The Public Instruction Department was established on 1 January 1876 under The State Education Act of 1875 to be responsible for the administration of preschool to secondary school education in Queensland. The Department ran the Queensland School for the Deaf from 1893 to 1957. In 1957, with the passing of the State Education Acts and…
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy and Development Department was created on 4 September 1998. The Department amalgamated the Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy and the Community and Personal Histories Section from various Government Departments. The creation of this department reflected a shift in policy at this time away from a…
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy Department was created on 22 February 2001. It was previously known as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy and Development Department. The Department was responsible for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander policy, rights and culture. In 2006, the Department was abolished and its functions transferred to the Communities…
The Community Services and Ethnic Affairs Department was created on 14 December 1987. Previously known as the Community Services Department the main difference in the policy for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders was the change towards a supportive rather than a directive role with programmes and activities established to transfer administrative responsibilities to Aboriginal…
The Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Policy was created on 22 February 1996. It was previously known as the Family Services and Aboriginal and Islander Affairs Division of the Families, Youth and Community Care Department. The aim of this office was to improve the physical, social and economic well-being of Aboriginal and Torres…
The Aboriginal and Islanders Advancement Department was created on 16 January 1975. Previously known as the Aboriginal and Island Affairs Department the main difference was that people now had to apply for a ‘Certificate of Entitlement’ in order to come under the Act. The Department ran the Kowanyama Mission from 1975 to 1984. In 1984,…
The Community Services Department was established on 31 May 1984, when the Community Services (Aborigines) Act 1984 and the Community Services (Torres Strait) Act 1984 were passed. It was previously known as the Aboriginal and Islanders Advancement Department, with the new department the policy was changed to promote equal opportunity in the Queensland Community for…
The Catholic Diocese of Cairns came into being on 8 July 1941. (Previously it was known as the Vicariate Apostolic of Cooktown). The Archives of the Catholic Diocese of Cairns are located at Bishop House.
The Director Of Native Affairs Office was responsible for the welfare of Queensland’s Aboriginal population who were deemed to be State Wards. Replacing the Chief Protector of Aboriginals Office, it was established in 1939 under the Aboriginals Preservation and Protection Act 1939. This Act represented a change in government policy from one of ‘protection and…
The Chief Protector of Aboriginals Office, established in 1904, was responsible for the welfare of Queensland’s Aboriginal population who were deemed to be State Wards. The Chief Protector operated according to a policy of separation and segregation in relation to Aborigines placed under State control. From 1898 to 1904, the protection system in Queensland had…