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Queensland - Organisation

Queensland Lying-In Hospital (1864 - 1867)

  • Lady Bowen Hospital in Brisbane, ca. 1875

    Lady Bowen Hospital in Brisbane, ca. 1875, c. 1875, courtesy of Picture Queensland, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.
    Details

From
2 November 1864
To
November 1867
Categories
Adoption Agency and Maternity Home
Alternative Names
  • The Lady Bowen Hospital (Also known as)
  • The Lady Bowen Lying-In Hospital (Also known as)

The Queensland Lying-In Hospital was established on 2 November 1864 in rented accommodation, "Fairview House", Leichardt Street, Brisbane. A ladies committee ran the hospital. On 26 January 1866, the hospital moved to newly built premises in Ann Street, Brisbane. It was renamed the Lady Bowen Hospital, after the wife of Queensland's first governor, in November 1867. The Queensland Lying-In Hospital provided hospital care for indigent, unmarried and destitute women of Queensland and their babies.

Details

At this time in Queensland the majority of women gave birth at home. Commonly, it was the poor or unmarried who entered hospital to have their babies, although the hospital accommodated paying as well as non-paying patients.
An advertisement appearing in the Brisbane Courier on 15 September 1864 described the facilities at Fairview House:

Hall, Six Large Rooms, Detached Kitchen and Servant's Room, large Tank and Yard.

Location

2 November 1864 - 26 January 1866
Location - The Queensland Lying-In Hospital was situated at Leichhardt Street, Brisbane. Location: Brisbane
26 January 1866 - November 1867
Location - The Queensland Lying-In Hospital was situated at Ann Street, Brisbane. Location: Brisbane

Timeline

 1864 - 1867 Queensland Lying-In Hospital
       1867 - 1938 Lady Bowen Hospital
             1938 - 1967 Brisbane Women's Hospital
                   1967 - Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital

Related Archival Collections

Related Glossary Terms

Publications

Books

  • Patrick, Ross, The Royal Women's Hospital, Brisbane : the first fifty years, Boolarong Publications, Brisbane, 1988, 186 pp. Details

Online Resources

Photos

Lady Bowen Hospital in Brisbane, ca. 1875
Title
Lady Bowen Hospital in Brisbane, ca. 1875
Type
Image
Date
c. 1875
Source
Picture Queensland, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland

Details

City skyline including Lady Bowen Hospital, ca. 1885
Title
City skyline including Lady Bowen Hospital, ca. 1885
Type
Image
Date
c. 1885
Source
Picture Queensland, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland

Details

Sources used to compile this entry: 'Classified Advertising', Courier Mail, 15 September 1864, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1262001; 'Lying-In Hospital', Brisbane Courier, 16 December, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1284069; 'Queensland Lying-In Hospital', Brisbane Courier, 20 November 1866, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1276922; Patrick, Ross, The Royal Women's Hospital, Brisbane : the first fifty years, Boolarong Publications, Brisbane, 1988, 186 pp.

Prepared by: Lee Butterworth