The Colonial Secretary's office in Queensland administered all matters not the responsibility of the Colonial Treasurer or the Attorney-General. The administrative functions of the Colonial Secretary included: Reform Schools, Insanity - asylums, Reception houses for the insane, Hospitals and charitable institutions, Public health, Medical establishments, including quarantine, vaccination, and lunatic asylums. On 6 August 1896, the name of the office was changed from Colonial Secretary to Home Secretary.
1859 - 1896 Colonial Secretary
1896 - 1935 Home Secretary's Office
1935 - 1963 Health and Home Affairs Department
1963 - 2012 Health Department
2012 - Queensland Health
Sources used to compile this entry: Joanne Scott; Ross Laurie; Bronwyn Stevens; Patrick Weller, ''The centre of the government': the Colonial Secretary's Office 1859-1886', in The Engine Room of Government: The Queensland Premier's Department 1859-2001, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, 2001, pp. 11-45.
Prepared by: Lee Butterworth
Created: 3 July 2013, Last modified: 14 April 2014