dunwichbenevolentasylum

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.[1] 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 center for social activities. A farm with associated outbuildings provided meat and dairy products.[2] A 1913 map shows it occupying the coastal area from Dunwich Cemetery down to the present-day jetty and inland to approximately the present-day Mitchell Crescent and Barton Street. Swamps are shown beyond the boundaries.[7] 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.[6] Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunwich_Benevolent_Asylum

Dunwich The ferries, barges, and water taxis from the mainland arrive at Dunwich on the western side of North Stradbroke Island. This old settlement was first established in 1827 as a convict outstation. The shallow waters of Moreton Bay made shipping goods up the Brisbane River difficult and ships arriving (most of them from Sydney) would off-load their supplies at Dunwich. In turn, the good would be ferried across to the mainland and up the Brisbane river in vessels with shallow draughts. In these early days, the township of Dunwich was no more than a large warehouse and quarters for the convicts employed to load and unload the produce. It is possible to see the old stone wall of the original jetty on the northern side of the modern barge ramp. Source: www.traveller.com.au/stradbroke-island-5z3c

Benevolent asylums were established in all the Australian colonies in the nineteenth century. In NSW and Victoria, they were established as religious charities. In Queensland, however, the state took responsibility, and the Queensland Benevolent Asylum Act of 1861 funded hospitals to have ‘asylum wards’. In 1865 the Colonial Government proposed that an asylum ward for the sick and poor be established at the new general hospital site at Herston. Under ‘public pressure’ the colony government decided in 1866 to relocate the asylum on a ‘temporary basis to the Dunwich Quarantine Station. It started with 80–90 inmates, confusing funding, and a drunk as Director. Source: stradbrokemuseum.com.au/dunwich-benevolent-asylum/

Dunwich ‘Bohemia’ An exhibition exploring the artistic and literary works of three generations of the Agnew family is currently on display at the Museum . The exhibition —a collaboration with the Redland Museum — features artworks and writings, as well as a series of photographs taken in Dunwich by Philip Agnew. The Agnew family lived and worked in Dunwich for many years and were active in the cultural life of the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum. The exhibition continues over the summer. Source: stradbrokemuseum.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Museum...