Mallee Family Care was established in 1979, one of a number of regional programs established by Melbourne Family Care. These new organisations came into being in a policy environment in which the government was pursuing options for children to be placed in ‘care’ in or near the communities in which their families lived. Having been…
The Sandhurst Industrial School was established in 1868, within the grounds of the Bendigo (or Sandhurst) Benevolent Asylum. The Neglected and Criminal Children’s Act 1864 allowed for the establishment of private industrial schools. There were 3 private industrial schools in Victoria, the other two (in Geelong and Abbotsford) were Catholic institutions. Neglected children had been housed…
The Ballarat Industrial School was a state-run institution, which opened in August 1869. The institution housed 215 girls in 1872. In 1879, the Industrial School closed, and became a reformatory for boys. The Ballarat Industrial School was the only institution in Victoria mentioned in the 1872 report by the Royal Commission on Penal and Prison…
The Nelson was a hulk [ship] anchored off Williamstown, Hobson Bay. From 1868, it housed boys aged ten who had been sentenced under the Neglected and Criminal Children’s Act of 1864. By 1872, the vessel housed 383 boys. It was abandoned in 1876 when the boys were transferred to the Bendigo Benevolent Asylum Industrial School,…
The Brookside Private Reformatory for Protestant Girls was established in 1887 by Mrs Elizabeth Rowe. One of the first privately-run reformatories in Victoria, Brookside was located in the town of Cape Clear, near Scarsdale. It closed in 1903. The Brookside Private Reformatory for Protestant Girls was established on 29 December 1887. In a visit to…
The Sunbury Industrial School was established in 1865. It was located on Jacksons Hill, in Sunbury. On its closure, in around 1880, boys from Sunbury were transferred to the Royal Park Industrial School in Parkville. The Sunbury Industrial School was the first purpose-built institution created by the government in 1865 in response to the Neglected…
The Government Reformatory for Girls in Coburg was established in 1875. The first reformatory for girls in the colony of Victoria was at Sunbury, established in 1865. The new premises in Coburg were “in immediate contiguity” to Pentridge Prison, in what was later known as G Division. The girls’ reformatory operated there from 1875 until…
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 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…
The Adoption and Family Records Service (AFRS) was a program within the Department of Human Services (DHS) for former wards of the state of Victoria and their families. The purpose of the Service was to release state ward files and provide assistance to locate other relevant records and information; give counselling and support and referrals…
Dec 18, 2024
Nov 15, 2024
