Queensland State Archives 2414 View of Benevolent Asylum Dunwich North Stradbroke Island 10 June 1937

The Dunwich Benevolent Asylum was a

Benevolent Asylum Benevolent asylums, also known as destitute asylums or infirmaries for the destitute, were institutions established throughout the colonies of Australia in the 19th century to house destitute men; deserted, vagrant or homeless women and their c ...

for the aged, infirm and destitute operated by the

Queensland Government The Queensland Government is the state government of Queensland, Australia, a Parliament, parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Government is formed by the party or coalition that has gained a majority in the Queensland Legislative Assembly, ...

in Australia. It was located at

Dunwich Dunwich () is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. It is in the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape around north-east of London, south of Southwold and north of Leiston, on the North Sea coast. In the Anglo-Saxon ...

North Stradbroke Island North Stradbroke Island (Janday language, Jandai: ''Minjerribah''), colloquially ''Straddie'' or ''North Straddie'', is an island that lies within Moreton Bay in the Australian state of Queensland, southeast of the centre of Brisbane. Original ...

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

and operated from 1865 to 1946.

History

Queensland State Archives 2425 View of Benevolent Asylum Dunwich North Stradbroke Island 10 June 1937

The Dunwich Benevolent Asylum was established under the Benevolent Asylum Wards Act of 1861 to provide accommodation and care to poor people unable to care for themselves due to illness or infirmity. It opened on 13 May 1865 with the transfer of initial patients from the Benevolent Ward of the

Brisbane General Hospital The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) is a tertiary public hospital located in Herston, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is operated by Metro North Health, part of the Queensland Health network. The hospital has 929 be ...

. Over 21,000 people were admitted to the asylum during its operation, with around 1000 to 1600 at any one time. Those who died in the asylum were generally buried in the

Dunwich Cemetery Dunwich Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at Bingle Road, Dunwich, Queensland, Dunwich, North Stradbroke Island in the City of Redland, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1847 to 1952. It is also known as One Mile Cemetery. It was ad ...

unless families made other arrangements. In the 80 years spanning 1867-1947, 8,426 former inmates of the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum were buried in the Dunwich Cemetery. It operated until 30 September 1946, after which the patients were transferred to the newly opened

Eventide Home Eventide, an archaic word for evening, may also refer to: * ''Eventide'' (EP), a 1998 EP by Monique Brumby * ''Eventide'' (''Magic: The Gathering''), a 2008 trading card expansion set * '' Eventide: A Scene in the Westminster Union'', an 1878 pa ...

at Sandgate, a northern suburb of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

. Most of the buildings were subsequently destroyed. However, some buildings remain including the heritage-listed

St Mark's Anglican Church and Dunwich Public Hall St Mark's Anglican Church and Dunwich Public Hall are a heritage-listed church and public hall at Junner Street, Dunwich, North Stradbroke Island in the City of Redland, Queensland, Australia. The church was built in 1907 and the hall as part ...

. The 'Aboriginal Gang' that worked the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum were the first Aboriginal people in Australia to receive equal wages. In 1944, after a 25 year campaign, the Aboriginal workers gained equal wages almost 20 years before anywhere else in Australia. The Asylum closed shortly after with the Aboriginal Gang only getting equal wages for one and a half years.

Geography

The asylum occupied most of the current Dunwich township. There were many buildings with wards for men, women and Asiatics. It had a kitchen, bakery, laundry and other service buildings including a power station from 1926. It had a public hall, recreational facilities and a visitor centre for social activities. A farm with associated outbuildings provided meat and dairy products. A 1913 map shows it occupying the coastal area from

down to the present day jetty and inland to approximately the present day Mitchell Crescent and Barton Street. Swamps are shown beyond the boundaries.

Research holdings

Archival material on Dunwich Benevolent Asylum is held by the

Queensland State Archives The Queensland State Archives is the lead agency for public recordkeeping in Queensland, Australia. It is the custodian of the largest and most significant documentary heritage collection about Queensland. Established in 1959, Queensland Stat ...

and by the

North Stradbroke Island Historical Museum The North Stradbroke Island Museum on Minjerribah is a community museum founded in 1987 to present the history of North Stradbroke Island. It is found at 15-17 Welsby Street, in Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island. The museum comprises four bui ...

Notable inmates

Alexandre Arsène Girault Alexandre Arsène Girault ( ; 9 January 1884 – 2 May 1941) was an American entomologist specializing in the study of chalcid wasps. An eccentric and controversial figure, Girault was also a prolific and dedicated entomologist. He published mor ...

, entomologist

References

External links

1913 map of the asylum
* — a presentation about the men's mess hall (now the Dunwich Public Hall) and its history including photos
Getting Equal: Australia's first successful Aboriginal wages case
John Oxley Library Blog, State Library of Queensland. {{Coord, -27.497, 153.403, type:landmark_region:AU-QLD, display=title Aged care in Australia Dunwich, Queensland 1865 establishments in Australia Buildings and structures in Redland City