St Francis House

St Francis House was a home for inland Aboriginal Australian boys from 1946 to 1959 at Glanville Hall in Semaphore South, Adelaide, South Australia.

Father Percy Smith purchased Glanville Hall on behalf of the Anglican Church to provide accommodation for young Aboriginal boys from remote areas who were attending school in the local area.[1] He founded the St Francis Boys' Home in order to bring boys down (including several from Alice Springs in the Northern Territory[2]) for education and employment.[3]

In a time when it was commonly believed that Aboriginal children were unable to be educated beyond Grade 3, Smith saw the home as a way of providing a family environment for the children to pursue a higher level of education without losing their Aboriginal identity. He described the hostel as “not one of fostering, but rather a boarding establishment to which boys came with their mothers' consent for the school year, and in that respect it was no different from children being sent by their parents to a boarding school".[4]

The manor became known as "St Francis House: A Home for Inland Children" and over the next 14 years, more than 50 children found at home at St Francis on their way to greatness. Former residents include Charles Perkins AO, Gordon Briscoe AO, John Moriarty AM, Les Nayda AM, and Bill Espie (Queen's Medal for Bravery) and the artist Harold Thomas (activist) (Bundoo). Some notable sporting identities included Vincent Copley, Richie Bray and Ken Hampton went on to play football for Port Adelaide, while Wally McArthur became an accomplished track and field athlete as well as rugby player. Many other residents went on to lead successful and fulfilled lives.[5]

Moriarty has said that St Francis House was an exceptional home. [6]

At St Francis House, the boys formed a strong, life-long bond with Smith and his wife, and with each other.[7]

A history of St Francis House is being written by former Australian test cricketer Ashley Mallett.[8]

The St Francis House Project was established in 2018 to document the history of the home.[9]

Notable people

Some residents of St Francis House who later went on to forge sporting careers and/or became engaged in Indigenous activism include: [2]

References
  1. Racial Folly: A twentieth-century Aboriginal family - ANU
  2. Chlanda, Erwin (1 February 2019). "Kids from The Alice: When Malcolm met Menzies". Alice Springs News. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  3. Vincent Copley
  4. History of Glanville Hall | Glanville Hall
  5. Chlanda, Erwin (18 September 2013). "The Boys who made the Big Time". Alice Springs News. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  6. Collaborating for Indigenous Rights 1957-1973
  7. About Dr Charles Perkins - The Charlie Perkins Trust for Children and Students
  8. Ashley Mallett: Painting a picture | Stumps
  9. "History & legacy of St Francis House, a home for inland children 1946-59 [Home page]". St Francis House. Retrieved 25 January 2021.

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