Please contact the Professional Standards Office Records Service of the Catholic Church:
Postal Address: Catholic Diocesan Centre, 39 Wakefield Street, Adelaide SA 5000
Phone: (08) 8210 8275 or 1800 139 020
Email: receptionprofstandards@adelaide.catholic.org.au
Website: https://adelaide.catholic.org.au/our-works-and-community/archives-and-records-services
These records are held by Professional Standards Office Records Service of the Catholic Church (c. 1997 - current).
The Records of Sacred Heart Orphanage held by the Professional Standards Office primarily consists of a photocopy of one volume of a Sacred Heart Orphanage Admission Register and miscellaneous correspondence related the the Orphanage for the period 1951 to 1977. There are also photocopies of other administrative materials which may include the names of relevant children. Not all records information is complete.
Please contact the Professional Standards Office Records Service for an application form and information regarding procedures and conditions with regard to accessing information from records held or managed by this office. Information is open to former residents or family members who can prove their relationship to the resident. The Professional Standards Office does not charge any fees to former residents of Catholic Homes seeking their records
Admission Register (1951 – 1979)
The photocopy of the Admission Register of the Sacred Heart Orphanage include a copy of two large pages of handwritten lists of names of children in the Orphanage. This contains basic information including:- name of resident; date of admission; date of birth; and age at admission. In some cases, additional information may be listed including: parents’ names; and discharge date. The names run down the left hand side of the page and the years are listed across the top of the page. Boxes are ticked corresponding to the years that each child was resident in the Home.
The copy of the admission register comprises scans of 170 pages of the register, with admission information, including names of children, for the period 1951-1979.
Correspondence (1972 – 1977)
The correspondence files for the Sacred Heart Orphanage mostly related to the planning and signing of an agreement between the Good Samaritan Sisters, the Minister of Community Welfare and the Catholic Diocese of Port Pirie to transform the Orphanage into a government funded residential home for children.