St Joseph's Industrial School, Letterfrack
| St Joseph's Industrial School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
|
Letterfrack, Connemara, County Galway Ireland |
|
| Information | |
| Type | Industrial school |
| Opened | October 12, 1887 |
| Founder | Congregation of Christian Brothers |
| Closed | 1974 |
St Joseph's Industrial School was an industrial school for young boys in Letterfrack, County Galway, Ireland. The school was opened in 1887, and run by the Congregation of Christian Brothers.
St Joseph's received a lasting notoriety through revelation of physical and sexual abuse of the boys by some of the Brothers there, with evidence of sexual abuse and extreme physical punishments going back to the 1930s. 147 children died there while in the care of the Christian Brothers mainly from abuse and neglect.
The school was closed in 1974.
A wealthy Quaker couple, James and Mary Ellis, moved to Letterfrack in 1849 from the north of England, bought a large tract of land, developed it, built a residence and also a school for local children. After the Ellises left, the school was run by Protestant Irish Church Missions to Roman Catholics. The ICM's proselytising efforts continued up until 1882.
The Catholic Archbishop of Tuam, Dr. John McEvilly bought the property in 1884.
The Archbishop wrote to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Earl Spencer suggesting that the property was 'admirably suited for a boys’ industrial school so sadly needed in that district'. However, the Lord Lieutenants' advisors were against the establishment of the school on the grounds that there was unlikely to be enough children requiring such an institution in the area and the existing schools were adequate for the educational needs of the area. Despite support from the Inspector of Industrial Schools, Sir Arthur Lentaigne the application was refused. The Archbishop continued to lobby the Lord Lieutenant and the school received support from the Lord Lieutenant in August 1885.
The school was initially certified for 75 boys and the Archbishop entered into negotiations with the Christian Brothers. The Christian Brothers agreed and after building work added to the property, the schools opened on 12 October 1887.
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