Sisters from Downpatrick
Front Row Left to Right: Srs. Mairead Kiernan, Margaret Heffron & Vianney McVeigh
Back Row Left-Right: Srs. Marie Duddy, Elizabeth McKeown & Frances McCashin
If an enterprising and far-seeing Downpatrick Parish Priest, the Very Rev. Dr. Bernard McAuley, had had his wish, the foundation of the Mercy Convent in Downpatrick would have pre-dated the foundation in Belfast by several years.
The Rev. Dr. McAuley had a dream of restoring a community of nuns to the historic Catholic town of Downpatrick. Apart from the long tradition of religious and monastic life in the county of Down in bygone days, the mid-nineteenth century had a special need, he believed, for the presence of nuns in the town and hinterland.
Statue in Downpatrick of St. Patrick
In the mid-nineteenth century, many people of the area, as well as all over Ireland, were suffering from the ravages of the great Famine. Hundreds of people were homeless, destitute and suffering from disease and malnutrition. Though some charitable organisations were doing their best to cope with the situation, there was need for much more help, ideally a group of people who could dedicate themselves to caring for the poverty-stricken, sick and the homeless. The Rev. Bernard McAuley knew of a group of religious women who had committed themselves to this very work – the Sisters of Mercy, a community founded in the 1820’s by a saintly and dedicated Dublin woman, and his namesake, Catherine McAuley. Incidentally, history records that, after his ordination, the Rev. Bernard McAuley said his first Mass in the House of Mercy in Baggot Street, Dublin, in 1828, on which occasion he met the Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, Catherine McAuley.
Catherine McAuley, Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy
When he became Parish Priest of Downpatrick, the Fr. McAuley took himself again to Baggot Street, Dublin, to make a request the Mother Superior there at the time (Catherine had died in 1841) for some Sisters to come to Downpatrick to do what they could to help the people of his widespread parish and beyond. As many similar requests were being made to the young Mercy community at this time, and the then Superior in Baggot Street was sending her Sisters far and wide across Ireland, and even to England and beyond, all she could offer the good Priest was a promise to send Sisters to the North as soon as she had any to spare.
Meantime, in Belfast similar problems of poverty, homelessness, sickness, disease were being experienced in that rapidly industrially developing town to which hundreds of people, stricken by the poverty consequent on the Famine, were flocking to find work. Good Catholic gentlemen, fortunately of means, sought the same solution for Belfast as Dr. McAuley was seeking for his people in Downpatrick. These gentlemen also went to Baggot Street, pleading that their case was more urgent because of the greater numbers and extent of the distress in the then rapidly growing town. A compromise was reached. It was agreed that when there were Sisters available, they would go first to Belfast and then, as soon as was possible afterwards would also open a convent in Downpatrick.
In the event, the first Sisters of Mercy came to Belfast in January 1854. In less than eighteen months later, in June 1855, the Convent of Mercy, Downpatrick, was established as a branch house of the Belfast community even while these Sisters were still living in their temporary home in Donegall Square North in that town.
Things developed rapidly in Downpatrick after that.
Part I 1855 – 1870 – The Downpatrick Foundation
On Thursday 21st June, 1855, five Sisters travelled from Belfast to Downpatrick to make the new foundation. A house had been found for them in Irish Street (later no. 112). This was to be the first Mercy Convent in Co Down. The founding Sisters, Sr. M. Aloysius Brady, Sr. M. Gonzaga Morrin and Sr. M. Borgia Fortune, accompanied by the Superior from Belfast, Mother M. Philomena Maguire, took up residence. The house had only basic furnishings but, with the help of gifts from kind neighbours, the Sisters got the house into order. On Sunday, 1st July the First Holy Mass was celebrated there by the Very Rev. Dr. McAuley.
Sr. M. Aloysius, the chronicler of the young foundation, left an amusing account of the early attempts at housekeeping. She wrote:
I shall describe something of our first Sunday dinner, as my duty lay in cooking it. Our good Parish Priest, having failed in his most pressing invitation that we should dine with him, as next best thing he sent us a fore-quarter of a lamb. On some two previous days your humble servant, the cook, managed some dinner at a small grate upstairs, but today the kitchen grate, for the first time, beheld a nun before it, one who was far from being adept at her work. Well, how to do it, that was the question. She stuck a nail into the wall, suspended the fore-quarter from it by a piece of cord tied to the meat, set the pan on top of the pot and basted with a shallow spoon. This latter operation was a tedious and hot affair for a June day, but ‘cook’ was drawn now and then from her post by increasing exclamations from rosy faces at the window, for all the children of the town must have arranged to take turns at the small window and so get a peep at the nun. Whenever cook turned her head towards the window, or moved near it, the little folk would fly off as if shot, but return to the show in a few minutes. Thus was celebrated Sunday number one in Down, June 1855.
Mother M. Philomena remained in Downpatrick for a few days until the Sisters had settled in and on Tuesday, 3rd July, Sr. M. Aloysius Gonzaga was appointed local Superior in the new community.
The Mercy Apostolate
On Monday, 2nd July, the Sisters began teaching in the schoolhouse behind the convent. This had been built by Dr. McAuley, pending the Sisters’ arrival, according to a plan given him by Mother M. Philomena. Consequently it was called ‘St. Philomena’s’ but later was known as ‘John Street National School’ and served for the education of the children for more than twenty years. At its opening it was basically furnished, but adequate, and during the first week the attendance was 20 boys and 109 girls. During the second week there were 22 boys and 122 girls. And the numbers increased. The children were poor, but those who could afford it paid one penny a week.
Religious instruction played an important part in the education programme. The Sisters started giving classes on Sunday evenings in the school and at other times instructed young people and adults in the convent. These classes were well attended and continued for many years. In time, in response to the request of some better off families, the Sisters converted stables at the rear of the convent into school rooms for a private or ‘pension’(fee-paying) school for girls who could afford, and wished to, continue their education. Many of these young women trained as monitresses, or ‘pupil-teachers’, and some of these, in time, took full teacher training. The monitorial system was very beneficial to teachers of large classes such as were prevalent at the time, and was encouraged by the Mercy Foundress, Catherine McAuley, who saw the importance of proper training for those who would undertake the education of the young.
Education was not the only apostolate of the Sisters of Mercy. The Sisters also undertook the visitation of the sick and dying and the poor of the town. The patients of the hospital were not neglected, but, unfortunately, in a short time, it was made clear to the Sisters that they were not welcome in this institution. Within a few months the Down Recorder reported that the governors of the Down Infirmary and Fever Hospital explicitly forbade nuns to visit patients under their care and, a year later, by a unanimous verdict, the Board of Governors who had charge of the workhouse extended this prohibition with regard to the residents there.
An Autonomous Community
In 1860 the Downpatrick community was well established and, in the Mercy tradition, it became autonomous. On 21st February Sr. M. Aloysius Brady was appointed first Superior (Rev. Mother). During the course of the 1860’s several young women joined the community. Two of these were natives of Downpatrick, the others were from Dublin, Belfast and Co. Antrim. On 24th September, 1861 Sr. M. Vincent O’Hara made her Vows in St. Patrick’s Convent, Irish Street, the first Religious to do so in Downpatrick since the Reformation.
The year 1863 brought the first sad loss for the Sisters of Mercy, with the death of their revered and beloved founder, friend and pastor, the Very Rev. Dr. Bernard McAuley. Coincidentally he died on the same date, the 11th November, as his namesake, Catherine McAuley, the Mercy Foundress, whom he greatly admired. The 8th May, 1864 saw the first bereavement in the Community. Mother M Borgia Fortune, Superior of the convent at the time, died of fever contracted while doing works of charity. A founding member and still comparatively young in age, she was a great loss to the community.
Convent of Mercy, Downpatrick
Part II Downpatrick Community, 1870 – 1911
On 17th March, 1872, Feast Day of St. Patrick, Bishop Dorrian laid the foundation stone of the new St. Patrick’s Convent. The construction of the convent was made possible by a legacy of £4,000 left by a most generous benefactor, John McIlheron of Downpatrick. McIlheron had died on 9th February, 1871. A plaque to his memory was erected in the entrance hall of Downpatrick Convent.
The recently completed parish church, built between 1868 and 1872, shared its site with that of the new convent, a picturesque hill overlooking the town, to be known as Mount St. Patrick.
As you know, the convent is a handsome, three storied Gothic structure in red brick with stone facings. From the entrance, there is a magnificent view of the Mourne Mountains on the southern horizon.
Construction completed, the Sisters took occupation of the new convent on the feast of All Saints, 1873. The dedication of the convent chapel took place on 8th December and at six o’clock on Christmas morning the convent bell rang over the sleeping town for the first time.
Apostolates
The second half of the 19th century were years of growth for the Downpatrick community. On 3rd June, 1876 the newly built schools adjoining the convent opened. Their building was again due to the generosity of the deceased John McIlheron whose legacy also partially provided for these. The additional necessary funds were collected by the then Parish Priest, Rev. Patrick O’Kane who travelled throughout the UK preaching charity sermons for this purpose. The new schools, which were constructed behind the convent on Stream Street, were known as Mount St. Patrick Convent Schools.
In 1894 an orphanage was opened and when more spacious accommodation was required for this, the Sisters bought a large house on Irish Street, the former home of Thomas Henry, for this purpose. This property was named St. Michael’s Home and it provided accommodation for paying boarders. These were mostly ‘children of respectable parents’ who came from country areas and for whom regular attendance at school was difficult. Residence near the convent gave them the opportunity to avail of a full-time education at the national school and to continue, if they wished at the private school where they received further education fitting them for positions suitable to their capacities – as monitresses, for example. The private school taught additional subjects, music, elocution, art and languages. It was also attended by many non-Catholics of the town who took advantage of the refined education provided.
St. Michael’s became well known as an important part of the Mercy presence in Downpatrick for the next 80 years. Over this time, it served as a boarding school and for a time in the 1920s, as a home for elderly ladies. In September 1939, a Commercial School for Girls opened in St. Michael’s, a venture which can be seen, in many ways, as a forerunner of St. Mary’s High School which opened in 1957 under the administration of the Sisters of Mercy.
Besides education, the Apostolate of the care of the poor, the sick and the elderly was very dear to the Downpatrick Mercy Sisters. From their earliest days, the Sisters became well known throughout the parish for their visitation of the poor, the sick, the lonely and the bereaved. Wearing their visitation cloaks and bonnets, baskets on their arms, they became familiar sights on the streets and alleyways of the busy market town. It is an apostolate continued to this day…..
I have to say at this point, that, for practical reasons, in a short article, I cannot, unfortunately, go into the important matter of the names and stories of the many wonderful Sisters who formed and joined the Downpatrick Community down through the years. For these, I refer you to the chapters on the Downpatrick Community in The Call of the North…..
An Experiment In Reunion
In 1911 the Downpatrick community reunited with St. Paul’s, in Belfast. The Annals record that:
Dr. Tohill [Bishop of Down and Connor Diocese] thought it would be advisable, in compliance with the directions of the Holy See, to amalgamate the Sisters of Mercy in the diocese.
He put this to both communities on 9th March, 1911. The matter was discussed by both communities and their votes were in favour of amalgamation. This took place on 23rd December, 1911. The Belfast convent, St. Paul’s, was recognised as the Mother House in the diocese and the Novitiate was in St. Paul’s. After about ten years (in 1922) it was recognised that the experiment in reunion was not working. With the distance between the two communities, and transport and communications less advanced than they are today, there were difficulties of organisation and co-ordination of apostolates and personnel. Consultation took place and by a large majority both communities voted for separation. In June 1923 Downpatrick community reassumed its autonomy with Mother M. Ethna Grene as Superior.
Donaghadee
The 20th century saw the Downpatrick community spread its wings. In the early 1930, in response to a request from the parish of Newtownards, the Sisters went to the lovely small harbour town of Donaghadee in Co Down, to support the small Catholic community there. Until the 1840, they had no church of their own and only had Mass celebrated occasionally in a private house in the town when the parish priest of Newtownards could manage to go there. Though a small church was built in the 1840’s, St. Comgall’s, there was as yet no Catholic school. Eventually the parish priest of Newtownards approached the Mercy Sisters in Downpatrick for help. The community agreed that it was a worthy cause. What was considered suitable premises was acquired for the Sisters, a vacated shop with an attached two-storied dwelling on the High Street. With the help of generous benefactors the building was converted into suitable accommodation, the ground shop floor for schoolrooms, the upper floors for living accommodation. On Sunday, 27th September, 1931, three Sisters took up residence there and on 7th October, 1931 the new convent, St. Anne’s, was formally opened. Some months later, on 4th January, 1932, under the creative direction of the new residents, the classrooms were ready for use and the school, also named St. Anne’s, was opened for pupils. On his first visit, the inspector of schools, Mr. Scott, was impressed by the excellence of the education being provided. The high standards were maintained through all the years that followed.
The activities were not all restricted to the classrooms. Mother M. Ethna, now superior of the Donaghadee community, soon opened a club for Catholic working girls at the convent. This was open from 7 pm to 9 pm and the girls occupied their time in needlework and games and were given personal and moral support by the Sisters when it was needed.
Life was not all plain-sailing for the Sisters in Donaghadee. There were, at that time, many superstitions in non-Catholic circles about religious Sisters, and frequently active opposition to their presence was expressed. However, the Sisters did much to demolish such prejudice during their 57 years in Donaghadee and developed strong friendships with their neighbours and the people of the town and surrounding area.
The years passed and in the later 1950s, when Sr. M. Philomena McDonagh was principal of the school, a new site was purchased for a Catholic church at Shandon, on the outskirts of the town. Sr. M. Philomena set to collecting money to build a new school also and on 23rd May, 1963 the new St. Anne’s Primary School was opened. This new school building was in sight of the park and the sea, uplifting the morale of both pupils and teachers.
The Sisters remained in Donaghadee, involved in education and pastoral work, until the summer of 1982. By then, the school and parish were well established and their services were needed elsewhere. [Again, I would like to name all the wonderful Sisters who gave very generous service in Donaghadee for over 50 years – 18 at different times – but unfortunately space does not allow …..]
Saint Michael’s Commercial School And 1940’s
At the end of the 1930’s, at Downpatrick convent itself, a new, very important venture was undertaken – the opening of a commercial school in St. Michael’s Home, beside the convent. This was opened on 25th September, 1939. This was also in the tradition of Mercy convent schools throughout most of Ireland. The idea was to give further training in secretarial work to young girls who were past school leaving age in order to prepare them to take up jobs in business and other offices. For the next 20 years many young ladies passed through St. Michael’s Commercial School and obtained suitable secretarial positions.
When, in the later 1940’s free secondary education became available to all young people, the Mercy Sisters undertook the establishment of a Secondary Intermediate School on the Ardglass Road. The school opened on 8th September, 1957 with 286 pupils and 12 teaching staff. Mother M. Aloysius McCusker, a formidable woman, was appointed Principal and she became a legendary figure for the girls who passed through the school for the next 20 years and to whom she dedicated her many gifts. Memories of the opening of the new school are recorded by a former pupil, Ita Cunningham (neé Braniff), whose name was the first to appear on the new school register:
I remember well the transfer from the homely surroundings of Irish Street, known as the Sisters of Mercy Commercial School. We were one big happy family there, so it is true to say that I had mixed feelings about going to St. Mary’s on the hill….
On that first school day… I walked through the gates of this significant looking building for the first time. The sun shone and the air was scented with flowers. There was a constant flow of girls in blue making their way to the main door where Mother Aloysius awaited their arrival. Sister M. Mercy and Sister M. Teresa directed us to the new cloakrooms and then to the assembly hall. There was a buzz of excitement as we made our way to the main hall, glancing into each new classroom as we passed. Highly polished desks, gleaming floors, roller blackboards and rows of brand new typewriters all added to the mystery and glamour of this serene building.
With Mother Aloysius at the helm very little time was wasted. Morning prayers were said, a few welcoming words and a short stern talk on behaviour inside and outside the school. It did not take long for those who did not know her to realise that she meant what she said.
The same former pupil also paid a special tribute to another Sister, who was always there as a supporting hand and guiding light in her own quiet, unobtrusive way:
I would like to take this opportunity to refer to a gifted teacher, a lady in every sense, Sr. Mary Mercy [McKeown] who enriched our school lives simply by being there. She was a constant figure, and eased the transition between old and new at a time of great change.
In 1976 the Convent Primary School celebrated its centenary. The centenary coincided with another milestone, the process of transfer of the convent school to a new site. At this time, refugees from the ‘Troubles’ in Belfast came flocking into Downpatrick, to the new housing estates. More classroom space was needed and for a time the convent primary school operated on a split site, the original school in Irish Street and a school vacated by the De La Salle Brothers in Edward Street. The vacated school was purchased by the Sisters and refurbished to make it suitable for girls, and extended. When everything was ready the children moved in, in September 1976. Also, a convent nursery school was built in the garden of St. Michael’s and of Dr. Kelly’s house and both it and the primary school in Edward Street were blessed and formally opened by the Bishop, Dr. Philbin on the same day in June 1977.
With the move of the primary school, the former school building on Irish Street was demolished to provide for an extension of the convent. A beautiful modern residential wing was opened on 21st June, 1980 and has been in use until recently.
Later, in the 1990’s, in response to the influx of many families, fleeing from ‘the Troubles’ in Belfast, into the new housing estates on the fringes of Downpatrick, two Mercy Sisters, Sr. Brigid Quinn and Sr. M. Louis Donaghy, went to reside in the Model Farm housing estate, to work in the parish. At various times during the ensuing years, various Sisters maintained this mission for as long as there were Sisters available.
1950’s and 1960’s
Looking back a decade or two, we cannot leave the 1950s and ’60s with out mentioning memorable events in which the Downpatrick Mercy Sisters were involved.
– The first of these was Fr. Patrick Peyton’s Rosary Rally which took place in the summer of 1954. Unfortunately I cannot here go into details of this outstanding occasion – but they can be read in the archives of the Down Recorder.
– The second was the celebration of the convent centenary, in 1955, which coincided, virtually, with the Diamond Jubilee of Ordination of Archdeacon McWilliams. The Archdeacon was the parish priest of many years’ standing and a great friend of the Downpatrick Mercy Community. He was a prime mover behind the setting up of St. Michael’s Commercial School and the new secondary intermediate schools in the parish.
– As if these auspicious events were not enough, the biggest event of the 1960’s for Downpatrick was the celebration of the Patrician Year, 1961 being, reputedly, the fifteenth centenary of the death of St Patrick.
There were many celebrations for these outstanding occasions, many of which were hosted at the Mercy convent and schools.
A New Foundation
The 1960’s also brought a call to the Downpatrick Sisters to undertake a new mission in West Belfast, in the rapidly-growing parish of Hannahstown on the outskirts of the city. The Sisters generously responded and went there in 1968. They were asked to contribute to the building of, and the staffing of the new parish primary school.
This school flourished under the very able direction of the Sisters for the next twenty years. The Sisters were also involved in the church and pastoral work on the parish, and this involvement has continued, through the very generous contributions of four retired Sisters until the present day.
In the 1970’s also, individual Sisters volunteered for mission work in Kenya and Iceland for short periods.
Click here to read more about Mercy Ireland
Marie Duddy rsm
Northern Province
