It's a place where the Josephite Sisters carried out the work of God and were strict with the students who boarded there. But its particular significance lies in a room upstairs, overlooking the gardens, where the congregation's founder, Saint Mary MacKillop, would stay during her trips to the town.

"I have a secular background but very soon after I bought this place I went up to North Sydney where the Josephite order has its headquarters. I thought I would be there for five minutes or so but ... I spent a couple of hours there," the convent's current owner, Pamela Orr, said.

"Then I became interested in Mary MacKillop as a most remarkable person of the time.

"She was feisty, obdurate, and committed. She was involved in trying to [get rid] of the poverty that she saw in country places like Bungendore."

Mary MacKillop, Australia's first and at one time controversial Saint, stayed in the convent four times between 1895 and 1901, after the building – which is now for sale – was established in 1891.

Her reason for being there was partly convenience - in August of 1901 she stayed on her way to Sydney - and partly to ensure her mission of educating and helping the poor was being carried out. She died in August 1909.

"And of course she came to give religious solace to the Catholic community," Ms Orr said.

The Sisters who lived at the Bungendore convent taught at a school of about 115 students at what later became the Saint Mary's Catholic Church hall, further down on Turallo Terrace.

The school relocated to what is now Bungendore Preschool in 1925, and children who attended from outlying rural areas boarded at the convent from about 1932, when the building was extended.

"The chapel was built, the verandahs were enclosed, and the facade was put on. That was a tremendously important thing at the time ... as it allowed children to board there," Ms Orr said.

In 1975, the convent and the school were closed, as new schools opened up in Canberra and Queanbeyan and the Catholic Church relinquished its teaching role in Bungendore.

It has been in private hands since, serving a multitude of uses for tourists and the local community: a residence for people with disabilities in 1978, a bed and breakfast named Manna House later, and an attraction for Agatha Christie-style "murder mysteries".

"The family here at that time had a Rolls-Royce, which didn’t fit in the garage but it would go into the carport. Then it would go up to the station where it would pick up people coming down from Sydney or wherever for the murder mysteries," Ms Orr said.

Ms Orr, who has owned the property since 2001, lived in one half of the convent up until 2016, while leasing the other half to families and couples. The building was approved for dual occupancy in 1998.

But in 2016, when she moved out to begin building a home on her local cattle farm, a leasing family requested use of the entire convent. The place was filled with beautiful antiques, Ms Orr said.

They had dining furniture in the chapel.

"I loved living here and used to invite lots of my friends to stay. I always enjoyed the house when it had people in it. It came alive," Ms Orr said.

"I hope that the person who buys it will really love it, look after it, respect it and its old tradition. I hope that it will always be lively and enjoyable, and a central part of old Bungendore."

The former Saint Joseph's Convent, located at 54 Turallo Terrace in Bungendore, NSW, has been listed for sale and is open to expressions of interest until March 5.

The property features four guest suites with bathrooms, three additional bedrooms, two kitchens, a scullery, pantry, dining room, lounge room, two additional bathrooms, and enclosed verandas.

It sits on about 1.32 acres of land and has extensive gardens. Ms Orr is unsure of how much she will sell the property for, she said.

It was last listed for rent at $875 a week in May 2016. View the current property listing here.