St Francis House was a home for inland Aboriginal Australian boys from 1946 to 1959 at Glanville Hall in Semaphore South, Adelaide, South Australia.
History
Father Percy Smith purchased Glanville Hall on behalf of the Anglican Church to provide accommodation for young Aboriginal boys from remote areas who were attending school in the local area.[1] He founded the St Francis Boys' Home in order to bring boys down (including several from Alice Springs in the Northern Territory[2]) for education and employment.[3]
In a time when it was commonly believed that Aboriginal children were unable to be educated beyond Grade 3, Smith saw the home as a way of providing a family environment for the children to pursue a higher level of education without losing their Aboriginal identity. He described the hostel as “not one of fostering, but rather a boarding establishment to which boys came with their mothers' consent for the school year, and in that respect it was no different from children being sent by their parents to a boarding school".[4]
The manor became known as "St Francis House: A Home for Inland Children" and over the next 14 years, more than 50 children found at home at St Francis on their way to greatness.[5] At St Francis House, the boys formed a strong, life-long bond with Smith and his wife, and with each other.[6]
Former resident John Kundereri Moriarty said that St Francis House was an exceptional home.[7]
Documentation
Former Australian test cricketer Ashley Mallett has written a history of St Francis House,[8] called The Boys from St Francis, published in 2018 by Wakefield Press.[9]
The St Francis House Project, "History & Legacy of St Francis House: A Home for Inland Children", was established in 2018 to document the history of the home.[10]
Notable people
Some residents of St Francis House who later went on to forge sporting careers and/or became engaged in Indigenous activism include:
- Winnie Branson[2]
- Richie Bray[5][11]
- Gordon Briscoe AO[5]
- Malcolm Cooper[11]
- Vincent Copley, footballer and activist[5][11]
- Bill Espie (Queen's Medal for Bravery)[5]
- Ken Hampton, who went on to play football for Port Adelaide[5][11]
- Wilf Huddleton[11]
- Wally McArthur[5]
- John Moriarty AM[5]
- Les Nayda AM[5]
- Charles Perkins AO[5]
- Harold Thomas (Bundoo)[5] who designed the Aboriginal flag.[12]
- Ron Tilmouth[11]
References
- ↑ Briscoe, Gordon (2010). "Chapter 4: Pembroke Street to St Francis House, 1946 to 1949". Racial Folly: A twentieth-century Aboriginal family. ISBN 9781921666216. Retrieved 23 November 2023 – via ANU. (Photos; text here)
- 1 2 Chlanda, Erwin (1 February 2019). "Kids from The Alice: When Malcolm met Menzies". Alice Springs News. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
- ↑ Vincent Copley
- ↑ The History of Glanville Hall | Glanville Hall
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Chlanda, Erwin (18 September 2013). "The Boys who made the Big Time". Alice Springs News. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
- ↑ About Dr Charles Perkins – The Charlie Perkins Trust for Children and Students
- ↑ "Collaborating for Indigenous Rights 1957-1973". National Museum of Australia. 28 April 2008. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ↑ Cornwall, Peter. "Ashley Mallett: Painting a picture". Archived from the original on 23 March 2019.
- ↑ "The Boys from St Francis". Wakefield Press (Australia). Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ↑ "History & legacy of St Francis House, a home for inland children 1946-59 [Home page]". St Francis House. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Phillips, Sandra (10 January 2022). "Vince Copley had a vision for a better Australia – and he helped make it happen, with lifelong friend Charles Perkins". The Conversation. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ↑ "$20m deal ends Aboriginal flag saga". news.com.au. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
Further reading
- Smith, Mark J. (28 April 2019). "'I shared my mother with the Aboriginal children'". Alice Springs News. Part of a series "Kids from the Alice".