In the mid-nineteenth century, after the second wave of the cholera epidemic, several hundred orphans remained in Warmia.
Adela von Berg from the estate of Borki Wielkie near Biskupiec, writes a petition to the Queen of Prussia with a request to establish a Catholic care facility for orphans, allocating 2000 thalers for this purpose. The matter and the funds were handed over to the Bishop of Warmia, Józef Ambroży Geritz, who proposed the Lidzbark castle with the garden belonging to it, which was not used at the time, as the place for the establishment of the orphanage. The Holy See's consent was obtained on August 6, 1855. Adaptation works under the direction of Edward Jester were carried out
in the years 1857-59, and funds for this purpose were obtained from donors and Bishop Geritz himself.
In order to run the orphanage, the St. Joseph Foundation was established, and the children were to be cared for by the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. In 1859 the first pupils were admitted, in 1890 there were already 142 of them, girls and boys.
The orphanage was a care, school and health facility. The children were given food, clothing, as well as the opportunity for elementary education, such as reading, writing and handicrafts, they also helped in the garden and on the farm. A chaplain and teachers were hired. The children's hospital was run from 1862 to 1877. Until 1875 the Sisters of Charity were in charge of upbringing and education, after the dissolution of the convent, in 1886 Bishop Andrzej Thiel entrusted the running of the orphanage to the Sisters of St. Catherine from the convent in Lidzbark.
The restoration works of the castle carried out in the years 1927-1936 assumed the creation of a
Regional Museum. The orphanage needed a new place. In 1932, the institution was moved to a newly built building at the present 11 Leśna Street, where it functioned until the end of January 1945, when the Sisters of St. Catherine managed to evacuate with a group of about 150 children to the north of Germany. In 1946, in the former building of the Orphanage, an orphanage was opened, renamed, today it operates under the name of the Youth Educational Centre.
in the years 1857-59, and funds for this purpose were obtained from donors and Bishop Geritz himself.
In order to run the orphanage, the St. Joseph Foundation was established, and the children were to be cared for by the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. In 1859 the first pupils were admitted, in 1890 there were already 142 of them, girls and boys.
The orphanage was a care, school and health facility. The children were given food, clothing, as well as the opportunity for elementary education, such as reading, writing and handicrafts, they also helped in the garden and on the farm. A chaplain and teachers were hired. The children's hospital was run from 1862 to 1877. Until 1875 the Sisters of Charity were in charge of upbringing and education, after the dissolution of the convent, in 1886 Bishop Andrzej Thiel entrusted the running of the orphanage to the Sisters of St. Catherine from the convent in Lidzbark.
The restoration works of the castle carried out in the years 1927-1936 assumed the creation of a
Regional Museum. The orphanage needed a new place. In 1932, the institution was moved to a newly built building at the present 11 Leśna Street, where it functioned until the end of January 1945, when the Sisters of St. Catherine managed to evacuate with a group of about 150 children to the north of Germany. In 1946, in the former building of the Orphanage, an orphanage was opened, renamed, today it operates under the name of the Youth Educational Centre.
