Blind, Deaf and Dumb Institution Records held by Royal Guide Dogs Tasmania

The Blind, Deaf and Dumb Institution Records held by Royal Guide Dogs Tasmania result from the Institution’s work with adults and children who had sight disabilities. The records relate to the school and workshops run by the Institution.

Access Conditions

Care leavers and their families should contact Royal Guide Dogs Tasmania for access to the records. All enquiries to access records are subject to privacy legislation and people will be required to provide personal identification. There maybe a delay in the retrieval of records.

Records

The records that concern children are:

Tasmanian Blind, Deaf and Dumb School Pupils’ Register 1901-1940 – arranged in chronological order. The Register includes the name of the child, sex, date of birth, date of admission, place of birth, ‘where received from’, ‘affliction’, ‘from what cause afflicted’, religion, name of father or guardian, home address, date of leaving, and fees. A column for remarks contains information such as where the child went after leaving the school as well as whether the child was a private pupil, a boarder, ward of state, or had a sibling at the school.

Visitors’ Book (1961-1979 – includes the name of the visitor, the date and where he or she came from.

Scrapbook of newspaper clippings (13 July 1889-9 February 1974)

Minute Book of meetings (19 April 1887-1903)

Workers Register (23 February 1897-1937) – some of the workers were children who had reached school leaving age.

Photo of the President or Superintendent of the Society with Sir James O’Grady and Miss Margaret O’Grady

Photo of the ‘Deaf and dumb football team v Combined State Scholars won by the Deaf & Dumb School’. This photo is torn in half.

Constitution of the Tasmanian Society for the Blind, Deaf and Dumb Institution, North Hobart, 1907

Collection box for the Tasmanian Institute for the Blind and Deaf