Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women

• Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women

• Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Females.

• Andrew Mercer Ontario Reformatory for Females Mercer Complex.

The Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women opened in 1880 in Toronto and was named after Andrew Mercer of Toronto.

By 1965 three institutions made up what was then referred to as the Mercer Complex: the Mercer Reformatory in Toronto, the Ontario Women's Guidance Centre, "Ingleside", and the Ontario Women's Treatment Centre, both at Brampton. The Treatment Centre, originally part of the Mercer Reformatory in Toronto, was set up in 1955 for the treatment and rehabilitation of women suffering from alcholism, drug addiction and nuero-psychiatric disorders. It was relocated to Brampton in 1963 and named the Ontario Women's Treatment Centre. The Ontario Women's Guidance Centre opened in 1959 at Brampton and was a specialized unit for selected inmates from the Mercer Reformatory. It concentrated on academic and vocational training.

At various times the Mercer Reformatory also housed female offenders under age sixteen in a separate part of the building. These included the Industrial Refuge for Girls from 1880-1905 and the Ontario Training School for Girls from 1952-1960.

Until 1968 all jails and reformatories were administered locally through municipal bodies under the guidance of the Ontario provincial government. Repsonsibility for reformatories within the government fell to the Office of the Inspector of Prisons and Public Charities (1868-1934), the Reformatories and Prisons Branch of the Department of the Provincial Secretary (1934-1946) and the Department of Reform Institutions (1946-1968). In 1968 their administration was assumed directly by the provincial government. Since then, jails and reformatories have been administered within the Department of Correctional Services (1968-1972), the Ministry of Correctional Services (1972-1993), the Ministry of the Solicitor General and Correctional Services (1993-1999) and the Ministry of Correctional Services (1999-).

The Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women closed in March 1969 when it was replaced by the Vanier Centre for Women.

The Andrew Mercer Reformatory for Women received and reformed women over the age of sixteen convicted of an offence for which a short term sentence of over 30 days to under two years was imposed.

An Act Respecting the Andrew Mercer Ontario Reformatory for Females, Statutes of Ontario 1879, Chap. 38.

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

Inspector of Asylums, Prisons and Public Charities. Report upon the Common Gaols, Prisons and Reformatories, 1867-1934. Reformatories and Prisons Branch, Annual Report Upon Prisons and Reformatories, 1934-1946. Annual Reports of the Department of Reform Institutions, 1946-1968. Annual Reports of the Department of Correctional Services, 1968-1969.

Archivist(s):
McIlroy