Galloway Home For Girls, Whalley Range

This home was established in 1875 by Miss Galloway, who ran the Home all by herself for 35 years. In 1910 she decided to retire, and the Home became part of the Waifs and Strays' Society. To mark the transition, a special ceremony was held on 6 May 1911. The Bishop of Whalley came to the Home where he conducted a dedication service, which was type of ceremony used to open most of the Society's homes. A large crowd gathered to witness the event, including all 30 girls (aged 6-16) from the Home itself. The Bishop paid a special tribute to the work of Mrs Galloway, explaining that the Home was to be named in honour of her 'tireless devotion to this most needy cause.'

Within the first few years of joining the Society, the Galloway Home hosted several successful Pound Days. Such events were a well established way of raising funds, which every Society home was familiar with. They were called Pound Days because people were asked to donate either a pound in money or a pound in weight of something the home could use, like food. At their Pound Day in 1910, the Galloway Home managed to raise more than 880 lbs. of groceries, including several barrels of apples and pears. In 1915 they fared even better by collecting more than 2,000 lbs. of groceries and £24 in money. They also received a gift of 32 Winter coats from their old friend, Mrs Galloway.

The girls went on regular holidays to St Anne's-on-Sea (near Blackpool), which was the most popular destination for all the Manchester homes. One girl sent an enthusiastic letter about their visit of 1921, stating that she 'could not possible describe how we filled our time, for we filled every minute up and were as happy as it was possible to be.'

Galloway Home was forced to close in 1939 at the onset of the Second World War. The children were evacuated to a house in Bowdon (near Altrincham). The girls returned to Whalley Range in 1940, but they were re-evacuated to Ashleigh Home For Girls, Bolton and then moved to Victoria House, Formby.