There were some unusual scenes at the end of Term 1 as precautions were increasingly taken against COVID-19 until the boys finally departed for off-site learning.
While we aren’t through the current situation yet it is worth remembering that boys at St Joseph’s have faced a pandemic (and got through it) before. Last term Dr Hayes mentioned to the boys that 101 years ago, Joeys boys were experiencing something similar, the Spanish Flu.
This period of time is mentioned in the College history, “A Century of Striving”. It gives a historical account of how the College coped with the Influenza outbreak of 1919. The College was placed in total quarantine – no one entered and no one left. The account is reproduced below courtesy of Ms Beverley Malone from the College archives.
