The Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy lived and worked in six towns in the Diocese of Achonry. For more information, please click here.
Convent of Mercy, Swinford, Co Mayo 1855 – 1989
Nativity Mosaic, Convent of Mercy Chapel, Swinford, Co Mayo
Education:
Convent of Mercy and Primary School in 1923
For information on the schools that were established, please click here.
Many of those who entered the convent in the early years died young. They were as poor as the people they served. Their diet was meagre; disease and famine rampant. A family of five Dooley sisters from Shrule, Co Galway entered in Swinford. Two died within five years of entering. The three younger ones went on the Australian mission and died there.
The first cemetery was on the little green patch between the Convent and the Parish Church.
The following Sisters are buried there.
The new cemetery around Calvary was opened in 1902. Sr. Veronica O’Connell was the first Sister buried there in 1904.
St. Anne’s Public Laundry, Swinford
St. Anne’s Public Laundry was set up in 1925. For more information, please click here.
Health Care
As soon as the Sisters arrived in Swinford (1855), they began visiting the local Workhouse. Visitation of families became a large part of our ministry in each place. It had been officially opened in 1846. There was a famine, minor to the one in 1847, that was particularly felt in the West of Ireland. For more information, please click here.
USA
Mother Francis Warde, one of the first Mercy Sisters, and a member of the Carlow community, sought Mercy Sisters from all over Ireland to go to the United States. For more information on the involvement of Achonry Sisters, please click here.
Bendigo, Australia
Convent of Mercy, Bendigo
Bishop Crane, an Irish Augustinian priest was Bishop of Bendigo in Australia. He made approaches to the Sisters of Mercy in Swinford to assist with providing Catholic Education. The town of Bendigo had many Irish immigrants, who had followed the Gold Rush. Their families were in need of education.
For more information on this interesting story, please click here.
Brabazon House, Swinford, Co Mayo 1916 – 1974
Brabazon Park House and land of about thirty acres was purchased from the Land Commission by the Congregation in 1916. For more information, please click here.
Swinford Convent, the Motherhouse, opened in 1855, and was demolished in 1989. For more information, please click here.
There is still a Mercy presence in Swinford. It has been beautifully marked thus:
Monument of the torch and hands created by John O’Malley, a local artist
Plaque at bottom of monument
Convent of Our Lady of the Rosary, Ballymote, Co Sligo, 1902 – 2017
Convent of Our Lady of the Rosary
Ballymote foundation began in 1902. The first four Sisters took up residence in Castle Lodge where they conducted a private School. In 1906, they moved to Earlsfort House having purchased it from the Parish Priest for £2,000. Sisters then taught in the Primary School. A laundry was opened in the early 1920’s and continued until the 1960’s. For more information, please click here.
Convent of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Collooney, Co Sligo – 1909 until the present
Convent of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Collooney Convent was founded in 1909. The six founding Sisters lived on Main Street where they remained until the present Convent was built in 1923. For more information, please click here.
At present, there is a community of three Sisters in Collooney who work in parish ministry.
St. John’s Convent, Ballisodare, Co Sligo 1942 – 2016
St. John’s Convent
In 1943, Mrs. Marcella Clarence donated a large house, a small shop, some outhouses and about 3 acres of land in Ballisodare to the Mercy Sisters for the purpose of establishing a Secondary School. She was a widow and a sister of Sr. Margaret Mary Daly, Swinford. For more information on the story, please click here.
Gurteen, Co Sligo 1954 – 2002
Gurteen Convent
On the 11th of September, 1954 the Sisters opened a foundation in Gurteen in a home which had been donated to them by Fr. Nicholas O’ Rafferty. For more information, please click here.
St. Joseph’s School, Jefferson City, Missouri, USA 1960 – 1990; Wardsville 1970 – 2003
In 1960, six Sisters from Swinford went to teach in St. Joseph’s School in Jefferson City, Missouri, USA at the request of Fr. Duignan, who was the first pastor of St. Joseph’s parish. For more information on how this developed, please click here.
Perú
At a diocesan Chapter in 1983, a decision was made to go to a Mission in Perú, South America. For more information on this mission, please click here.
Ballaghaderreen, Co Roscommon 1971 – 2015
Ballaghaderreen Convent
When, in 1971, the Irish Sisters of Charity no longer had personnel to fill the schools in Ballaghaderreen the Sisters of Mercy were invited to take over the schools. The Sisters lived in the Convent vacated by the Irish Sisters of Charity. For more information on Mercy involvement, please click here.
Palmerstown, Dublin 1983 – 1996
In 1983, some Sisters went to teach in the Community School in Palmerstown, Dublin. The Sisters lived at Oak Court Lawn, teaching in the school until 1994. The house was then sold and Sisters lived at Manor Park. They worked in parish ministry until 1996.
Achonry | Ardagh & Clonmacnois | Clonfert | Elphin | Galway | Killala | Tuam
