Fonds F1227 - House of Industry fonds

The House of Industry was established in 1848 by the Female Benevolent Society of Kingston, the group that had earlier initiated the Kingston General Hospital. The House of Industry was intended to bring relief to the many Irish immigrants who had arrived in Kingston destitute as a result of the famine in Ireland and the plague which spread through the ships coming to America. The House of Industry provided more or less permanent shelter for anyone needing it and temporary refuge and aid to those called outdoor paupers. A school was run in conjunction with the institution. The institution passed through several phases and, at different times, was variously called House of Refuge, Home for the Aged and, finally, Rideaucrest. The care of orphans was undertaken in the Orphan's Home, and women with infants were cared for in the Home for Friendless Women and Infants. It is now under the direction of the Rideaucrest Home Committee, a standing committee of the Kingston City Council.