Two letters relating to mental health. .1) Dr E. Cunningham Dux of the Mental Hygiene Authority writes to L. Garner, Principal of the Ballarat Junior Technical School, regarding the inaugural Mental Health Week. .2) Dr Brenda Riley of the Ballarat Mental Hospital writes to L. Garner, Principal of the Ballarat Junior Technical School, regarding brief talks about the Ballarat Mental Hospital and its ancillary services. .4) Typed letter on Department of Mental Hygiene (Ballarat Mental Hospital) Letterhead.signed 'E. Cunningham Dax'mental health, ballarat mental hospital, mental health week, l. garner, brenda riley, e. cunningham dax, mental health research institute, mental hygiene, department of mental hygiene, l.c. garner, brenda ridley

The new Kew Lunatic Asylum was completed in 1871 and opened in 1872. The year 1972 marked it's centenary. Over the years, members of staff at the asylum collected records, photographs, publications and plans of the asylum, later hospital. The Society has a number of important collections relating to the asylum and the Children's Cottages. These include the Dr Cliff Judge, the Irena Higgins and the Dr Fred Stamp Collections. This Numerical Register was one of a number of items donated by the family of the late Dr. Fred Stamp who was the last medical superintendent of the Hospital. Dr Frederick Stamp graduated from Bristol Medical School (UK) in 1968. He and his family emigrated to Australia in 1977 to Goulburn (NSW), moving to Melbourne in 1980. He became Superintendent at Willsmere in 1981 until its closure in 1988.Following their closure, the medical records of the Kew Mental Hospital and the Children's Cottages Kew were relocated to the archives of Victorian Government departments and ultimately to the Public Records Office of Victoria. Other collections, such as the Fred Stamp Collection, were assembled by staff who worked at the hospital. The years leading up to the closure of Kew must have been fraught, and many of the items in the hospital were probably destined for hard waste disposal. Dr. Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent, kept aside or rescued a number of these items, of which this is one. Following his death, his family donated these to the Kew Historical Society. The Society recognises these items to be of lasting historical significance, essentially due to their provenance and to their rarity. Together they (and the Judge and Higgins Collections) are an invaluable aid for researchers of the institutions' histories.Printed Staff Handbook for use at the Kew [Willsmere] Mental Hospital. The image on the cover is dated [19]79, so the handbook post-dates that year.STAFF HANDBOOK / WILLSMERE HOSPITAL / KEWkew lunatic asylum, kew mental hospital, willsmere, kew hospital for the insane, dr fred stamp, the fred stamp collection

ContextualA good example of patient art/craftwork 32 Chess Set Pieces (16 Gold, 16 Silver) Moulded in Plaster of Paris (from rubber moulds) Some pieces with green felt on basepatient art, chess, games, recreation, therapy

Photo is part of the Department of Health, Building & Services Division, Facilities Development - Hospitals - Photographic Inventory

An Article in The Herald (18 Feb 1931) records that: "FAIRVIEW OFFICIALS - AT the annual meeting of the Associates of the Fairview Golf Club the following office bearers were elected: President, Miss A, Simcocks; secretary, Miss B. Williamson; captain, Miss A. Shiells; committee, Misses Tresise, Walters, Brown and McLachlan. The captain reported that the shield presented by Mr and Mrs Bourne for competition among the clubs associated with the metropolitan mental hospitals had been won by Fairview associates, who will hold it for one year."The trophy has historical significance as an item associated with the Melbourne Mental Hospital in the 1930s and also of social significance in that it relates to recreational pursuits undertaken by staff of the Hospital.Wood and silver plate shield won by the ladies team of Fairview Golf Club in the years 1930, 1931 and 1932. The Golf Club was established in 1928, and was owned and managed as part of the Kew Mental Hospital. The 9-hole golf course was located next to the Chandler Highway and is currently the site of the headquarters of Guide Dogs Victoria. The trophy formed part of the personal collection of Dr Fred Stamp, which was donated to the Kew Historical Society following his death in 2018 by his family.Inscriptions on silver plate plaques - Top "Mental Hospitals", Bottom: "Ladies Golf Competition"; Bottom left: "Fairview Golf Club 1930", "Fairview Golf Club 1931" and Fairview Golf Club 1932".fairview golf club, golf - womens competitions - victoria, trophies - golf

Herbert Joseph Chambers was born in 1912 in Clifton Hill, Victoria. Later he was to live in Clark and Charles Streets in Northcote, in South Caulfield, and finally in Mentone. While he may have worked at the Kew Asylum before 1945, that year was when he was presented with a Certificate issued by the Department of Mental Hygiene (Victoria) declaring that he had completed training and passed the examinations required to work as a 'Mental Attendant’. The document is dated 19th December 1945 and signed by the Director of the Department and by the Co-Examiners. From at least 1945, he was to work as a member of the male staff of the Asylum, mainly in the Refractory Ward. A donor gifted to the Kew Historical Society in February 2019 a number of items collected by Herbert Chambers in his work at the Asylum. These include his Certificate of Registration, a photograph taken of him with two colleagues at Circular Quay in Sydney, a notebook containing ‘SP’ betting records of male asylum staff, and five sketchbooks with artwork created by Kenn’th [sic] Bailey, a patient of the Asylum. Herbert Chambers’ period of employment at the Kew Asylum coincided with the employment of the English psychiatrist Dr Eric Cunningham Dax (1908-2008) as Chairman of the Mental Hygiene Authority in 1952. Dr Dax introduced an art therapy program into Victorian psychiatric hospitals, including Kew, where it is likely that the five sketchbooks were created. The sketchbooks are believed to have been presented to Chambers by Bailey as a “gift for looking after him”. Herbert Chambers retired from the Kew Asylum in c.1970 after working there for almost thirty years.Small copy of an original photograph of Herbert Joseph Chambers, a member of the male staff of the Kew Mental Hospital, standing between two unidentified men at Circular Quay, Sydney. The donor believes his father, Herbery Chambers, was in Sydney attending a conference in 1962."Nursing Conference Sydney 1962 / Unknown | Herbert Chambers | Unknown"herbert joseph chambers, kew mental hospital

29 August 1977 was 100 years since the first patient was admitted to the Ballarat Reformatory. It was later known by a number of names such as the Ballarat Asylum, Ballarat Lunatic Asylum, Ballarat Mental Hospital, and Lakeside.Pink folded sheet of paper with typed details regarding the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Lakeside Hospital.Inside the booklet is typed:- This building erected in 1868 as a Reformatory was the Ballarat Asylum under the superintendence of Albert Baldwin, Head Warder fro 1877 until December 1879 (when it reverted to its original use until 1893) This plaque was unveiled by the Mental Health authority on 29th August 1977 the one hundreth anniversary of the admission of the first patients.lakeside, lunatic, mental, reformatory, hospital, asylum, centenary, anniversary, baldwin, alec baldwin, haughton, kinnersly, knowles, jack evans, warren white, woods, ballarat asylum, ballarat lunatic asylum, ballarat mental hospital

Mayday Hills Mental Hospital was originally constructed in 1864 under the name of the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum. It was built for locals in need of help who were kept in the local gaol. In its first decade, the residents of the hospital were used as menial labourers but over time, as mental healthcare progressed, were cared for in more nuanced ways. This site became a training hospital for nurses in the 1960's. Eventually, mental health patients were moved to other care facilities and Mayday Hills was operating as a geriatric care facility. It was closed in 1995, after which the buildings and their grounds were purchased to La Trobe University to be used as a campus. The university sold the site in 2011 to private ownership. This postcard depicts the Mayday Hills Mental Hospital (Titled as 'Asylum for insane') from a distance and includes the surrounding grounds and farmlands.Mayday Hills Mental Hospital is a historically significant site for many factors. It is representative of healthcare practice in nineteenth century Victoria. It contains rare examples of construction and architecture. It is also significant for aesthetic and technical reasons.Sepia tone postcard printed on matte cardObverse: Beautiful Beechworth (Vic.) 1880 ft. above Sea Level - General View of Asylum for Insane/ Copyright F. Foxcroft Reverse: 1997.2459/ Post Card/ THIS SPACE MAY BE USED FOR CORRESPONDENCE/ THIS SPACE FOR NAME AND ADDRESSmayday, mayday hills hospital, mayday hills, mayday hills mental asylum, mayday hills mental hospital, beechworth, beechworth asylum, beechworth hospital for the insane, beechworth lunatic asylum, beechworth mental hospital, healthcare, health, rural australia, farm, architecture, historic victorian architecture, classical architecture

The Rose Stereograph Company first began producing postcards, identified as the 'P' series (like this particular example) in 1913 and continued in this business until 1967 after which they switched to machine manufactured colour postcards printed by an external company. These were produced by Victorian-era photographer George Rose (1861-1942) often reputed as one of the best photographers in Australia during the later 19th Century and early 20th Century. Rose was born in 1861 in Clunes and began his photography business in 1880 when he founded the Rose Stereograph Company. He later switched to producing postcards after stereographs lost popularity in the early 1920s. The Mayday Hills Hospital was one of these locations photographed by George Rose and published as a postcard. Beechworth's Mayday Hills was chosen as the site of Victoria's newest asylum, at the time, due to the landscape and altitude. The hilltop atmosphere and the native fauna, it was argued, would assist in the cure of the patients kept at the hospital (Wood 1985, 122). The positioning of the hospital had a beneficial effect on the rural town. A pamphlet published by James Ingram and Son (1849) reveal that famous landmarks in Beechworth which included the Post Office, Gaol, Courthouse and Asylum "demonstrate the appreciation of Beechworth by the Government not only as as important district center, but also as a site unrivaled as a sanitarium". There were other locations in contention at the time, but ultimately Beechworth was chosen (Craig 2000,33). Prior to the creation of the Asylum in Beechworth, those charged with having mental illnesses or, as it was termed, "insanity" were unable to be properly cared for in the Gaol (which is where they were often sent). John Buckley Castieau wrote, in 1861 for the Ovens and Murray Advertiser, that the Gaol was unable to properly care for those classified then as "insane" but that they would endeavor to treat them above the other inmates (which he notes is not always the case in other establishments). Castieau wrote this in favour of supporting the building of the Mayday Hills Hospital in Beechworth. It was stated that at the time the Mayday Hills Hospital was built, there were 83 prisoners kept in the Gaol who were to be rehoused to the Hospital on the grounds of "insanity". The classification as someone as "insane", in this period of time is a reflection on the inability to cure and understand illnesses of the mind during the mid to late 1800s. Opening on the 24th of October 1867, the Mayday Hills Hospital was originally named the "Ovens Lunatic Asylum", a title which is very much a product of its time. Whilst controversial, changes to the name is part of the history of the Hospital and can provide much insight into the understanding of mental illness throughout history and the use/disuse of this term provides information into the reception/changing opinions of mental illness in society. The Hospital would later become known as the "Mayday Hills Asylum" and/or "Mayday Hills Hospital" with the latter being the most commonly used title. An article in the Ovens and Murray Advertiser notes that on the 7th of March 1865, the foundation stone of the Hospital was laid (it would officially open in 1867) and that it was such a moment of accomplishment and joy for Beechworth that a letter to the editor even suggested that there should be a holiday dedicated to the day the foundation stone as laid. This reveals an extent to which the townspeople of early Beechworth valued the construction of the Hospital in their town. It provided the town with a sense of prestige and honour. At first glance, the remains of the Mayday Hills Hospital in Beechworth, Victoria, inspire tragedy, trauma and beauty. The buildings themselves, with their Italianate style Renaissance architecture designed by J.J. Clark (Craig 2000, 49 & Smith 2016, 203) reflect a bygone period of European and Australian history. The gardens provide a sense of tranquility and beauty. The experience of those within these walls remains a valuable area of study to provide a more complete understanding. This particular hospital is considered the fourth of its like and one of three identified as the largest of their kind. The Mayday Hills Hospital is a sister to the Kew and Ararat Asylums in Melbourne which are both located in relative proximity. Understanding the role of the Mayday Hills Hospital in Beechworth history is integral to understanding the development of the goldfields town, but also for providing important information as to the history of caring for, and the reception of, mental illnesses in Australian and wider European history. Mayday Hills provides a case study which can be researched through oral history, an analysis of the grounds/buildings and through images like this postcard which portray the structure in a highly deliberate manner. Images like this depict the strong façade of the Hospital and provide a glimpse into the tranquility of the gardens. This has been done deliberately to provide a sense of comfort and healing about the building to those looking from the outside. Further research into the importance of the Hospital in Beechworth and it's connection to the town will be supported through images like these kept in the Mayday Hills photo album in the collection of the Burke Museum.Pale sepia toned rectangular postcard printed on matte card.Obverse: THE ROSE SERIES P. 4689 / COPYRIGHT / ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES, MENTAL HOSPITAL, BEECHWORTH, VIC / Reverse: Published by the Rose Stereograph Co. / Armadale, Victoria / POST CARD / THE "ROSE" SERIES / DE LUXE / A REAL PHOTOGRAPH / PRODUCED IN AUSTRALIA /mayday hills, asylum, mental hospital, hospital, beechworth

The Kew Lunatic Asylum was completed in 1871 and opened in 1872. The year 1972 marked its centenary. Over the years, members of staff at the asylum collected records, photographs, publications and plans of the asylum, later hospital. The Society has a number of important collections relating to the asylum and the Children's Cottages. These include the Dr Cliff Judge, the Irena Higgins and the Dr Fred Stamp Collections. This portrait photograph is one of a number of items donated by the family of the late Dr. Fred Stamp who was the last medical superintendent. Dr Frederick Stamp graduated from Bristol Medical School (UK) in 1968. He and his family emigrated to Australia in 1977 to Goulburn (NSW), moving to Melbourne in 1980. He became Superintendent in 1981 until the Hospital's closure in 1988. Since the donation was made, this item has been declared a Permanent Government Record, and has been transferred to the Public Record Office Victoria in 2020.Following their closure, the medical records of the Kew Mental Hospital and the Children's Cottages Kew were relocated to the archives of the relevant Victorian Government Department and also to the Public Records Office of Victoria. Other collections, such as the Fred Stamp Collection, were assembled by staff who worked at the hospital. The years leading up to the closure of Kew must have been fraught, and many of the items in the hospital were probably destined for hard waste disposal. Dr. Fred Stamp, the medical superintendent, kept aside or rescued a number of these items, of which this is one. Following his death, his family donated these to the Kew Historical Society. The Society recognises these items to be of lasting historical significance, essentially due to their provenance and to their rarity. Together they (and the Judge and Higgins Collections) are an invaluable aid for researchers of the treatment of psychiatric illnesses in Victoria.Dr. Thomas Thomson Dick, Medical Superintendent, Kew Lunatic Asylum 1877-1883. One of a series of portraits of former medical superintendents, sourced and created for exhibition purposes at the Kew Mental Hospital during the centenary celebrations of 1972. Each portrait is framed with a white mount on which the name of the superintendent and his term of office is recorded.Dr. Thomas Thomson Dick, 1877-1883kew lunatic asylum, kew mental hospital, willsmere, kew hospital for the insane, dr fred stamp, the fred stamp collection, dr. thomas thomson dick

The book was preserved in the personal collection of Dr Fred Stamp. After his death in 2018, it was presented in October 2018 to the Kew HistoricaL Society by his family. This item is part of the Kew Historical Society's collection relating to the Kew Mental Hospital and its historyLeather bound and embossed 'Visitors Book" commemorating the centenary of the Kew [Mental] Hospital, inscribed on the first pages with the signatures of the Governor of Victoria, Sir Rohan and Lady Delacombe, and dated 1 October 1972. The book was used, ten years later, to record the Official Opening of the Visitors Room on 2nd September 1982, and includes 19 signatures from that occasion. kew mental hospital - centenary 1872-1982, sir rohan delacombe, dr fred stamp

Mayday Hills Mental Hospital was originally constructed in 1864 under the name of the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum. It was built for locals in need of help who were kept in the local gaol. In its first decade, the residents of the hospital were used as menial labourers but over time, as mental healthcare progressed, were cared for in more nuanced ways. This site became a training hospital for nurses in the 1960's. Eventually, mental health patients were moved to other care facilities and Mayday Hills was operating as a geriatric care facility. It was closed in 1995, after which the buildings and their grounds were purchased to La Trobe University to be used as a campus. The university sold the site in 2011 to private ownership. This image depicts the front facade of the building and a portion of the gardens, including a fountain. Mayday Hills Mental Hospital is a historically significant site for many factors. It is representative of healthcare practice in nineteenth century Victoria. It contains rare examples of construction and architecture. It is also significant for aesthetic and technical reasons.Black and white photograph printed on matte photographic paperReverse: Mental Hospital/ Beechworth Lunatic Asylum/ Xmas 1930/ 8190 VELOX (Watermark)mayday, mayday hills hospital, mayday hills, mayday hills mental asylum, beechworth, beechworth asylum, beechworth lunatic asylum, beechworth hospital for the insane, garden, gardens & parks, architecture, historic victorian architecture, healthcare, health, fountain, la trobe university

Mayday Hills Mental Hospital was originally constructed in 1864 under the name of the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum. It was built for locals in need of help who were kept in the local gaol. In its first decade, the residents of the hospital were used as menial labourers but over time, as mental healthcare progressed, were cared for in more nuanced ways. This site became a training hospital for nurses in the 1960's. Eventually, mental health patients were moved to other care facilities and Mayday Hills was operating as a geriatric care facility. It was closed in 1995, after which the buildings and their grounds were purchased to La Trobe University to be used as a campus. The university sold the site in 2011 to private ownership. The image depicts an interior room which is presumed to be a dining or common room. This space has been decorated for Christmas.Mayday Hills Mental Hospital is a historically significant site for many factors. It is representative of healthcare practice in nineteenth century Victoria. It contains rare examples of construction and architecture. It is also significant for aesthetic and technical reasons. Black and white rectangular photograph printed on photographic paperObverse: PRINTED BY/ L.MAHER/ BEECHWORTH/ 1997.2702mayday, mayday hills hospital, mayday hills, mayday hills mental asylum, beechworth lunatic asylum, lunatic asylum, beechworth, gaol, beechworth hospital for the insane, beechworth mental hospital, mental hospital, hospital, nurse, nurses quarters, la trobe university, training facility, christmas, christmas party

This photograph is part of a series taken at the Willsmere (Kew) Mental Hospital. The photographs were gifted to the Kew Historical Society in 2018 by Rosemary Barnes. The photos had been in the possession of her former husband, Dr Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent of the hospital. In 2019, the photographs were transferred to the State Archives as Permanent Government Records, as the Society is only entitled as a Class-B Place of Deposit to hold Temporary Government Records. The Society was permitted to keep and publish a digital copy of each photograph. Many of the photographs include information on the reverse about individuals or locations. Where this is the case, these have been published here as images that can be viewed in the picture carousel. Permission for third parties to reproduce this record must be granted by the Public Record Office Victoria.One of a series of photographs of interior workplaces and the grounds of the Willsmere Unit taken in the 1980s. willsmere mental hospital, willsmere unit, kew mental hospital, kew lunatic asylum, willsmere hospital

This photograph is part of a series taken at the Willsmere (Kew) Mental Hospital. The photographs were gifted to the Kew Historical Society in 2018 by Rosemary Barnes. The photos had been in the possession of her former husband, Dr Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent of the hospital. In 2019, the photographs were transferred to the State Archives as Permanent Government Records, as the Society is only entitled as a Class-B Place of Deposit to hold Temporary Government Records. The Society was permitted to keep and publish a digital copy of each photograph. Many of the photographs include information on the reverse about individuals or locations. Where this is the case, these have been published here as images that can be viewed in the picture carousel. Permission for third parties to reproduce this record must be granted by the Public Record Office Victoria.One of a series of photographs of interior workplaces and the grounds of the Willsmere Unit taken in the 1980s. willsmere mental hospital, willsmere unit, kew mental hospital, kew lunatic asylum, willsmere hospital

This photograph is part of a series taken at the Willsmere (Kew) Mental Hospital. The photographs were gifted to the Kew Historical Society in 2018 by Rosemary Barnes. The photos had been in the possession of her former husband, Dr Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent of the hospital. In 2019, the photographs were transferred to the State Archives as Permanent Government Records, as the Society is only entitled as a Class-B Place of Deposit to hold Temporary Government Records. The Society was permitted to keep and publish a digital copy of each photograph. Many of the photographs include information on the reverse about individuals or locations. Where this is the case, these have been published here as images that can be viewed in the picture carousel. Permission for third parties to reproduce this record must be granted by the Public Record Office Victoria.One of a series of photographs of interior workplaces and the grounds of the Willsmere Unit taken in the 1980s. willsmere mental hospital, willsmere unit, kew mental hospital, kew lunatic asylum, willsmere hospital

This photograph is part of a series taken at the Willsmere (Kew) Mental Hospital. The photographs were gifted to the Kew Historical Society in 2018 by Rosemary Barnes. The photos had been in the possession of her former husband, Dr Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent of the hospital. In 2019, the photographs were transferred to the State Archives as Permanent Government Records, as the Society is only entitled as a Class-B Place of Deposit to hold Temporary Government Records. The Society was permitted to keep and publish a digital copy of each photograph. Many of the photographs include information on the reverse about individuals or locations. Where this is the case, these have been published here as images that can be viewed in the picture carousel. Permission for third parties to reproduce this record must be granted by the Public Record Office Victoria.One of a series of photographs of interior workplaces and the grounds of the Willsmere Unit taken in the 1980s. willsmere mental hospital, willsmere unit, kew mental hospital, kew lunatic asylum, willsmere hospital

This photograph is part of a series taken at the Willsmere (Kew) Mental Hospital. The photographs were gifted to the Kew Historical Society in 2018 by Rosemary Barnes. The photos had been in the possession of her former husband, Dr Fred Stamp, the last medical superintendent of the hospital. In 2019, the photographs were transferred to the State Archives as Permanent Government Records, as the Society is only entitled as a Class-B Place of Deposit to hold Temporary Government Records. The Society was permitted to keep and publish a digital copy of each photograph. Many of the photographs include information on the reverse about individuals or locations. Where this is the case, these have been published here as images that can be viewed in the picture carousel. Permission for third parties to reproduce this record must be granted by the Public Record Office Victoria.One of a series of photographs of interior workplaces and the grounds of the Willsmere Unit taken in the 1980s. willsmere mental hospital, willsmere unit, kew mental hospital, kew lunatic asylum, willsmere hospital