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Jika Reformatory for Boys

In 1873 the Boys’ Reformatory run by the Victorian government moved from the reformatories on board the Sir Harry Smith and the Deborah. The new institution at Coburg was known as the Jika Reformatory for Boys. It was located within the grounds of Pentridge prison. The Royal Commission on Penal and Prison Discipline had stated in…

The Horseshoe

The Horseshoe was a Home in Carlton for women suffering from venereal disease, run by the Mission of St James and St John. In October 1927, women were transferred from The Horseshoe to the Mission’s new institution at Fairfield, known as Fairhaven. On 31 December 1925, a hotel known as The Horseshoe in Lygon Street…

Ramoth

Ramoth was established in Ferntree Gully in 1926. It was a convalescent Home for young women suffering from venereal diseases. In 1927, the Mission of St James and St John took over Ramoth and it became the Ramoth Toddlers’ Home. Women at Ramoth were transferred to Fairhaven in Fairfield. Ramoth was run in close association…

Melbourne City Mission Toddlers’ Home

The Melbourne City Mission Toddlers’ Home was situated on the same site as the Melbourne Mission’s Maternity Home, which had accommodated babies with their mothers since 1900. The Home accommodated children up to the age of five. In 1955, the Mission amalgamated the Toddlers’ Home and the Maternity Home. The new Home was renamed Hartnett…

Gordon Institute

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…

Kardinia Children’s Home

The Kardinia Children’s Home in Belmont (Geelong) was established in 1947 and was run by the Salvation Army. Originally it opened as a toddler’s home and accommodated children aged between two and five with children sent to Salvation Army children’s homes in Melbourne upon reaching school age. Later on it provided for children of all…

Murrumbeena Girls’ Home

The Murrumbeena Girls’ Home was established by the Salvation Army in 1897. It accommodated around 40 girls and young women. The Home closed in 1912, with the remaining girls being sent to the newly opened William Booth Girls’ Home in Camberwell. Murumbeena Girls’ Home was located on the corner of Dandenong Road and Belgrave Road,…

Heidelberg Boys’ Home

The Heidelberg Boys’ Home was established by the Salvation Army in 1893.  It closed in 1895. The Heidelberg Boys’ Home was established by the Salvation Army in 1893. It was situated on a small property in Heidelberg. It was proclaimed a reformatory under the Juvenile Offenders Act 1887 and was for Protestant boys. In January 1893 the…

Jacana Children’s Home

The Jacana Children’s Home was established by the Salvation Army in 1976. By the early 1980s the Jacana complex accommodated a total of 24 children within three residential ‘care’ units. The Home closed in 1995. The Jacana Children’s Home was situated in Sunset Boulevard, Jacana. The Salvation Army had purchased the land in the City…

Convent of the Good Shepherd, Oakleigh

The Convent of the Good Shepherd, Oakleigh, was established in 1883. It was also known as the Private Reformatory for Roman Catholic Girls. The Convent first received girls and women from about 14 years, but in later years it accommodated girls from the age of 11. The Convent of the Good Shepherd was demolished in…