Chosen. Sister Alice Faith

I was not sure that I would ever find out who Sr Alice Faith was. She was one of our Third Order, which was established for women who had been at our House of Mercy who wished to stay at Ditchingham. Initially known as the Order of Repentance, each Sister took ‘Faith’ as her second name. But we do not know their surnames. All I knew for the Third Order was the names they took as Sisters, their date and age of death and, in some cases, the years they were ‘in religion’ (dating from the time of their Clothing). A little extra can be found in the Community Archives, including photos and, if I remember correctly, their rule of life. I felt I would like to know more. Who were these women? This brought me to the Census records, where they were registered along with everyone else. Even this was not straight forward. I do not know when they were born; I do not know their surnames; I do not even know whether the names they used were their birth names. How distinguishable would they be in the Census data?

From 1901 onwards, it proved possible to work out who the Third Order Sisters were: often they were identified as members of the Community, but not as Sisters of Mercy (as we are). Most of them proved to have used their birth names along with the extra ‘faith’. A couple took more distinguishing than others … but Sr Alice Faith remained unknown. Dying in 1898, she was not present in any of the later Census data. Her year of death did distinguish her from Sr Ann Faith, whose first name was also Alice, and who died on the same day (but many years later). I could have looked through earlier Census forms for an ‘Alice’, but I could not be certain enough that it would identify her. However, I did have her date of death; her burial would have taken place in Ditchingham Cemetery, as did the majority of our earlier Sisters, and would therefore presumably have been registered in the parish records. This proved the access point.

An Alice A was buried on the 5th October 1898 by H. Frere; she was 49, and lived in Ditchingham. This fits with what I already know. Sr Alice Faith died on the 30th September 1898, aged 49. H. Frere was not the Rector of the Parish, but our Chaplain. It all pointed towards the fact that this burial was Sr Alice Faith. BUT – I could not read her surname with any degree of accuracy. It obviously began with an A, and there may have been an l somewhere. A search found a death record for an Alice Alliston, who died age 49 in 1898, in the Loddon district, which included Ditchingham at the time. A further search found Alice Alliston at Ditchingham in 1871, 1881 and 1891.

In the 1871 Census, she is present at the House of Mercy as a penitent, as the girls and women there were known. This was not as a judgement, but because that it what they were (or were supposed to be): penitent, sorry for what they had done wrong. Now we would recognise that many of them may well have been victims, rather than guilty, but this is to read 21st century insight into 19th century morals. Suffice it to say that the name penitent was not in any way judgemental, nor a punishment. Back to Sr Alice Faith: Alice E. Alliston was 22, and born in Colchester, Essex. Interestingly, another penitent at the time was Caroline Smith, also age 22, and who also joined the Third Order as Sr Rachel Faith. Both women would, I think, have been among the oldest there. While I haven’t yet checked the House of Mercy registers for information on the Third Order, and I cannot remember the 1870s in detail, I do know that most of the penitents were in their teens and early twenties. How this affected their time there, or whether it influenced the decision of either to join the Third Order, I do not know. Also, until I check the register, I do not know if there were others there of a similar age, or for how long their time at the House of Mercy overlapped. That is all to come.

Back to Sr Alice Faith. Further proof came in the 1881 and 1891 Census. In 1881, Alice Eliza Alliston is registered at our Orphanage, as a ‘cook domestic servant’; age 32, she was born in 1849, in Colchester. In 1891, Alice is still at the Orphanage [the Orphanage Oratory is pictured]. Here comes further proof that she is Sr Alice Faith. It is only with hindsight that I can distinguish this, but looking back, the signs are subtle but they are there. Alice is registered with the other servants; but her ‘relationship to head of household’ is worker rather than her role, as the other servants are. Moreover her occupation is domestic worker as opposed to domestic servant. Subtle, but definite signs that Alice Eliza Alliston is Sr Alice Faith. What more can I find out? So far, nothing. She does not seem to be registered in any census in Colchester, neither do her parents. How do I know her parents’ names? Well, I cannot be certain, but I am fairly sure that Alice Eliza Alliston is the same Alice Alliston as was baptised in Ditchingham on the 21st December 1870. Her parents are James and Mary Alliston, they lived in Colchester where James worked as a Malster. It is possible that they are in the Colchester Census, but I have not yet found the correct combination of names to elicit it. The baptismal record gives no age for Alice, neither does it link her with the House of Mercy. But the annual reports for the latter do mention penitents being baptised and, given the residence of her parents, I suspect this is Sr Alice Faith.

I hope, in the near future, to look at the House of Mercy entry register, which may give more information. But for now, this is all I know. For whatever reason, Alice was not baptised as a child, but decided to be baptised while at the House of Mercy; I assume she would also have been confirmed at some point. She joined the Third Order, and died in 1898, aged 49, after 25 years in religion, suggesting she was received into the Order in 1873, making her one of the earlier Third Order Sisters. She worked in the Orphanage, as a servant and cook, but may well also have worked with the Industrial girls, who were attached to the Orphanage and trained as domestic servants. Whatever her background, and whatever brought her into the House of Mercy initially, Sr Alice Faith made the decision to follow Jesus as an adult; having decided, she followed for the rest of her life.