The former Dispenser's House of Diamantina Hospital is now the heritage-listed Diamantina Health Care Museum at Cornwall Street,
Woolloongabba
Woolloongabba is a suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Woolloongabba had a population of 5,631 people.
Geography
Woolloongabba is located south of the CBD. It contains the Brisbane Cricket Ground ('the Gabba') and t ...
,
City of Brisbane
The City of Brisbane is a local government area (LGA) which comprises the inner portion of the metropolitan area of Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. Its governing body is the Brisbane City Council. Unlike LGAs in the other mainl ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia. It was designed by
Thomas Pye
Sir Thomas Pye ( – 26 December 1785) was an admiral of the Royal Navy who served during the War of the Austrian Succession, the Seven Years' War, and the American War of Independence. He was briefly Member of Parliament for Rochester, and se ...
of the
Queensland Government Architect
The Queensland Government Architect is a position within the public service of Queensland, Australia with responsibility for the design of government buildings in Queensland. It was formerly known as the Queensland Colonial Architect. The position ...
's Office and built in 1908 by W Chaplain. It was added to the
Queensland Heritage Register
The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As a ...
on 3 July 2007.
History
The former Dispenser's House was built in 1908 as part of the facilities of the Diamantina Hospital for Chronic Diseases and is now a health care museum.
[
The Diamantina Hospital was established in 1901 by adapting the facilities of the ]Diamantina Orphanage
The former Dispenser's House of Diamantina Hospital is now the heritage-listed Diamantina Health Care Museum at Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Thomas Pye of the Queensland Government ...
, named for the wife of the first Governor of Queensland
The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor Governors of the Australian states, performs c ...
, Lady Diamantina Bowen
Diamantina, Lady Bowen (; 1832/1833–1893), was a noble from the formerly Venetian Ionian Islands who became the wife of Sir George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland.
Personal life
The '' Contessa'' Diamantina di Roma was born in 183 ...
. This had been founded in 1864 under the committee of the Brisbane Hospital in two cottages, near the Victoria Barracks, that had been used as a fever hospital.[
Within two years, the orphanage was caring for about 100 children and received a government subsidy. In 1882, a block of land on Ipswich Road at Woolloongabba was purchased to allow the construction of a larger facility. In 1883 the Diamantina Orphanage opened at this new location and by 1886 was caring for more than 350 children. This number was reduced by boarding out some children and removing those with a parent able to make some contribution to their support.][
In 1893, severe flooding damaged the Woogaroo Lunatic Asylum, so about 40 of the quieter patients from the asylum were moved to the orphanage, and the children were dispersed. From 1898 to 1900, the facility was used as a reformatory for boys.][
At that time, Queensland had no hospital to treat chronically ill patients. ]Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
was a major cause of death into the 20th century and "consumptive" patients were also drawn to Queensland because of the belief that warm weather helped to cure the disease. Treatment for tuberculosis at that time consisted mainly of isolation, bed rest, good diet and exposure to fresh air and sunshine. Medical professionals lobbied for a facility to treat chronic cases. A sanatorium
A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...
was opened in Dalby in 1900 and the Diamantina Orphanage, with its pleasant situation on a wooded slope, was adapted as a hospital. Its dormitories were enlarged as wards, and on 5 August 1901 it opened as the Diamantina Hospital for Chronic Diseases. It was a Public Charitable Institution under the Charitable Institution Act. and was under the care of the Department of Health
A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...
. It accepted patients from the general hospital and from the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum
The Dunwich Benevolent Asylum was a Benevolent Asylum for the aged, infirm and destitute operated by the Queensland Government in Australia. It was located at Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island in Moreton Bay and operated from 1865 to 1946.
His ...
, many of whom were suffering from tuberculosis. The Diamantina Hospital opened with 32 beds and a general staff of 19 administered by a Matron, Miss Florence Chatfield
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
, a Superintendent, Dr Francis Washington Everad Hare, and a Head Wardsman and Dispenser, Mr Frederick Staubwasser.[
By 1903 the hospital had 72 beds and two open-air wards. The superintendent resigned and Miss Chatfield added his duties to her own. In 1907 Mr Staubwasser, planning marriage, requested a raise in salary and a cottage within the hospital grounds. His request was strongly supported by Miss Chatfield, in a letter to the Home Secretary, stressing his value to the institution. The request was approved but the cottage was not built immediately.][
Thomas Pye, Deputy Government Architect, prepared sketch plans for a dwelling of 700 square feet plus a large front verandah, to be constructed near the hospital Dispensary. Tenders were called on 9 July 1908 and that of W Chaplain for was accepted. By the beginning of 1909 the house was occupied.][
Mr Staubwasser served as Dispenser until 1912 when he became Assistant Superintendent. In that year another verandah was added to the cottage and a laundry in 1914. In 1923 the house was extended by adding another verandah to the south and a third bedroom to the front. The main entrance was then relocated to the northern verandah. In 1935 Mr Staubwasser was promoted to Superintendent but continued to occupy the house until his death in 1938. From then until the end of the Second World War, the house was occupied by a series of Medical Officers from 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 ...
who were responsible for the Diamantina Hospital patients.[
In 1943 the Diamantina Hospital became the South Brisbane Auxiliary Hospital and was under the control of the Brisbane General Hospital. Following ]World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, an intensive programme was carried out by the Queensland government to eradicate tuberculosis by screening and treatment. This reduced the need for chronic care facilities.[
In 1956 a new 800-bed acute hospital was built in the grounds of the South Brisbane Hospital. In 1960 it was renamed the Princess Alexandra Hospital (after ]Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Alexandra were first cousins through their fathers, King George ...
) and had its own hospital board. The cottage, after accommodating a series of staff members, was modified for use as a Home Haemodialysis Training Centre in 1974. In 1998 it was used by the History and Archives Committee and in 1999 by the Redevelopment Group.[
In 2003 the former Dispenser's House was renovated and opened in 2004 as the Diamantina Health Care Museum.][
A wall has been removed between bedrooms and an office created on the northern verandah by the construction of a partition. The building remains substantially intact and retains its domestic appearance.][
]
Description
The former Dispenser's House is situated close to the Cornwall Street gate to the Princess Alexandra Hospital. It is a timber building with a hipped roof
A hip roof, hip-roof or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope (although a tented roof by definition is a hipped roof with steeply pitched slopes rising to a peak). Thus, ...
clad with corrugated iron
Corrugated galvanised iron or steel, colloquially corrugated iron (near universal), wriggly tin (taken from UK military slang), pailing (in Caribbean English), corrugated sheet metal (in North America) and occasionally abbreviated CGI is a bu ...
sheeting and is set on new concrete stumps.
There is a gabled
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
bay with four windows to the eastern elevation and verandahs to the north and south. The southern verandah is built in with timber-framed windows and the northern by glass louvres. The walls are timber-lined and there are timber floors and ceilings. The rooms opening onto the southern verandah and some of the internal rooms have French doors
A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security by ...
with transom lights above. Modern toilets have been added.
Heritage listing
The former Dispenser's House of the Diamantina Hospital was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register
The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As a ...
on 3 July 2007 having satisfied the following criteria.[
The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.
The former Dispenser's House is important for demonstrating the former use of the site as the Diamantina Hospital for Chronic Diseases, which opened in 1901 on the site of the current Princess Alexandra Hospital. This was the first such hospital in Queensland and was important in the development of health care in the State. The former residence, constructed in 1908, also demonstrates the common practice of the time of providing on site living quarters for key personnel.][
The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage.
The former Dispenser's House is now rare as the last remaining structure from the Diamantina Hospital for Chronic Diseases.][
]
References
Attribution
External links
* {{official website, https://metrosouth.health.qld.gov.au/princess-alexandra-hospital/about-us/history/diamantina-health-care-museum
Queensland Heritage Register
Heritage of Brisbane
Woolloongabba
Museums in Brisbane
Houses in Brisbane
Hospitals in Brisbane
Articles incorporating text from the Queensland Heritage Register
Hospital museums
Medical museums in Australia
Heritage-listed hospital buildings in Australia