Margaret Haughery - Dairy and Milk Cart

Dairy and Milk Cart

Besides her administrative duties at the asylum, with money Margaret saved from her wages, to provide milk for the orphans she purchased two cows. With this, she bought a little delivery cart. Margaret first established a dairy and drove around the city delivering the milk herself. She also sold fresh milk in the Vieux Carré (French Quarter). She carried her milk to her customers in the little cart every morning, she drove her milk cart from door to door; and as she went, she begged the leftover food from the hotels and rich houses, and brought it back in the cart to the hungry children in the asylum. In the very hardest times that was often all the food the children had.

The surplus milk was sold and, finding this quite profitable, Margaret increased her stock and began selling cream and butter. Within two years Margaret had a dairy herd of forty cows and a profitable business. Margaret's popularity became widespread. She became known among all classes as a businesswoman who sold her produce through the community from her handcart.

The Female Orphan Asylum of the Sisters of Charity built in 1840 was financed from Margaret’s work, for she cleared it of debt.

During the yellow fever epidemic in New Orleans in the 1850s Margaret went about from house to house, without regard to race or creed, nursing the victims and consoling the dying mothers with the promise to look after their little ones. Eventually, She helped open the St. Teresa's Orphan Asylum on Camp Street. St. Teresa's Church was also practically built by Margaret, in conjunction with Sister Regis.