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The Kalyra Sanatorium opened in 1894 as a Home for people suffering from tuberculosis. It was situated on Gloucester Avenue in Belair. The building of the Sanatorium was funded by the James Brown Memorial Trust. The Trust was a sum of money bequeathed in 1892 by James Brown's wife, Jessie, to be used for benevolent purposes in his memory. The legacy was used to establish both Kalyra Sanatorium and Estcourt House in the same year.
The first patients were admitted to Kalyra in March 1895. The initial building accommodated 28 patients in a number of wards. A new wing was added in 1902 in a separate building which had 12 private rooms for patients. A 1902 newspaper article described accommodation in the new wing as follows:
'The new rooms run westerly from the dining-room, to which they are attached, and on the northern side they are protected by a wide verandah, onto which the patients' bed rooms open. On the southern side the rooms all open into a corridor, which runs from end to end of the building. A first-class lavatory, provided with hot and cold water, and the latest conveniences, is fitted up. There are also a matron's room and a nurses' room, and the latter will also serve as a new reception-room. In the original buildings the patients were kept in the wards, but in the new wing each will have a room to himself, and each room has been provided with a fireplace. All the rooms have been splendidly ventilated, and all the angles have been rounded, so that there is no lodgment place for dust, dirt, or germs of any kind.'
Both adults and a smaller number of children suffering from tuberculosis were placed at Kalyra together. Patients often remained at the institution for many years. A former resident of Kalyra explained that in 1939 she and her two sisters were placed at the Magill Children's Homes. In the early 1940s, when she was found to be suffering from tuberculosis, she was separated from her sisters and moved to Kalyra. She remained there for 11 years and was one of only three children living at the sanatorium at that time. She explained that she was lucky if she saw her sisters once a year.
In its later years the sanatorium became known as Kalyra Hospital. Kalyra closed in 1988 and, after refurbishment, re-opened as an aged care facility in 1989. The site continues to operate and now includes a retirement village.
