St. Michael's Orphan Asylum
and Industrial School

Some Not-So-Good Memories

During meals we never sat with our family until August 1961. I was living at St. Michael' on a permanent basis from 1954-Oct. 1961 (previously I was in and out of St. Michael's from the age of 1 1/2 yr. to 6 yr.) when I graduated 8th grade, then went into a foster home for High School.

During meals we were not allowed to talk until the bell rang, then we had to stop talking after it rang the second time. If we were caught talking, we had to stand at the back of the dining room and after everyone left, whichever nun was in charge that day, would hit us with the back of a knife across our palm or across our knuckle and if you pulled away, you were hit again. Sometimes they would use the back of a dust brush.

We were the housekeepers -- we had to clean from the 4th floor down to the basement. Cleaning all the bathrooms with 6 toilets and sinks (2 bathrooms on every floor), dusting the banisters from the top down on both sides of the floor. Washing all the steps from the top floor down. Scrubbing the chapel floor on your hands and knees. The floor had black and white tile and you had to make sure the black did not run into the white. If it did, the nuns would make you do it all over again.

The older girls were babysitters for the younger girls and had to take care of them and help them make their beds, wash up, dress them, etc. We had to wash, scrub, and wax the basement floors. The basement was the playroom for the girls where our showers were along where the clothes room was kept. The basement was also the corridor to the dining room. We had to help prepare the dinin groom for meals, set the table, cut the butter, clear the tables, wash the dishes. We also worked in the laundry room.

I remember one of the nuns teaching me piano, but the principal made her stop, saying I didn't have to learn the piano.

I also remember the nuns making us eat cornmeal and if you couldn't eat it you stood in the back of the dining room until you did. If you still could not eat it, you had to go to the principal and stand in front of her and eat it. I could not eat it no matter how hard I tried. The principal tried to force me to eat it and finally I threw it up all over her desk. I was never made to eat it again. They also tried to make us take vitiams. They were so big and I could not swallow them. They kept making me drink more water, more water, more water. Finally I spit up all the water, all over the nun. I never had to take the vitiams again.

Some Good Memories
posted January 2000