PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
|
|
The Little Sisters of the Poor had been founded in 1840 at St Servan in Britanny, France. Their aim was to provide homes for the aged and infoirm poor, and to feed them, clothe them and administer to their every need. Although of the Roman Catholic faith, their homes were open to people of any religious denomination so long as they old, infirm, destitute, incapable of gaining their own income and with nobody to gain it for them. On Thursday September 28th 1865 the Little Sisters of the Poor opened their sixth home in England in the old St Mary's Roman Catholic Chapel at Stonehouse. All that was required to obtain a place in the Home was a recommendation and the sum of £2 10s towards the expense of defraying the cost of a bed and bedding. In 1882 they were offered a large meadow just outside the Town boundary at Hartley and in October 1883 work began on erecting a purpose-built home. This was completed in August 1884. By 1891 there were 65 inmates being looked after by 13 nurses. One of the benefactors was Mr Edwin A Pearn, a non-Catholic, founder of the Pearn Convalescent Home. It was extended twice, in 1902 and in 1963, by when there were 118 inmates. During the Second World War the premises were badly damaged by a bomb that exploded nearby and a Sister and two inmates were killed. The remainder were evacuated to Churston Ferrers and the Home used as a rest centre for air raid victims. They returned to the Home on Tuesday July 10th 1945 and re-installed themselves amid the ruins. The Little Sisters of the Poor had no funds or income of their own and they were a familliar sight making door to door collections in Plymouth up until the 1960s. They continued their good work until 1975 when they were forced to close. St Boniface College took over the buildings and used then as accommodation for boarders. The buildings were demolished in the 1980s and the site is now occupied by the Consort Village, a more modern home for the elderly and those in need of care.
|
