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They came with a purpose: educational journeys of nineteenth-century Irish Dominican Sister Teachers

2014; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 44; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/0046760x.2014.970591

1464-5130

Jenny Collins,

Religious Education and Schools

AbstractIrish Catholic teaching sisters were major actors in the development of education systems in New World countries such as the United States, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Immigrants themselves, they faced a number of key challenges as they sought to adapt Old World cultural and educational ideas to the education of the immigrant Irish in a new cultural, religious and educational context. A close examination of the wide range of sources available in private archives and elsewhere offers unique insights into the challenges facing 10 Irish Dominican Sister Teachers as they journeyed from Ireland to Dunedin to found primary and secondary schools in the young colony of New Zealand. This article examines their responses to their early experiences and the part they played in the development of a viable Catholic education system in nineteenth-century New Zealand.Keywords: Irish Dominican teacherseducationNew Worldprivate and electronic archivesNew Zealand education pioneersIrish diaspora AcknowledgementThe author would like to thank Sister Archivists in New Zealand and Ireland whose assistance made this research possible and the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments on earlier drafts of the article.Notes1 See for example, Margaret MacCurtain, 'Late in the Field: Catholic Sisters in Twentieth-Century Ireland and the New Religious History', Journal of Women's History 6, no. 4 (1995): 49–63; John Fialka, Sisters: Catholic Nuns and the Making of America (New York: St Martin's Press, 2003); Bart Hellinckx, Frank Simon and Marc Depaepe, The Forgotten Contribution of the Teaching Sisters: A Historiographical Essay on the Educational Work of Catholic Women Religious in the 19th and 20th Centuries (Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2009); Stephanie Burley, 'Engagement with Empires: Irish Catholic Female Religious Teachers in Colonial South Australia, 1868–1901', Irish Educational Studies 31, no. 2 (2012): 175–90; Jenny Collins, 'Creating Spaces in a Male Domain: Sister Principals in Catholic Schools, 1850–1974', Journal of Educational Administration and History 46, no. 1 (2014): 79–92.2 Shulamit Reinharz, Feminist Methods in Social Research (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), 260.3 Collins, 'Creating Spaces in a Male Domain: Sister Principals in Catholic Schools, 1850–1974'.4 'Of Sheep's Pluck and Science Exhibitions: The Professional Life of Mother Bernard Towers Rsm (1883–1963)', History of Education 38, no. 5 (2009): 649–66; 'From "Apprentice to Professional": The Training of New Zealand Catholic Teachers, 1945–1965', History of Education Review 34, no. 2 (2005): 27–40; 'Revisiting the Foucaldian Account of Power: Constraints and Opportunities in the Leadership Experience of Dominican Teachers', Delta 57, no. 1&2 (2005): 89–102; 'Strategies for Survival and Success: Dominican Teachers 1931–1961', History of Education Review 33, no. 1 (2004): 1–13.5 'For Faith or the Common Good? Policy Dilemmas Facing Catholic Educational Leaders in the Post-War Years', New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies 41, no. 2 (2006): 257–272.6 The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) was called to reconsider the role of the Catholic Church in the modern world. As a consequence religious orders were asked to return to their 'original spirit' and adapt to 'the changed conditions of our time'. This resulted in major changes in the way Catholic teaching orders were organized. See for example http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_decree_19651028_perfectae-caritatis_en.html (accessed May 28, 2014).7 Angela McCarthy, '"In Prospect of a Happier Future": Private Letters and Irish Women's Migration to New Zealand', in A Distant Shore: Irish Migration and New Zealand Settlement, ed. Lyndon Fraser (Dunedin: University of Otago Press, 2000), 105–16.8 Suellen Hoy, 'The Recruitment and Emigration of Irish Religious Women to the United States, 1812–1914', Journal of Women's History 6, no. 4 (1995): 83.9 Caitriona Clear, Nuns in Nineteenth-Century Ireland (Dublin: Gill & MacMillan, 1987). See also Marta Danylewycz, Taking the Veil: An Alternative to Marriage, Motherhood and Spinsterhood in Quebec, 1840–1920, The Canada Social History Series (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1987).10 Jenny Collins, '"To the Very Antipodes": Nineteenth Century Dominican Sister Teachers in Ireland and New Zealand', Paedagogica Historica 49, no. 4 (2013): 494–512.11 Carmen Mangion, Contested Identities: Catholic Women Religious in Nineteenth Century England and Wales (Manchester: Bomerang Books, 2008); Fialka, Sisters: Catholic Nuns and the Making of America; Elizabeth Smyth, 'Professionalization among the Professed: The Case of Roman Catholic Religious', in Challenging Professions: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives on Women's Professional Work, ed. Elizabeth Smyth et al. (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1999), 234–54; Jenny Collins, 'Schooling for Faith, Citizenship and Social Mobility: Catholic Secondary Education in New Zealand, 1924–1944', Journal of Educational Administration and History 37, no. 2 (2005): 157–72; MacCurtain, 'Late in the Field: Catholic Sisters in Twentieth-Century Ireland and the New Religious History'; Deidre Rafferty, '"Je Suis D'aucune Nation": The Recruitment and Identity of Irish Women Religious in the International Mission Field, c.1840–1940', Paedagogica Historica 49, no. 4 (2013): 513–30. Burley, 'Engagement with Empires: Irish Catholic Female Religious Teachers in Colonial South Australia, 1868–1901'.12 The Dominican Order was founded by Dominic Guzman (1170–1221) in the early thirteenth century. It consists of four branches: friars (priests and brothers), sisters (active), nuns (cloistered) and lay Dominicans.13 Maura Duggan OP, In Search of Truth: Journeys of Nineteenth Century Irish Dominican Women (Dublin: Linden Publishing Services, 2010).14 Clear, Nuns in Nineteenth-Century Ireland.15 In 1831 there were six: Taylor's Hill Galway, Siena Convent Drogheda, St Mary's Convent Cabra Dublin, Kingstown, Wicklow and Falls Road, Belfast. Maire M. Kealy OP, Dominican Education in Ireland 1820–1930 (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2007).16 Ibid.17 Hoy, 'The Recruitment and Emigration of Irish Religious Women to the United States, 1812–1914'.18 Cabra established foundations in Lisbon (1860) New Orleans (1860) and South Africa (1863) and two foundations in Australia – Adelaide (1868) and Maitland (1867).19 The Chapter is the decision-making body of a religious congregation.20 Born in County Wicklow in 1823 as the son of a tenant farmer, Patrick Moran was consecrated as bishop of the Eastern Province of the Cape Colony in South Africa, where he remained for 13 years before being appointed as Bishop of Dunedin. In New Zealand Moran soon became the champion of Catholic educational aspirations. He opposed bitterly the 'godless' public education system created by the Education Act of 1877. Moran advocated for State aid, and founded, established and directed the New Zealand Tablet, regularly contributing to its leading columns. 'Moran, Patrick', from An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock, originally published in 1966. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated April 22, 2009, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/moran-patrick (accessed May 28, 2014).21 For a detailed discussion see Collins, '"To the Very Antipodes"'.22 In South Africa Moran had taken an interest in educational matters. He became friendly with the then Governor, Sir George Grey, who had previously been Governor of New Zealand (1845–1853).23 Sion Hill Annals. Sion Hill Archives (hereafter SHA).24 The Sisters' letters home to Ireland from Port Elizabeth spoke of loneliness, poverty and isolation and the lack of suitable buildings and educational resources. Duggan OP, In Search of Truth.25 Bishop Moran to Sion Hill Sisters, n.d., SHA SH5/1/3.26 Paul Cullen, Rector of the Irish College in Rome, 1832–1850, was an influential figure in Irish Catholic expansions to the New World. He was appointed as the first Irish Cardinal in 1849.27 L. Forde, Vicar-General to Rev. Mother Clare Eliot. Augustine McCarthy OP, Star in the South (Dunedin: St Dominic's Priory, 1970), 17.28 The chosen Sisters were listed as Sister Mary Agnes Rooney (59, professed 34 years, a Cabra novice, who had moved to Sion Hill in 1838), Sister Mary Francis Sullivan (45, professed 19 years), Sister Mary Vincent Whitty (37, professed 18 years), Sister Mary Gabriel Gill (33, professed 16 years), Sister Mary Catherine Hughes (40, professed 13 years), Sister Mary De Ricci Kirby (33, professed 11 years), Sister Mary Gertrude Dooley (33, professed 11 years), Sister Mary Bertrand McLaughlin (19, professed 1 year), Sister Mary Lucy Tracy (Lay Sister, professed 12 years); and Sister Mary Peter Jordan (Lay Sister, 21, not yet professed).29 Gabriel Gill probably knew her role in the foundation as early as September and was able to tell her parents, as the dedication on her father's gift to the Sisters is dated September 20, 1870.30 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, gh6/3/1, Archives New Zealand Dominican Sisters (hereafter ANZDS).31 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, gh6/3/1, ANZDS.32 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, gh6/3/1, ANZDS.33 McCarthy OP, Star in the South, 311.34 These letters were 'discovered' in 1984 by Sister Carmel Walsh OP in a shoebox in the St Catherine's convent archives at Sion Hill Dublin and in the correspondence files at the Irish College in Rome.35 Dun Laoghaire.36 As it was, the voyage cost £900 sterling.37 The Sisters maintained contact with the Dominican Sisters at Maitland, visiting them on journeys to Australia. The letters contain references to shared educational and pedagogical ideas.38 Sion Hill Annals, SHA, p. 64.39 McCarthy OP, Star in the South.40 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, gh6/3/1, ANZDS.41 On profession, Sisters were given a Saint's name, often a male name, as their name in religion. The name change was part of a Sister relinquishing her former identity in the world.42 Mariners and Ships in Australian Waters, http://mariners.records.nsw.gov.au/1871/02/003gle.htm (accessed May 28, 2014).43 The Roman-style headdress was softer and seen as more suitable for 'missionary' conditions. It was retained until 1895.44 McCarthy OP, Star in the South.45 Hoy, 'The Recruitment and Emigration of Irish Religious Women to the United States, 1812–1914'.46 Constitutions of the New Zealand Dominican Sisters under the protection of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary and of St Catherine of Sienna, 1933, 24. Auckland Catholic Diocesan Archives.47 The role of Lay Sister dated from the Middle Ages when it was customary for wealthy women who entered the cloister to bring their maids with them.48 Christine Trimingham Jack, Growing Good Catholic Girls: Education and Covent Life in Australia (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 2003).49 Sister Catherine to Mother Clare, Sion Hill, c.October 1870. gh3/2/2, ANZDS. The Examen is an ancient practice based on the spiritual exercises of St Ignatius Loyola. A Particular Examination aims at the correction of all kinds of faults, the Daily Examen looks for God's presence and direction in daily experiences. http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-prayer/the-examen/50 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, gh6/3/1, ANZDS.51 Jenny Collins, 'Hidden Lives: The Teaching and Religious Lives of Eight Dominican Sisters, 1931–1961' (Master of Education thesis, Massey University, 2001).52 It is not clear whom Sister Catherine is referring to here (perhaps S. M. Lynch who is on the passenger list).53 Sister Catherine to Mother Clare, Sion Hill, October 1, 1870; 'our work' probably refers to sewing or embroidery, gh3/2/2, ANZDS.54 Mother Gabriel to Sion Hill Novices, October 10, 1870. gh3/2/3 ANZDS. The Roman style refers to the type of headdress worn by the travellers. See note 43.55 McCarthy OP, Star in the South.56 Annals of St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.57 Annals of St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.58 Clear, Nuns in Nineteenth-Century Ireland. Clear also notes the importance of ongoing networks among Sisters and with former pupils in Ireland.59 The annalist is silent on details of the Sisters' travel from Sydney to Melbourne and so far I can find no record of it. It is possible that it was on the Gothenburg as it was one of the coastal steamships that plied between Australian and New Zealand ports.60 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.61 Sion Hill Annals, SHA.62 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.63 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.64 The SS Gothenburg was a single-screw steamship built about 1854. http://members.iinet.net.au/~gstanden/Gothenburg.html (accessed June 4, 2014).65 De Ricci Kirby is on the ship's list as D Sister Keilley, Vincent Whitty as G Sister Whitey, Gertrude Dooley as G Sister Dolan, Bertrand McLaughlin as B. M. Tauchlan, Agnes Rooney as M. A. Roney, and Lucy Tracy as Sister Tracey, http://prov.vic.gov.au/search_results?searchid=42&format=freetext&FamilyName=&GivenName=&Ship=Gothenburg&Destination=&Month=2&Monthto=2&Year=1871&Yearto=0&SearchSortField1=Ship&SearchRecords=25&x=48&y=13 (accessed June 4, 2014). The Otago Daily Times did no better, announcing the passengers as Sister Rooney, Messrs Gil, Hughes, Whitty, Tracey, McLaughlin, Sullivan, Kiely, Doolan and Jordan. Otago Daily Times, February 17, 1871, 2.66 Otago Daily Times, February 20, 1871.67 I have considered this in detail in Collins, 'Creating Spaces in a Male Domain: Sister Principals in Catholic Schools, 1850–1974' and 'Schooling for Faith, Citizenship and Social Mobility'.68 A. G. Butchers, Education in New Zealand: A Historical Survey (Dunedin: Coulls Somerville Wilkie, 1930).69 John Barrington, Separate but Equal: Maori Schools and the Crown, 1867–1969 (Wellington: Victoria University Press, 2008).70 Jenny Collins, 'For the Common Good? The Catholic Educational Mission, 1945–1965' (PhD diss., Massey University, 2006).71 Donald Harman Akenson, Half the World from Home: Perspectives on the Irish in New Zealand (Wellington: Victoria University Press, 1990), 105–16.72 Ibid., 163–4.73 Jenny Collins, 'Dublin to Dunedin: From "Old World" Frameworks to New Mission Frontiers', in Towards the Intelligent Use of Liberty: Dominican Approaches to Education, ed. Gabriel Kelly OP and Kevin Saunders OP (Adelaide: ATF Press, 2007), 279–91.74 New Zealand Census 1881. http://www3.stats.govt.nz/historic_publications/1881-census/1881-results-census.html (accessed May 29, 2014).75 Hugh M. Laracy, 'Bishop Moran, Irish Politics and Catholicism in New Zealand', Journal of Religious History 6, no. 1 (1970): 62–76. An example of the rebellious nature of the Irish occurred in 1867 when Irish laity met to demand 'a British Bishop and priests for the Middle Island of New Zealand'. In 1869 a group of malcontents tried to force Moreau to accept the services of an Irish priest who wished to work in the city of Dunedin rather than the country area to which he had been appointed. Moreau threatened to resign.76 McCarthy OP, Star in the South, 31.77 Sister Francis Sullivan to Sion Hill, March 17, 1871, gh3/2/4, ANZDS.78 McCarthy OP, Star in the South, 38–9.79 King, Michael. God's farthest outpost: A history of Catholics in New Zealand. (Auckland: Penguin Books, 1997).80 Collins, 'For Faith or the Common Good?'. The 1975 Conditional Integration Act integrated Catholic (and some private schools) into the New Zealand state education system.81 Margaret Susan Thompson, 'Adaptation and Professionalism: Challenges for Teaching Sisters in a Pluralistic Nineteenth-Century America', Paedagogica Historica 49, no. 4 (2013): 454–70.82 Sister Francis to Sion Hill, March 17, 1871, gh3/2/2, ANZDS. The widdys refers to 'widow ladies' who kept school at the 'Robin Hood', a local hotel, notorious for rats. Father Moreau also lived there.83 Sister Francis to Sion Hill, March 17, 1871, gh3/2/2, ANZDS.84 Carmel Walsh, 'From Ireland to Eternity: Immigrants yet Exiles' (Master of Theology, Melbourne College of Divinity, 1992).85 McCarthy OP, Star in the South. Otago Girls' High School (located across the road from St Dominic's College), the first state secondary school for girls in New Zealand, opened a couple of weeks earlier on 6 February. I recall an ongoing rivalry between the schools in areas such as sport, academic achievements and debating.86 Annals, St Dominic's 1/1/1870, ANZDS.87 Otago Daily Times, February 25, 1871.88 Sister Francis to Sion Hill, March 17, 1871. gh3/2/2, ANZDS.89 Sister Francis to Sion Hill, March 17, 1871. 'B. Virgin and Sts' refers to the Blessed Virgin and the Saints, gh3/2/2, ANZDS.90 Dublin had a large Anglo-Irish community and many of the daughters of middle- and upper-class Anglo-Irish attended Dominican schools in Ireland.91 From 1870 to 1875 under the premiership of Julius Vogel, the government offered free and assisted passages to large numbers of immigrants from the United Kingdom. My great-grandfather, a farmer from County Tyrone, arrived in Otago in 1874 on an assisted passage. His grandson, my father, attended a Dominican school in Milton. Other Irish forebears (listed as labourers & servants) arrived in Otago and South Canterbury on free and assisted passages from Galway, Limerick and Kerry.92 M. M. Gabriel Gill to Sion Hill 'Mothers and Sisters', November 12, 1871. McCarthy OP. Augustine, Mother of the Missions, Mother Mary Gabriel Gill, O.S.D. (Dunedin: St Dominic's Priory, 1989), 30.93 See also Thompson, 'Adaptation and Professionalism'.94 This injunction ran like a litany through nineteenth-century sermons. See Marjorie Theobald, Knowing Women: Origins of Women's Education in Nineteenth-Century Australia (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996).95 From an advertisement in the NZ Tablet, May 3, 1873, cited in Augustine McCarthy, Star in the South (Dunedin: St Dominic's Priory, 1970), 49.96 See Marjorie Theobald, 'Women's Teaching Labour, the Family and the State in Nineteenth-Century Victoria', in Family, School and State in Australian History, ed. Marjorie Theobald and R. J. W. Selleck (Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 1990), 25–44.97 'The Dominicans in New Zealand', NZ Tablet, May 9, 1946, 9.98 This had been refused since the 1877 Education Act.