Wet-Nurses and Industrial Schools

Dear Readers,

Today I will be discussing the life of Emma Rock and her son, John Joseph Rock. Emma Rock was a wet-nurse who lived in London while trying to provide for her family after the death of her husband in 1872. John Joseph Condick, her last son, was sent to a Industrial School in Liverpool to help the child learn a prosperous trade, instead of living a poor life in London. This industrial school, commonly called a “ragged school,” was started in England for poor children who could not go to school every day due to the high cost.^[1] These schools were started for these poor children to learn a skilled trade in the hopes of moving up from the lower classes. The Holy Trinity Industrial School, more commonly named Grafton Street Industrial School for Boys, was first created 3 October 1870 as a school for both boys and girls to learn skilled industrial trades. By 1877, the school was exclusively for young boys and the girls were removed to Everton Terrace. The school was based in four different buildings near each other on Grafton Street, near the dock area in Liverpool. ^[2] The trades that were taught at the school were printing, tailoring, and shoemaking. In a report of a Industrial School Inspector, he states that “there is room for improvement in the theoretical instruction, especially in the shoemaking department.” ^[3]

In 1857 the Industrial School’s Act was instated in England, which was enacted to prevent juvenile delinquency: this act forced homeless children to enter into the school system between ages seven and fourteen to learn a trade.^[4]  By 1861, another act was passed, which supplied assistance to more categories of children, such as beggars, delinquents, or out of parental control. ^[5] John was twelve years old when he appeared in the industrial school, which suggests he either came to the school by act of his mother or was taken there because of their poor living situation in Liverpool. John’s mother, Emma, most likely placed John at this school to keep him out of the workhouses and give him a better future. While Emma most likely paid the fee for John to be in school, most children who were collected were homeless and had to be funded by the government. ^[6]

Industrial schools similar to the Grafton Street Industrial School for Boys were operated very systematically to keep the boys in a schedule. The school gave basic scholarly lessons, food, and shelter. The children had to follow a strict timetable; they woke up at 6:00 AM and went to bed at 7:00 PM. Depending on the school, times for schooling, practicing their trade, chores, religious service, meal time, and play time were regimented in a rigid, strict schedule. In The Times newspaper, they state “that in the case of boys, some provision should be made for punishment with the birch as well as with the cane.”^[7]

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[1].             The Children Society, Ragged Schools, Industrial Schools, and Reformatories. http://www.hiddenlives.org.uk/articles/raggedschool.html, accessed 8 November 2012.

[2].             Holy Trinity Industrial School, 77 Grafton Street, Toxteth Park, Liverpool, Lancashire, aka Grafton Street Industrial School. http://www.missing-ancestors.com/holy_trinity_industrial_school%20Toxteth%20park%20info.htm, accessed 8 November 2012.

[3].             Great Britain, Report of the Inspector, Volume 46, Reformatory and Industrial School Department, 1903, P. 174-175. Available from Google Books https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=XIHKAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1, accessed 8 November 2012.

[4].             The Children Society, Ragged Schools, Industrial Schools, and Reformatories. http://www.hiddenlives.org.uk/articles/raggedschool.html, accessed 8 November 2012.

[5].             Jeannie Duckworth, Fagin's Children, London: Contiuum International Publishing, 2003: 219. Available online at www.books.google.com, accessed 9 November 2012.

[6].             The Children Society, Ragged Schools, Industrial Schools, and Reformatories. http://www.hiddenlives.org.uk/articles/raggedschool.html, accessed 8 November 2012.

[7].             The Times, “Punishment of Industrial School Children,” Page 10, Column C, 25 October 1895, http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/21cc/crime/youth1/punishment1/industrial1/industrial.html, accessed 8 November 2012.