The Insanity Act of 1884 changed the names of the “Lunatic Asylums” at Goodna and Sandy Gallop, near Ipswich, to “Hospitals for the Insane”. It gave the Governor in Council power to appoint and name any suitable premises to be a hospital for the insane and grant a license for a maximum of 3 years. Under the Act the Curator in Insanity was granted the power to administer the estates of insane persons.
Under this Act, an insane person was defined as: ‘a person who for the time being is idiotic or of unsound mind, and incapable of managing himself or his affairs, whether found insane by inquisition or otherwise’.
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