St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, Lincolnshire
St Margaret's Home for Girls was opened by the Waifs and Strays Society in 1912 at 66 Victoria Road, Louth. It was officially opened on October 11th by the Bishop of Lincoln. The purpose-built premises, designed by Mr E.J. May, could accommodate for 30 girls aged from 3 to 16, together with a matron and assistant matron. The house, which stood in an acre of ground, included recreation and work rooms, and two covered spaces for play in wet weather. The dormitories were all placed on one floor to facilitate escape in case of fire. Other facilities included bathrooms, laundry, and an isolation room.
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, c.1923. © Peter Higginbotham
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, 1912. © Peter Higginbotham
Dedication of St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, 1912. © Peter Higginbotham
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, 1914. © Peter Higginbotham
In 1925, there were eight pairs of sisters living at the home, pictured below.
Eight pairs of sisters at St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, c.1925. © Peter Higginbotham
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, c.1927. © Peter Higginbotham
After the Second World War, St Margaret's became a mixed home. It finally closed in 1969.
The property is now used as a hotel.
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, 2013. © Peter Higginbotham
St Margaret's Home for Girls, Louth, 2013. © Peter Higginbotham
Records
Note: many repositories impose a closure period of up to 100 years for records identifying individuals. Before travelling a long distance, always check that the records you want to consult will be available.
- Index of the Society's first 30,000 children's case files ordered by surname.
- Index of the Society's first 30,000 children's case files ordered by date of birth.
- The Children's Society Records and Archive Centre is at Unit 25, Springfield House, 5 Tyssen Street, London E8 2LZ (email: archives@childrenssociety.org.uk). Files for children admitted to its homes after September 1926 were microfilmed in the 1980s and the originals destroyed. Some post-1926 files had already been damaged or destroyed during a flood. The Society's Post-Adoption and Care Service provides access to records, information, advice, birth record counselling, tracing and intermediary service for people who were in care or adopted through the Society.
- The Society has produced detailed catalogues of its records relating to disabled children, and of records relating to the Children's Union (a fundraising body mostly supported from the contributions of children).
Bibliography
- Bowder, Bill Children First: a photo-history of England's children in need (1980, Mowbray)
- Church of England Waifs and Strays' Society [Rudolfe, Edward de Montjoie] The First Forty Years: a chronicle of the Church of England Waifs and Strays' Society 1881-1920 (1922, Church of England Waifs and Strays' Society / S.P.C.K.)
- Higginbotham, Peter Children's Homes: A History of Institutional Care for Britain's Young (2017, Pen & Sword)
- Morris, Lester The Violets Are Mine: Tales of an Unwanted Orphan (2011, Xlibris Corporation) — memoir of a boy growing up in several of the Society's homes (Princes Risborough, Ashdon, Hunstanton, Leicester) in the 1940s and 50s.
- Rudolf, Mildred de Montjoie Everybody's Children: the story of the Church of England Children's Society 1921-1948 (1950, OUP)
- Stroud, John Thirteen Penny Stamps: the story of the Church of England Children's Society (Waifs and Strays) from 1881 to the 1970s (1971, Hodder and Stoughton)
Links
- Hidden Lives Revealed — the story of the children who were in the care of The Children's Society in late Victorian and early 20th Century Britain.
- The Children's Society
Except where indicated, this page () © Peter Higginbotham. Contents may not be reproduced without permission.
