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From: "David Gilligan" <>
Subject: Re: [CHS] Styal Cottage Homes.
Date: Tue, 22 Oct 2002 00:26:51 +0100 (GMT Daylight Time)
References: <007e01c2793f$1771f500$0207a8c0@upstairs>


Sarah Mackay asked:

"I am trying to find out more about Styal Cottage Homes around the 1920's
when 4 members of my family stayed there on and off for 4 years."

The Styal Cottage Homes was Manchester's largest orphanage. According to
James Stanhope-Brown (A STYAL OF ITS OWN 1894 - 1964) the orphanage was
established to save pauper children from the workhouse (the Withington
Workhouse in the Chorlton Union).

Styal Cottage Homes is now, of course, Styal Prison.

It would be wrong of me to attempt to summarise the history of the Cottage
Homes here. But I will add that whilst the idea of 'rescuing' pauper
children was to be commended some commentators and critics have hinted at
darker motives for the arrangement such as the opportunity to instill
discipline in street urchins and to fatten up deseased children for
industrial and domestic training and emigrate others as cheap labour to the
farms of Canada.

David Gilligan

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