Leonard Kilbee Shaw (1834 - 22 July 1902) was a businessman and philanthropist from Dublin, Ireland. He co-founded the Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refuges and Homes in 1870, which today continues as the children's charity the

Together Trust The Together Trust is a British registered charity, founded in 1870 by Leonard Kilbee Shaw and Richard Bramwell Taylor as the Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refuges and Homes. It provides care, special education and community suppo ...

.Together Trust: History
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Early life

Shaw was born in 1834 in

Dublin, Ireland Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

, the son of Robert and Alicia Shaw. He spent his early years in Ireland, being educated at the Reverend Abraham Jones'

Seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

in Holly Mount. The family moved across to Manchester, England in 1847. Here Leonard commenced his business life in one of the large Manchester warehouses where he stayed for the next thirty years, eventually becoming a manager. In 1884 he set up his own business as a merchant and

insurance agent Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

. He married Annie Hall, second daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hall of Shallcross Hall,

Whaley Bridge Whaley Bridge () is a town and civil parish in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, England. It is situated on the River Goyt, south-east of Manchester, north of Buxton, north-east of Macclesfield and west of Sheffield. It had a population ...

, in

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east ...

in 1866. Five years later they had their first, and only, son Robert.

Charitable work

Shaw is best known for his charitable work. A deeply religious man, he had become responsible for the Young Men's Sunday Class at St. Ann's Church in Manchester and later a Teacher at the

Ragged School Ragged schools were charitable organisations dedicated to the free education of destitute children in 19th century Britain. The schools were developed in working-class districts. Ragged schools were intended for society's most destitute children ...

there. It was there that Shaw became aware of the true scope of homelessness among boys in the city. On 4 January 1871 he and Richard Bramwell Taylor started the Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refuges and Homes in a small house on Quay Street,

Deansgate Deansgate is a main road (part of the A56) through Manchester City Centre, England. It runs roughly north–south in a near straight route through the western part of the city centre and is the longest road in the city centre at over one mile ...

. The aim was to "reclaim, reform and evangelise" the homeless boys of Manchester while providing them with food, shelter and employment. The program was soon extended to include girls. For the next 32 years Shaw sought out and interviewed street children in an effort to identify those most in need. He also campaigned to improve conditions for those children forced to work on the city's streets.

Death

Leonard Shaw died aged 68 on 22 July 1902 after a short illness. He was buried at St Paul's Church in

Kersal Kersal is a suburb and district of Salford in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England, northwest of Manchester and was historically part of the county of Lancashire. History Kersal has been variously known as Kereshale, Kershal, Ker ...

. A memorial fund was set up to raise £10,000 for two projects that Shaw had taken a special interest in; a new recreation ground in Cheetham and the enlargement of "Bethesda", a home for children with disabilities. Contributors to the fund over the following months included

Thomas John Barnardo Thomas John Barnardo (4 July 184519 September 1905) was an Irish-born philanthropist and founder and director of homes for poor and deprived children. From the foundation of the first Barnardo's home in 1867 to the date of Barnardo's death, nea ...

and Meta Gaskell, the daughter of

Elizabeth Gaskell Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many st ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaw, Leonard Kilbee 1834 births 1902 deaths Businesspeople from Manchester 19th-century British philanthropists Philanthropists from Greater Manchester

Early life

Charitable work

Death

Further reading

References