The End Came Quietly
In 1937, the Protectory closed, all its boys having been transferred to the Brooklyn home. The complex was abandoned, presumably only after the Chapel was deconsecrated, and any critical items were removed from the buildings. I have found nothing online about the reasoning that led to the closing of the Protectory in 1937. Were there no pandemic, I would fly to New York, and examine the final records of The Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum Society of Brooklyn. They are held in the Center for Brooklyn History collection at the Brooklyn Public Library.
One can, however, speculate with some confidence. The prolonged Great Depression still lingered. The previously independent Asylum Society was effectively dissolved by merging it into the Diocesan Charities of the Diocese of Brooklyn. The timing of this change suggests that the Diocese was doing what it could to respond to the economic pressures of the day. Before the Depression hit, the Society's facilities had always depended on donations - regular small donations from many, many people, and extraordinary large ones from the wealthy. But jobs and fortunes alike were lost in the 1930s, and the Society's donations all but evaporated. Continuing on its own would have been impossible for the Society.
Political and legal forces may also have been at work. It may have been easier for the Brooklyn Diocese to keep all its facilities within its territory. One can also speculate that Nassau County would have been unwilling to assume any implicit responsibility for 125 needy Brooklyn boys who could be equally needy in Brooklyn.
In any case, the Protectory closed, and rather quietly. I have not yet found any news articles about the closure, or about the fate of the nuns who had served there. I imagine that a great many people mourned its passing, and I cannot honestly believe that Hicksville was in any way better off without it.
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