Bermondsey Community and Branch Houses, 1822-2014 inclusive
Scope and Contents note
Consists of records acquired and accumulated by the Sisters of Mercy of the Bermondsey Community, in particular the Reverend Mothers. Includes correspondence, financial, administrative and property records with some plans, photographs, textiles and spiritual writings by the Sisters; school and care home records and photographs; records of church and local and national events affecting the Sisters; personal papers of Sisters.
Dates
- Creation: 1822-2014 inclusive
Conditions Governing Access note
As a private archive, access to the Institute of Our Lady of Mercy Archive requires application to the Archivist and approval by the Institute's Leadership Team. Where items are closed for access, this is indicated at the appropriate level.
Biographical/Historical note
The Bermondsey Convent of Mercy was founded by Catherine McAuley RSM on 19 November 1839 from Dublin, Ireland; the first Convent of Mercy outside Ireland. The need was for education of children and the visitation of the poor and the sick. Branch houses from the Bermondsey Motherhouse were founded at Chelsea 1845, Bristol 1846, Brighton 1852, Great Ormond Street, London 1856, Wigton 1857, Abingdon 1860, Gravesend 1860, Clifford 1870, High Street, Eltham 1874, Hunslet 1879, Grafton, Australia 1885, Croydon 1886, Kingston, Jamaica 1890, Macklin Street, London 1892, Worthing 1893, Stamford 1894, Orpington 1894, Camberwell 1898-1937, Whitstable 1899, Axminster 1910, Chislehurst 1946, Glenure Road, Eltham 1946, and Swanley 1969. Eight Sisters also went from Bermondsey to nurse in the Crimea 1854-1856. Eltham, Croydon, Worthing, Orpington, Camberwell, Whitstable, Chislehurst and Swanley remained branch houses of Bermondsey, whereas the other foundations became independent once on a sure footing.
The Reverend Mother of Bermondsey Convent of Mercy, with an Assistant and Bursar, was responsible for the spiritual welfare of the Community, finances, legal matters, foundations and communicating with outside persons such as Bishops and benefactors. Local Superiors were appointed in branch houses to oversee the day-to-day running of the convent, and eventually to become Reverend Mother in the case of independent foundations.
Bermondsey Convent of Mercy was damaged in 1945 by bombing and consequently the Reverend Mother and Assistants moved to Chislehurst until circa 1978. The Community was still known as Bermondsey, and novices entering the new novitiate built in 1953 at Chislehurst considered themselves to be Bermondsey Sisters of Mercy. The Bermondsey Convent of Mercy was rebuilt in 1957 and reopened in 1958 but remained a branch house of Chislehurst until that convent closed, when Bermondsey again became the base for Reverend Mother of the Bermondsey Congregation.
In 1969, Bermondsey Congregation became part of the English Federation of the Sisters of Mercy, a grouping of autonomous motherhouses. In 1983, the Bermondsey Congregation voted to become part of the new Institute of Our Lady of Mercy GB. Upon joining the Institute, the branch houses became independent of their former motherhouse (reflected in the arrangement of the archives as branch house records are not included post-1984). Bermondsey Convent of Mercy was in the Emmaus Province 1985-1995, when the Provincial structure was dissolved.
Full Extent
88 boxes (76 boxes of paper-based records, 5 boxes and 2 folder-boxes of photographs, building plans, framed items, 5 outsized volumes, 5 boxes of textiles)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement note
The sub-fonds is arranged into twenty three series that reflect the content and context of the collection. Original order has been re-created where possible.
Other Finding Aids note
A Microsoft Access database lists correspondence to item level. Former reference numbers have been recorded within the Location Note at file and/or item level.
Custodial History note
The archives of the Bermondsey Community have been collected from the opening of the Bermondsey Convent of Mercy in 1839 to the present by Sisters of Mercy belonging to the Community, and cover the running of their lives. There are a few earlier records brought to the convent by the first Sisters of Mercy. The records of the branch houses have been collected from their opening, as the Reverend Mother, the Bursar and the Assistant would have controlled the finances, property, spiritual life, etc., centrally from Bermondsey.
When Bermondsey Convent suffered irreparable damage during the Second World War, the archives (together with fixtures and fittings) were transferred to Chislehurst Convent of Mercy, which became the Motherhouse and Novitiate for the Bermondsey Congregation from 1945 until closure in 1978. The records were stored in a large metal cupboard inside the back door of the Convent, with illuminated manuscripts being produced occasionally by Reverend Mother for the Sisters to see on a Sunday.
Once Bermondsey Convent was rebuilt in 1957 and a community moved in, archival material together with fixtures and fittings rescued from the old convent were gradually returned from Chislehurst. The archives were kept in the cupboard under the stairs until 1985, when M. Imelda Keena RSM decided that a dedicated archive was needed for the Institute.
Accruals note
Further accruals are expected from the Bermondsey Community, including yearly annals and individual donations by Sisters.
Repository Details
Part of the Bermondsey Convent of Mercy Repository