St Joseph's Orphanage Largs Bay

St Joseph’s Orphanage at Largs Bay, formerly St Joseph’s Sanatorium, opened in 1907. Run by the Sisters of St Joseph it took in infants and school age children. From 1941 it accommodated only boys aged 3 to 12. Girls were sent to St Vincent de Paul Orphanage, Goodwood and older boys to St John’s Boystown, Brooklyn Park. During the 1960s the Home became known as St Joseph’s Junior Boys Home.

The St Joseph’s Orphanage Largs Bay, formerly known as St Joseph’s Sanatorium, was the second orphanage to be managed by the Sisters of St Joseph in South Australia. The original St Joseph’s Sanatorium moved from Kalgoorlie Street in Largs Bay to larger premises on the Esplanade near the Largs Bay jetty in 1906. Although the Sanatorium continued for a time to accommodate women in the new premises, the Sisters began to concentrate on its role as an orphanage for boys and girls from infancy to school leaving age. In 1907 the then Archbishop of Adelaide, Archbishop O’Reily, established the Home as St Joseph’s Orphanage.

Along with ‘homeless children and orphans’ St Joseph’s Orphanage also took in children of more than 3 years of age from the St Joseph’s Refuge whose mothers chose to stay at the Refuge.

By 1908 the large building was becoming overcrowded so a cottage on an adjoining lot was purchased. In 1910 62 children were being cared for in the orphanage and by 1912 the Sisters were running out of room for the numbers of children being referred to them. Over the next few years additions were made to the building, including a schoolroom in 1912 and a kitchen, laundry and new wing in 1917.

In 1941, after the arrival of Archbishop Matthew Beovich in Adelaide, the focus of the Orphanage changed. The Archbishop arranged for all the older boys from the orphanages at Goodwood and Largs Bay to be placed at Brooklyn Park under the care of the Brothers of St John the Baptist and later the Salesians of Don Bosco. All girls were moved to the St Vincent de Paul orphanage and St Joseph’s took charge of boys aged between three and twelve.

During the 1960s the home became known as St Joseph’s Junior Boys Home.