Archives



Office of the Public Advocate, State of Western Australia

The Office of the Public Advocate in Western Australia (OPA) ‘works to promote and protect the human rights of more than 65,000 Western Australian adults with decision-making disabilities.’ As well as describing what they do, the OPA’s website ‘provides information to help families, friends, carers, health professionals, legal practitioners, primary care givers and accommodation service…

Country High School Hostels Authority, State of Western Australia

The Country High School Hostels Authority governed the operations of education hostels throughout regional Western Australia. These were hostels set up for children in rural and regional areas, who boarded at the hostel to attend school. It was not uncommon for children who were state wards to be boarded in one of the Authority’s hostels….

State Records Office of Western Australia

The State Records Office of Western Australia was established in 2001, following the passing of the State Records Act 2000. It is the key repository for government documents in Western Australia. The state archives collection includes records that might be of interest to people who were in out of home care as children. These records…

Chief Protector of Aborigines

The Chief Protector of Aborigines was an official role first held in 1898. The Aborigines Act 1897 abolished the Aborigines Protection Board, and created both the Aborigines Department and its head, the Chief Protector. The role was given legal authority by the Aborigines Act 1905. The Chief Protector was the legal guardian of every Aboriginal…

Aborigines Protection Board, Crown Colony of Western Australia

The Aborigines Protection Board in the Crown Colony of Western Australia was established in 1887, as a result of the Aborigines Protection Act 1886. The Board was responsible for the welfare of all Aboriginal people. This included the care, custody and education of all Aboriginal children, and the power to apprentice any Aboriginal child. In…

Aborigines Department, State of Western Australia

The Aborigines Department was created in 1926, taking over the responsibilities for Aborigines for the whole of the state of Western Australia that were divided previously between the Department of the North West and the Department of Fisheries. The Department had the Protector of Aborigines as its head. It was replaced by the Department of…

Department of the North West, State of Western Australia

The Department of the North West was given responsibility in 1920 for Aboriginal people living in the ares of Western Australian above latitude 25 degrees south. The Department administered the policies of Chief Protector of Aborigines which included, who was legal guardian of every Aboriginal child as stipulated in the Aborigines Act 1905. In 1926…

Fisheries Department, State of Western Australia

The Fisheries Department had a brief role in the ‘care’ and ‘protection’ of Aboriginal children from 1920, when it was given responsibility for Aboriginal matters in Western Australian areas below latitude 25 degrees south. It administered the Aborigines Act 1905 in this area of the State until those functions were removed from the Fisheries Department…

Department of Aborigines and Fisheries, State of Western Australia

The Department of Aborigines and Fisheries in Western Australia was created in 1909 by the amalgamation of the Aborigines Department and the Fisheries Department. The head of the Department, the Chief Protector of Aborigines, was the legal guardian of every Aboriginal child in Western Australia, as stipulated in the Aborigines Act 1905. In 1920, the…

Aboriginal Student Accommodation Service

The Aboriginal Student Accommodation Service was part of the Department for Community Development. It was a placement service for young Aboriginal people from remote areas who were undertaking education or employment in towns or cities. Its exact dates of operation are unknown.