 While their corporate boards have long been identical, the two seminaries were combined under a single brand in 2018.From the beginning of his episcopacy, Archbishop John Ireland wished to be able to provide ordained priests for the ever-increasing Catholic population of the Upper Midwest, and began seeking funding for the creation of a new seminary.The primary financier to bring about John Ireland's vision of an Archdiocesan seminary was James J. Hill, a Methodist and the president of the Great Northern Railway.