one of the last, if not the last Franciscan Brother to leave in 1974, the same year that Sir Bernard Omaiye became the first Nigerian to become principal of the college.
In 1975, an Irish Holy Ghost Father, Rev. Fr. Joseph O’Neil, CS Sp who was the priest of St. Mary’s Parish Otukpo became the first parish priest of the newly created St. Francis Parish Otukpo. Until the establishment of St. Francis Parish, the spiritual needs of the college were served by St. Mary’s Parish. Fr. O’Neil would remain the parish priest until 1990, when he moved to St. Augustine Parish Otukpo before retiring and moving back to Ireland in 1993.
Over the years, the college’s successive principals and staff have built on the great foundation laid by the Franciscan brothers with the support of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi (up 1995) and the Catholic Diocese of Otukpo (since 1995). This has seen the college excel in both curricular and extracurricular activities with some old boys going on to achieve national and international recognition in their chosen fields of endeavour. A list of old boys who have made their alma mater proud can be found on the Notable Old Boys page.
After operating a combined day and boarding school for a long time, the college switched to an all boarding school education in the 2000/01 academic session with the hope that it will enable the college to better instil discipline and impart faith in the students as well as give them a better sense of civic responsibilities.
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