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Allenby Lodge Young Women’s Hostel

The Allenby Lodge Young Women’s Hostel, at 410 Burwood Road, Glenferrie (Hawthorn) was established by the Salvation Army in 1919. It catered for young women from the Army’s Homes at Camberwell and Kew who were unable to return home, or to secure appropriate board and lodging. According to O’Hanlon, Allenby Lodge was designed ‘to provide…

Antonian Institute for Children

The Antonian Institute for Children, Richmond, was established in 1959 to cater for children from families of Italian origin, including state wards. The Home’s name was changed to the Antonian Children’s Home in 1966. The Antonian Institute for Children was established at 311 Church Street, Richmond in 1959. In January 1960, the Antonian Institute for…

Daughters of Divine Zeal

The Daughters of Divine Zeal are an international Italian order of Catholic nuns. The Sisters arrived in Richmond, Victoria in 1959 to the parish of St Ignatius, to do apostolic work with Melbourne’s Italian migrants. They ran the Antonian Children’s Home in Richmond from 1959 until it closed in 1979. In 1980 it was converted…

Ashendene Boys’ Home

The Ashendene Boys’ Home in Falls Road, Olinda, opened in December 1966. It was established to accommodate boys aged from 10 to 15 years, and from 1977 housed mostly older teenage boys requiring longer term accommodation. Ashendene was relocated to new premises in Croydon in 1988. The Victorian Government purchased the large former private home…

Baltara Reception Centre

Baltara Reception Centre was established by the Victorian Government in 1968. It was a separate entity from Turana, which was located on the same campus. Baltara was a specialised reception facility for boys aged 10 to 15 as well as a remand centre for boys in the same age group. Baltara comprised a number of…

Families Australia

Families Australia was established in 2001, and is Australia’s peak body dedicated to promoting the needs and interests of families. Families Australia is an independent, not-for-profit organisation which is not aligned to any political party or religious group. Families Australia provides secretariat and support services to the Alliance for Forgotten Australians.

Acheron Youth Training Centre

Acheron Youth Training Centre at Buxton was established in the mid 1960s as a facility for young people in Victoria’s youth training centres, particularly Turana. Acheron provided ‘adventure camp facilities’ and other training programs and a 350 acre minimum-security camp near Buxton. Approximately 300 ‘trainees’ a year went to Acheron in work groups. These trainees…

Alexandra Babies’ Home

The Alexandra Babies’ Home was established in around 1909. It housed up to 36 children aged under five years of age. From 1964, it was known as the Alexandra Toddlers’ Home. It closed in 1973. The Babies’ Home accommodated boys and girls under 5 years of age. The Home had a capacity of 36 children,…

Ballarat Female Refuge

The Ballarat Female Refuge was established in 1867 by a group of protestant women, with the objective of reforming ‘prostitutes’. It became a shelter for single mothers. It was the first such institution on Australia’s goldfields. In 1921, the Refuge became part of the Ballarat Town and City Mission Rescue and Children’s Home. Initially, the…

Ballarat Town and City Mission

The Ballarat Town and City Mission was founded in 1867. The Ballarat Town and City Mission ran a number of Homes for women and children, including, from around 1921 until 1973, the Alexandra Babies’ Home. The organisation was initially known as the Ballarat Town Mission, as well as the Open Air Mission. In 1913, it…