Nazareth House, Swansea, Glamorgan, Wales
On 24th June, 1930, a property known as Murton Grange, on what is now Northway, at Clyne Common, Bishopston, near Swansea was purchased by the Sisters of Nazareth to replace their existing home for boys — Glan-yr-afon on Gower Road, Sketty. A new building was erected on the site which came into use in June, 1933. The Sketty property was eventually sold in February 1935.
The new Nazareth House provided accommodation for 190 destitute Roman Catholic boys aged from 2 to 14. This was unusual among Nazareth Houses which generally only accommodated boys up to the age of seven and then transferred them to other Catholic-run establishments.
Nazareth House, Swansea, c.1935. © Peter Higginbotham.
Fete and Gala Day, Nazareth House, Swansea.
Infants at Nazareth House, Swansea.
Christmas at Nazareth House, Swansea.
The children's home closed in July, 1981. The building is now occupied by the Willow Court retirement village.
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.
- Sisters of Nazareth Archive, Sisters of Nazareth Archive, Nazareth House, 169-175 Hammersmith Road, London W6 8DB. The archivist is Christine Hughes. The archive contains material from the very beginnings of the order in the 1850s up until the present day. The archive is not open to the public and does not have facilities for personal searchers, although exceptions can be made for Sisters and for academic researchers. Enquiries are welcomed by post only for privacy and confidentiality reasons and replies are by also letter. There is no fee for dealing with enquiries, although donations to the Sisters are appreciated.
Bibliography
- Fothergill, Anne Memoirs of a Nazareth House Girl (2013, Quoin Publishing). Memories of the Middlesbrough Nazareth House.
- Gray-Wilson, Shirley It isn't Always Raining: Children in Care, 1939-1948 (2000). Life in the Carlisle and Newcastle Nazareth Houses.
- Kelly, Judith Rock Me Gently: A Memoir Of A Convent Childhood (2006, Bloomsbury). A memoir of life at Bexhill Nazareth House in the early 1950s. The factual veracity of this book has been challenged, and charges of plagiarism levelled against the author (e.g. see Catholic Herald 2/9/2005). The introduction to the current edition of the book acknowledges some of these criticisms.
- Reilley, Frances Suffer The Little Children: The True Story of An Abused Convent Upbringing (2009, Orion). Memories of the Belfast Nazareth House.
- Nuns 'abused hundreds of children' (Guardian article 16/8/1998)
- Sisters of No Mercy (Guardian article 1/4/2003)
- Compensation for care homes abuse (BBC News item 15/8/2006)
- Sisters of Nazareth become second Catholic order to admit to child abuse (Guardian article 14/1/2014)
- Children at Derry care homes were made to eat vomit, inquiry told (Guardian article 27/1/2014)
- A Time for Penance? (BBC Scotland 'Frontline' TV feature on abuse in Scottish Nazareth Houses)
Links
Acknowledgment
- Thanks to Paul F. for information and pictures.
Except where indicated, this page () © Peter Higginbotham. Contents may not be reproduced without permission.
