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Museums of History NSW (State Archives) holds a large collection of records relating to patients admitted to Gladesville Mental Hospital. Many of the records contain information about patients at Gladesville, and may include information about children and young people who were admitted to the hospital. The records include admission and discharge registers, case files, photographs, daily report books, registers of patients next-of-kin and friends, letters from patients, letters about patients, medical records, post-mortem registers, and administrative records. Access Conditions Access to records in this series is restricted for 110 years in order to protect personal privacy. People mentioned in these records have a right to access information about themselves. Records over 110 years old are open and may be accessed by any member of the public. To request access to restricted records please contact

This Series contains the majority of correspondence received by the New South Wales Colonial Secretary’s Office (also known as the Chief Secretary’s Office) between 1826 and 1982. It includes letters that name children admitted to Industrial Schools, Reformatory Schools, Orphan Schools, Infant’s and Children’s Homes, and mental health hospitals, as well as letters that refer to general operational matters at the institutions. Museums of History have published an online index for this series where the names of people or institutions can be searched: Colonial Secretary Letters Received 1826-1894 Index. Access Conditions This series is open access and may be viewed by any member of the public. To identify items of interest in this series use the online index. To access these records please contact Museums of History.

Callan Park Hospital for the Insane was officially opened in 1878 at Lilyfield, Sydney. It was under the control of the New South Wales State Government office of the Inspector General of the Insane. It was opened to help relieve overcrowding at other mental health hospitals in New South Wales. In 1915 the name of the Hospital was changed to the Callan Park Mental Hospital, then again in 1976 to the Callan Park Hospital, and finally in 1994 to the Rozelle Hospital. Rozelle Hospital closed in 2008. Callan Park Hospital is known to have provided ‘care’ to young people under the age of 18 from at least 1888. The Correspondence Files of the Colonial Secretary includes letters relating to the admission of children as young as 11 years old to Callan Park, some of whom had been transferred from other mental health hospitals, and a few who had been transferred from children’s h

Gladesville Mental Hospital officially opened in 1838 under the name Tarban Creek Lunatic Asylum. It was located in the Sydney suburb of Gladesville, and was run by the office of the Colonial Secretary before the Office of the Inspector General of the Insane was established in 1876 and took over it’s management. It had several different names thorugh it’s operation, changing to Hospital for the Insane, Tarban Creek in 1868, the Hospital for the Insane, Gladesville in 1869, then Gladesville Mental Hospital in 1915, and from the mid 1960s to Gladesville Hospital. It closed in 1993, and its services were merged with Macquarie Hospital to become the Gladesville Macquarie Hospital. Gladesville Mental Hospital is known to have provided ‘care’ to young people under the age of 18 from at least 1872. The Correspondence Files of the Colonial Secretary includes letters relatin

This is a photograph showing buildings surrounding an internal courtyard at Gladesville Mental Hospital. It shows a courtyard with a large jacaranda tree and a stone fountain in the middle, surrounded on three sides by two-storey sandstone buildings. Along the side of each of the buildings is a small sheltered walkway with bench seats placed throughout. This photograph is one of several taken by the Government Printing Office and held by Museums of History NSW that show images of Gladesville Mental Hospital.

Please contact the NSW Ministry of Health Records and Library Services: Postal Address: Locked Bag 2030 St Leonards, NSW, 1590 Phone: (02) 9424 5736 Email: moh-recordsunit@health.nsw.gov.au Website: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/gipaa/Pages/default.aspx 

Please contact Macquarie Hospital Health Information Service: Postal Address: PO Box 169, North Ryde, NSW, 1670 Phone: (02) 8877 4380 Email: NSLHD-MCQ-HIS@health.nsw.gov.au Website: https://www.nslhd.health.nsw.gov.au/AboutUs/Pages/HIS-contacts.aspx

Stonehaven, run by the Sydney City Mission, was located at Park Road, Springwood in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, and was opened in 1929. Initially occupied by girls, it became a boys’ home. From 1942-1945 the children were sent to Cronulla Children’s Home and Stonehaven was occupied by the Defence Forces. In 1951 Stonehaven closed. Boys were sent to Haddon Hall. Stonehaven was, according to the Sydney City Mission, a home for undernourished boys from congested areas of the city. The aim of the home was to build the children up physically and give them moral, religious training. The boys were expected to do household and gardening chores and the discipline was what could be described as harsh. Children attended Springwood Public School and went to the Methodist church every morning and afternoon. Most boys stayed for three months, but some stayed longer. The home had capacity for 21 boys. Blue Mountains historian Shirley Evans advertised in The Sydney Morning Herald

Please contact the Family Records Service, Aboriginal Affairs NSW: Postal Address: PO Box 207, Mascot NSW 1460 Phone: 1800 019 998 Email: familyhistory@aboriginalaffairs.nsw.gov.au Website: https://www.nsw.gov.au/living-nsw/aboriginal-outcomes/healing/family-records-service

Museums of History NSW (State Archives) holds a large collection of records relating to patients admitted to Callan Park Mental Hospital. Many of the records contain information about patients at Callan Park, and may include information about children and young people who were admitted to the hospital. The records include admission and discharge registers, case files, daily report books, letters from patients, letters about patients, medical records, and administrative records. Access Conditions Access to records in this series is restricted for 110 years in order to protect personal privacy. People mentioned in these records have a right to access information about themselves. Records over 110 years old are open and may be accessed by any member of the public. To request access to restricted records please contact Concord Repatriation General Hospital ROI Section, Health Information and Record Services. To access open records please contact Museums of History NSW.  

For records about Callan Park Hospital and Rozelle Hospital, please contact Concord Repatriation General Hospital ROI Section, Health Information and Record Services: Postal address: Building 86, Hospital Rd, CONCORD NSW 2139 Phone: (02) 9767 5451 Email: SLHD-ConcordReleaseofInformation@health.nsw.gov.au Website: https://slhd.health.nsw.gov.au/patients-visitors/right-information

This is a photograph of Callan Park Mental Hospital. It shows the front of a large sandstone building with a front porch supported by columns. The building is part of a complex of several sandstone buildings which are surrounded by gardens, and a driveway leading to the main entrance. This photograph is part of a collection of 94 photographs of Callan Park Mental Hospital taken in 1903 that are held by the State Library of New South Wales. Other images in this collection show further buildings, gardens, staff and patients at the hospital, interior scenes such as hospital wards, craft workshops, recreation rooms, dining rooms, etc.

This is a collection of Oral History recordings created by Roslyn Burge and Ann-Therese King and eight former patients and staff of Rozelle Hospital (formerly known as Callan Park Hospital) who lived or worked at the hospital between 1935 and 2008. The collection includes sixteen interview files, as well as accompanying transcripts and  photographs. Interviewees include Caroline Bray, Audrey Church, Graeme Curry, Monika Da Rocha, Jill Faddy, Paul Gilchrist, Julie Glover, Peter Gray, Dr Neil Jeyasingam, Jess Learing, Dr Jean Lennane, Vickie Melanson, Randall Millington, Gary Rowley, John Snowdon, and June Spiers. At least one interviewee, Paul Grey, was admitted to Callan Park as a teenager. Access Conditions These recordings, transcripts, and photographs are open access and can be accessed by and member of the public. To access these records please contact the State Library of New South Wales.

The Apostolic Church of Australia was established in 1930. It is a form of Pentecostalism that has its roots in the Welsh Revival church of the early 1900s. It originated in Perth, and by 1935 congregations had been established in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and Tasmania. Features of Apostolic Church services include energetic singing, speaking in tongues, healings, prophecies, and performance of miracles. Tithing of financial donations to a central church fund is compulsory for members. The Apostolic Church local districts and areas are governed by preachers known as apostles, who report to the national church headquarters in Melbourne. At some point in the 21st Century the name of the Apostolic Church was changed to Acts Global Church. The Apostolic Church of Australian ran the Aborigines Rescue Mission at Jigalong, Western Australia, from 1946 to 1969.

The Aborigines Rescue Mission, Jigalong was a mission established at Jigalong in central Western Australia by the Apostolic Church in 1946. Dormitories and a school operated at the mission. The mission closed in 1969 and the Australian Government took ownership of the land, returning it to the Martu people in 1974. The Aborigines Rescue Mission initially took over responsibility from the Department of Native Affairs for the supervision of providing rations to the Aboriginal inhabitants of the area. It soon established a school and dormitories for children. Gardens, church, workshops, a nursing post, an airstrip, pastoral station, mission store, a post office and bank agency were also established at the mission during it’s operation. In 1947 there were 47 children living at the mission. In 1954 the mission received funding from the Department of Native Welfare for the building of two cottages and four dormitories to allow for expansion. At that time the population of the missio

The Gordon Institute, Melbourne, was established in 1886. It offered boys classes and a place to socialise. The Institute aimed to find boys work placements in the country, but did accommodate some boys aged 5 to 14. In 1951, new facilities were opened in Highett, and the institution became known as the Gordon Home for Boys. The Gordon Institute was established in 1886, but was founded formally on 17 May 1888. It was located in Bowen Street, Melbourne, ‘not far from the Working Men’s College’. The Institute’s object was ‘to rescue children from criminal ways by attracting them from evil associations and pastimes to the premises’. The Institute was established following the efforts of William Mark Forster (who was also a key figure in the establishment of the Try Society). In 1889, Forster and Charles Deynes Barber were approved under s.62 of the Neglected Children’s Act 1887 ‘as persons to whose care neglected children may be committed’. Barber was the superintendent at the Go

Kingsbury Farm Reformatory was a training farm for Protestant boys that opened in Newstead in April 1893. It was operated on the ‘family system’, run by a married couple, and had capacity for six boys. Boys were sent to Kingsbury from other reformatories in order to learn practical farm skills, such as land clearing, dam-making, planting, tending to and harvesting crops, as well as assisting with house work. The boys also received school lessons five nights a week. Once boys were deemed to be sufficiently skilled and ‘reformed’ they were sent out to work on privately-owned farms. Boys placed at Kingsbury typically spent six months there before being sent out to service. Kingsbury Farm Reformatory closed on 1st July 1912. Kingsbury was a farm that was originally intended to be a winery, but became an orchard (Leader, 10 November 1906). It received its first “lad” in April 1893. The department’s annual report stated that Mr Brebner, the superintendent, preferred to begin in thi

Straight View Farm Reformatory School was established in Harcourt, Victoria in 1895. It accommodated Roman Catholic boys from the ages of 11 to 17. It closed in 1919. The Straight View Farm Reformatory School was a private reformatory established to accommodate Roman Catholic boys at Harcourt. The School was privately run by Mr McMahon (the Superintendent), but was deemed to be an approved Reformatory School by the Department of Reformatory Schools under the Juvenile Offenders Act of 1887. The Department sent state wards to the school, and provided financial support for each boy sent there. The Superintendent provided annual reports to the Department, and the school was periodically inspected by government inspectors. The housing of the boys at this small cottage farm school, where there was an attempt to replicate the conditions of home life, ‘amid country surroundings and occupations and a

Major events and legislation in the history of child welfare in Australia

The Victorian Premier, Jacinta Allen, delivered the State Apology to the First Peoples of Victoria on 9 December 2025. The Apology was shaped by the findings of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, and was part of the Treaty negotiated and signed in November 2025.

Mount Paradise Reformatory for Boys at Pakenham opened in 1896 to accommodate approximately five Roman Catholic boys. It was a private reformatory, established by Mr James Joseph Millane and run by him, his mother, and his siblings. It experienced problems with those who attempted to abscond and by 1911 no boys were accommodated there. Mount Paradise Reformatory was deemed to be an approved Reformatory School by the Department for Reformatory Schools under the Juvenile Offenders Act of 1887. The Department sent state wards to the school, and provided financial support for each boy sent there. The Superintendent, James Millane, provided annual reports to the Department, and the school was periodically inspected by government inspectors. Boys at Mount Paradise performed farm work at the reformatory, including ploughing fields, fencing, cutting hay, growing and harvesting fruit and vegetables,

We understand that people are concerned about their privacy, and we abide by the 13 Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) of the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act). For details of these Principles, see the Australian Privacy Principles on the Australian Government’s Office of the Australian Information Commissioner website. The Find & Connect program includes the Find & Connect support services and the Find & Connect web team. Our contact forms require you to enter your name and email address so that the Find & Connect program can respond to your enquiry. When you submit a contact form, your name, email address and message will be directed to the Find & Connect support service in the state where you live now. The Find & Connect web team will also retain

The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Generations survivors or Stolen Children) are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed or separated from their families and communities by governments, churches and welfare bodies using official laws, practices and policies that legitimised compulsion, duress or undue influence. Each of the terms ‘compulsion’, ‘duress’ and ‘undue influence’ are defined in the opening sections of the Bringing Them Home report. The period in which these laws applied spanned from the mid-1800s to the 1980s, with variations by jurisdiction. Children were placed in institutions, missions, training farms and schools, foster care or adopted; separated from their culture, family, land and identity and many suffered abuse and neglect. Not all people forcibly removed during this period will choose to identify as ‘Stolen Generations’ … Stolen Gene

On 17 September 1997, Premier Kennett issued an apology in the Legislative Assembly to the Aboriginal people for the past policies leading to the removal of Aboriginal children from their families and communities. The apology began with the words: That this house apologises to the Aboriginal people on behalf of all Victorians for the past policies under which Aboriginal children were removed from their families and expresses deep regret at the hurt and distress this has caused and reaffirms its support for reconciliation between all Australians.

The Bukawert Reformatory School opened in 1894 near Toora, in the county of Buln Buln, South Gippsland. It was gazetted as a ‘reformatory school for Protestant boys’ in 1894, and was located on the premises of Henry Beresford Sadleir, who was appointed as the Superintendent. It closed in 1899. The Bukawert Reformatory School was a private reformatory, which attempted to extend to the boys who were sent there the advantages of the boarding out system. The policy intended to ‘strengthen the hand’ of the superintendent by placing as few children as possible in each school, thus enabling him to take an interest in each boy in order to exert a reforming influence. The School was privately run by Sadlier, but was deemed to be an approved Reformatory School by the Department of Reformatory Schools under the Juvenile Offenders Act of 1887. The Department sent state wards to the school, and provided fin

Wanslea Family Services Records is an archival collection of records dated between 1940 to 2004. It includes records about the Wanslea Hostel, Cottesloe and the Wanslea ‘Community Care Program’ (‘foster care program’). In 2026, the organisation known as Wansley Family services became known as Uplyft. Uplyft has paper files, microfilm, photographs and digital files that include admission records, case notes, letters, and annual reports. Access Conditions This collection classified as ‘Closed’ by Uplyft because these records may contain personal or private information.. This means only some people, such as people who experienced ‘care’ through Wanslea Family Services, can access these records. The series titled Wanslea History is open and can be viewed by members of the public. If you want to access these records you need to contact Uplyft. Records Index cards – List children by name, alphabetical by surname/family name (1979 – 1997) Index

Wanslea Family Services was established as the Wanslea Hostel Committee in 1946 and incorporated as Wanslea Family Services Inc in 1948. It ran the Wanslea Children’s Home in Cottesloe and in 2013 offered foster care and other family support services. In 2026, it became known as Uplyft Family Services.

Please contact the Executive Manager, Out of Home Care, Uplyft: Postal Address: Box 1047, Bentley WA 6983 Phone: (08) 9245 2441 Website: https://www.uplyft.org.au/contact

Records of the Anglican Church’s Poonindie Mission (based around St Matthew’s Church), comprising financial records, records relating to wool sales, monthly pay sheets, reports from the medical officer and school master, annual reports and balance sheets, quarterly native residents’ returns, correspondence and printed reports. Access Conditions For access to many Anglican records held at the State Library of South Australia, you will need permission from Anglicare SA. This is called ‘mediated access’. Records which require mediated access are clearly identified in the State Library catalogue and/or findings aids and State Library staff will also be able to advise you if this is necessary. Mediated access is required when records contain personal information about individuals whose privacy needs to be protected. For access to Anglican records a written application to Anglicare SA is required. You will also need to provide proof of your identity. If you are requesting ac

Please contact the Archives Department, Sisters of Nazareth: Postal Address: Archives Department, Nazareth House, PO Box 6900, Middle Camberwell VIC 3124 Phone:  0439 464 927 Email: archives.aus@nazarethcare.com

Nazareth House Records are held by the Sisters of Nazareth. The collection contains admission information about former residents of: Nazareth House, Ballarat St Joseph’s Home/Nazareth House, Sebastopol Nazareth House, Wynnum Nazareth House, Camberwell Nazareth House, Geraldton Access Conditions Conditional Access – Former residents and their families seeking information in the records can contact the Archives Department at Nazareth House in Camberwell, Victoria. Records The Sisters of Nazareth Archives hold the following records for each of the Nazareth Houses that existed around Australia: Child Resident Register containing Name / Date of Birth / Baptism details / Parents Names / Recommended By / Date Entered / Date Departed & Comments Some extra records may exist depending on the House and the date range. For example, for Nazareth House, Wynnum, there is an Obs

On 21 March 2013, the Prime Minister Julia Gillard apologised on behalf of the Australian Government to people affected by forced adoption or removal policies and practices. The national apology was delivered in the Great Hall of Parliament House, Canberra.

The Sisters of Nazareth, a Catholic religious order of women, were founded in London in 1851 by Mother St Basil (Victoire Larmenier 1827-1878). The Sisters of Nazareth began work in Australia in 1888. They were part of the Catholic Migration Scheme which brought children to Australia from Britain and Malta after World War II. The Sisters of Nazareth ran children’s homes in Western Australia, Queensland, and Victoria.

St Joseph’s Home, Sebastopol, was established in around 1911. It accommodated boys aged between 6 and 16, and some girls until the age of 6 when they were transferred to Nazareth House, Ballarat. Residential childcare ceased at St Joseph’s in 1980. The site of St Joseph’s Home was on Grant Street, Sebastapol (in the Ballarat district). It was formerly known as Leckie Mansion, and Blythewood Grange. The foundation stone for the St Joseph’s Home was laid in 1911. Dr Higgins, Catholic Bishop of Ballarat, opened the home in February 1913. St Joseph’s Home was for boys and girls up to six years of age. When girls turned six, they were transferred to Nazareth House in Ballarat. Boys could remain at St Joseph’s until they were 16. From 1961 to 1975, the institution was known as Nazareth Boys’ House. It reverted back to the name St Joseph’s Home in 1975. In the words of Gabrielle Short: St Joseph’s baby’s home was run by the Poor Sisters of Nazareth also known as th

Nazareth House, Wynnum, was operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of Nazareth. It accommodated the aged, orphans and children from various backgrounds. Nazareth House opened in 1926 and ceased taking children in 1982. Nazareth House, situated at 272 Wynnum North Road, Wynnum, was operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of Nazareth. It opened in 1926 and was licensed under the lnfant Life Protection Act 1905 on 10 February 1927. It was later licensed under the State Children Act 1911 on 10 July 1964 and the Children’s Services Act 1965 on 4 August 1966. It closed 28 November 1982. Nazareth House was designed by the architectual firm Hennesssy, Hennessy, Kessing & Co. The foundation stone was laid by Archbishop Duhig on 13 April 1924. It was located at Wynnum, on the outskirts of Brisbane. A departmental child care officer in 1974 described the building: The design of the building itself is along the lines of a monastery, with cloiste

The Female Home, or Poor House, began in 1851, and was then named the ‘Servants’ Home’. From 1854, destitute or orphaned children under 10 years of age were admitted. It was established by the Ladies’ Friendly Society, but by the mid 1850’s was run under the supervision of the Governor via officers of the Colonial Secretary’s Office. From 1902, children were instead admitted to the Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot. The Female Home (Women’s Home) in Perth closed in November 1909 and moved to Fremantle. The Female Home, or Poor House, began in 1851 as a Servants’ Home’, a temporary Home for female servants who had left one position and were searching for another, run by the Ladies’ Friendly Society. Mrs Fitzgerald, the wife of the Governor, stimulated interest in the venture. Later in 1851 the Governor, widening its function to include a reception home for ‘immigrant’ servants awaiting work in the colony, used public funds to pay for a matron and staff, and purchase a