Mary Agnes Canty

Mary Agnes Canty (born Lucy Bridget Canty; 22 March 1879 – 6 October 1950) was a New Zealand Roman Catholic nun, teacher, and nursing school matron at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital in Auckland.

Canty was born in Greta, New South Wales, Australia on 22 March 1879.[1] She joined the Sisters of Mercy order in Auckland when she was 16 and after training as a teacher she was sent with Sister Mary Gonzaga Leahy to study nursing in Sydney.[1][2] The two returned to New Zealand to nurse at the Coromandel Hospital before finishing their nursing registration back in Sydney.[1][3] In 1902 when Gonzaga became matron of the Mater Misericordiae Hospital Canty was her deputy.[2] The two women were the driving forces behind much of the hospital's growth and development.[3]

In 1929 when new hospital facilities and services were planned Canty joined Gonzaga on a three month tour of the United States where they studied up-to-date hospitals bringing back their findings to contribute to the new building's plans.[1][2]

Canty became a tutor and head of the Mater's nursing school which opened in 1937.[2][3][4] To run the nursing school Canty was required to be qualified in both general and maternity nursing so she gained her maternity registration at St Helens Hospital in Wellington.[1][3]

Canty was known to be strict but compassionate.[3] She died in Auckland on 6 October 1950.[1][4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Engel, Pauline F. "Mary Agnes Canty". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d Bush, Graham W.A. (2006). The History of Epsom. Auckland: Epsom & Eden District Historical Society. p. 185. ISBN 0473111020.
  3. ^ a b c d e Belgrave, Michael (2000). The Mater: a history of Auckland's Mercy Hospital 1900-2000. Palmerston North: Dunmore Press. pp. 36–37. ISBN 0473071282.
  4. ^ a b "Mother Mary Agnes". The Age. 7 October 1950. p. 2. Retrieved 7 July 2025 – via Trove.


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