Community Research · Historical record

Kenmore
History

## Following historical note supplied by Leone Morgan, previous curator of Kenmore Hospital Museum.

# KENMORE HOSPITAL - A BRIEF HISTORICAL NOTE
Kenmore Hospital is situated within the Parish of Narrangarril, County of Argyle, City of
Goulburn. The County was given its name by Governor Macquarie - he was born (and died)
in Argyle Shire, Scotland - after his exploratory visit to the area in 1820.
The name "Kenmore" was given by another Scot, William Lithgow (the Colonial Auditor
General) to a grant of 2,000 acres he received in 1825. This grant was north of the
Wollondilly River and extended along Middle Arm Road to about the present Campbell's
Lane and takes in the site of the Police Academy.

The original Kenmore is a village in Perth Shire, Scotland, at the foot of Loch Tay and is
remarkable only for the nearby castle of the Marquess of Breadalbane. Adjoining the Kenmore grant to the east was another grant of 2,000 acres given to AndrewAllen (yet another Scot) who called it "Strathallen" after a small river, also in Perth Shire, afew miles south of the village of Kenmore. The hospital and its adjoining farmlands are all part of the former "Strathallen" grant.

Andrew Allen got into financial difficulties in the middle of the 19th Century and
his grant was acquired by Lithgow. The two grants were combined and given the name
"Kenmore Estate" and the name has continued in use for this hospital and the village which
grew up near it.

Another interesting Scottish connection relates to the colours in use by all the sporting teams
which have borne the name of Kenmore, namely black and white (originally in a chequered
pattern). It is recorded that the Kenmore Cricket team was established in 1895, the year the
hospital opened. At that time the hospital was outside the City boundaries and, as local
government (in the shape of Mulwaree Shire) did not eventuate until 1906, the hospital was
described as being within the County of Argyle. The first Medical Superintendent, Dr
Chisholm Ross, although a native Australian from Inverell in New South Wales, was of
Scottish extraction and decided on the colours as they form part of the coat of arms of the
Duke of Argyll.

The large Kenmore Estate was subdivided for auction in 1879 following the death of the then
owner, Mr S.T. Gibson. At the auction held on 29th October, 1879, the District Surveyor, Mr
E. Twynam (who resided at "Riversdale") purchased lot 32 of 173 acres at £4.10.00 ($9) per
acre and lot 33 of 175 acres at £3 ($6) per acre for the Government for use as a lunatic
asylum. Lot 32 is the area on which the hospital buildings stand and lot 33 is the area to the
north of this, across Kenmore Creek.

A curious piece of departmental bungling is revealed by transactions in connection with
Kenmore and Rossiville estates. Rossiville was purchased by the Government in 1890 for
£15,158 for the building of a lunatic asylum, it having forgotten that it had owned Kenmore
since 1879. Mr Teece, M.L.A. was asked to protest in Parliament against the proposal to
establish an asylum at Rossiville on the grounds of possible contamination of city water
supply.

In 1890 the decision to build at Kenmore was rescinded by Parliament and in 1891,
competition designs for a hospital at Rossiville were invited. In 1892 the Goulburn Council
was still protesting against the proposal to build the hospital at Rossiville and were urging
Kenmore on the Government. In the meantime, the decision to build at Kenmore was re-
affirmed.

Some awkward questions were asked in Parliament in 1895 as to why two lots of land had
been purchased for the same purpose. The next year the Government called for a report on
the suitability of the Rossiville Estate being used for an experimental farm but the expert
opinion was unfavourable. In 1897 the Minister in Charge admitted he did not know what
the estate cost, why it was unoccupied or how it was to be used. Up until 1908 Rossiville
was used for the slaughtering of cattle for the Kenmore Hospital, to the possible danger of the
municipal water supply. The Department of Agriculture again inspected it and nothing came
of it.

Eventually the Government agreed in 1911 to the Department of Lands disposing of the 757
acres at Rossiville together with some other adjoining Crown Lands under the Closer
Settlement Act. However, 2 acres of the old estate were reserved for mining purposes to
enable the hospital to obtain soil for the cricket pitch and topsoil. This 2 acres on Pomeroy
Road was gazetted as part of the hospital in 1954.

The only other remaining link with Rossiville is the fountain in the pond near the Canteen.
The fountain was made in Italy and displayed in the Italian Court of the Sydney International
Exhibition of 1879 and was purchased at the close of the Exhibition by the then owner of
Rossiville, the Compte de Rossi. When Rossiville was purchased in 1890 the fountain, of
course, became Government property. After necessary repairs it was brought to Kenmore in
1899 and erected on a large mound about where the steps are in the low brick fence between
the Administration Block and the Medical Superintendent's residence. It was shifted to its
present position some years later when the present road from Ward 1 to Ward 19 was
constructed.

The establishment of an asylum at Goulburn had been recommended by Dr F. Norton
Manning, the first Inspector General of the Insane, in a massive report on lunacy matters in
1868. The land was purchased in 1879 but it was not until 1893 that funds were made
available for construction to commence. The first buildings were completed in 1894 and the
site was gazetted under the Lunacy Act of 1878 in July, 1894 as "the Hospital for the Insane,
Kenmore near Goulburn".

The wards housing developmentally disabled patients (Wards 15, 16, 17, and 18) were
"degazetted", i.e. removed from the operation of the Mental Health Act in 1984.
The first patients (five men) were transferred from the Newcastle Hospital for Imbeciles (now
Hunter Hospital) on 5th January, 1895. They were followed by drafts of transferred
male patients from Gladesville, Parramatta, Callan Park and Rydalmere until by the end of
1895, a total of 146 were in residence and by the end of 1896, a total of 154.
These male patients were used as a workforce to clear the grounds, layout roads and paths,
establish the orchard and vegetable garden and so forth. They were accommodated above the
Administration Block and in the workshops until the first male wards were completed,
while the male attendants had accommodation above the Amenities Block.
Included in the 1895 drafts were 13 patients who had been transferred from Tarban Creek
Asylum (Gladesville) to the "Temporary Hospital for the Insane at Cooma" between 1877
and 1880 and were transferred to Callan Park when Cooma closed down in 1884.
The first female patients were a draft of 14 transferred from Gladesville on 22nd March, 1897
followed two days later by 11 from Callan Park and these by transfers from other Sydney
hospitals until by the end of 1897 there were 107 female patients in residence, together with
200 male patients.

By 31st December, 1899, the hospital's in-patient population totalled 503, comprising 265
men and 197 women. By contrast the population on 30th June, 1984 totalled 415 comprising
253 men and 162 women.

No major epidemics have affected the patients during the past 100 years although there
appear to have been minor outbreaks of typhoid (or enteric fever) in 1913 and 1929. The great
pneumonic influenza pandemic ("Spanish Flu") of 1919 did not leave Kenmore untouched.
Most of the patients and a majority of the staff were affected by it. One or two isolated cases
occurred in June of 1919 but the full fury was felt during the last week of July and the first
three weeks of August. No staff died but 21 patients did (two female, nineteen male).

Numerous contracts were let for the various stages of construction, the first being for the old
Kitchen/Store Block and the old workshops, followed by the Administration Block,
Amenities Block, Recreation Hall, Laundry, the present Medical Superintendent and Deputy
Medical Superintendent Residential block and Wards 1, 2, 18 and 19. All major construction
was completed by the end of 1900.

The design of the buildings and their layout were undertaken by the Colonial Architect, Mr
Walter Liberty Vernon, under the instructions and close supervision of Dr Frederick Norton
Manning, Inspector General of the Insane and from 1894 by Dr Chisholm Ross.
The next major building work was the construction of Wards 9, 10 and 11 in 1911 as the Male and Female Reception Houses, with Ward 10 functioning as the Lunacy Court and Lunacy Administration Office.

The only other major building erected before the outbreak of World War II was "Buna
House" a two storey wooden building built by the hospital staff with patient assistance which
functioned as the Nurses' Home.

Subsequent to World War II the major buildings erected have been the Occupation Therapy/
Rehabilitation Workshops/ Carpenters Block (1957) to replace the old workshops
and old Male 7 (burnt down), Bowling Club (1956), Nurses' Home (1957), Nurse Training
School (1966), Boiler House (1968), the new Piggery (1970), the Canteen (1971 and 1983)
and the Main Kitchen (1977). In addition four residences were built in the 1960's.
The layout of the grounds was commenced by Dr Chisholm Ross in 1895, but the great
variety of trees and shrubs found in them is due to the personal efforts of the fourth Medical
Superintendent, Dr Moffitt. He obtained specimens from all over the world at his own
expense. The willows on the banks of the Wollondilly River pre-date the hospital period and
have been struck from a cutting of the willow which shaded Napoleon's grave on St. Helena.

The other feature in the grounds is the War Memorial, built of Marulan granite. In the first
World War, 50 Kenmore staff enlisted, of whom 10 were killed. Originally, the Memorial stood
on the side of the internal roadway opposite the Manager's Residence and was unveiled in a
special ceremony by General McNicholl on 23rd March, 1924. It was moved to its present
location in 1980, and a re-dedication ceremony conducted by the hospital Chaplains.
Between the two World Wars, Kenmore presented, in some respects, the aspects of a self-supporting village. Apart from the usual appurtenances of Kitchen, Store and Laundry, the hospital had the following services:

Sewing Room - manufacture of female uniforms and clothing, curtains, linen.

Tailor - manufacture of male uniforms and clothing, canvas work.

Bootmaker - manufacture and repair of boots and shoes.

Dairy - supply of milk and cream.

Piggery - supply of pork, disposal of food refuse.

Slaughteryards - supply of beef, mutton and lamb from killing of hospital stock and
animals purchased for the purpose.

Bread - was obtained from Goulburn Gaol in exchange for meat.

Soap and Floor Polish - was manufactured from tallow and fat obtained from the
Kitchen and Slaughteryards for local use and supplied the requirements of all other
mental hospitals.

Orchard - provided fresh fruit and fruit for jam-making.

Vegetable Garden - fresh vegetables and potatoes.

Fowl Yard - eggs and poultry.

Apiary - honey.

Stables - horses for transport. Draught animals were bred for other mental hospitals.
Sewerage System - also used by private homes in Kenmore village.

Electricity - the hospital installed its own generator in 1896.

Water Supplies - the pump on the Wollondilly was installed in 1896 to irrigate the orchard and grounds and Kenmore Dam was built in 1917 for farm use and was cross-connected to the river water system.

Recreation Hall - used for dances, theatrical performances and from the 1920's as a cinema.

Quarry - metal for internal roads and material for the stone walls still existing.

Wood Yard - fuel for the ward day room fires, etc.

Cemetery - mostly for "pauper" burials, from 1895 to 1942. Over 1200 graves.

The major event disturbing the tranquillity of Kenmore between the wars was a murder. In
1922, Richard Galbraith Sindell, a patient of the Sydney Cottage Hospital, Callan Park, came
to Goulburn armed with a revolver seeking the Medical Superintendent, Dr Moffitt. Dr
Moffitt, becoming aware of Sindell's presence left his office and fled through the trees
towards his residence (Coorawong House). In pursuit, Sindell passed a group of female staff
sitting on a low brick wall outside the then Staff Dining Room. He opened fire, killing Nurse
Elizabeth Naughten; wounded the Head Laundress, Miss Ruby Follent; fired three shots at
Nurse Cartright, all missing; and one at Nurse Barnes, blowing her cap off. The general
commotion and shooting alerted the Manager, Mr Ranken, who took the hospital's revolver
from the office safe and ran to the scene. He fired one shot, hitting Sindell in the hand,
whereupon Sindell surrendered. Sindell spent the remainder of his life in the criminal wards
at Parramatta and Morisset. The scene of this shooting episode was between the
Administration Block and the present Pay Office Building, about where the two shrubs are
growing either side of a pathway. There is a memorial to Nurse Naughten in the Chapel of
St. Joseph's Orphanage, Kenmore (now the House of Prayer).

In 1942, the State Government offered Kenmore to the Commonwealth Government for use
as a military hospital. The patients were transferred to City hospitals with the female nursing
staff and some male staff while the remaining attendants were transferred to Bloomfield
Hospital, Orange.

The hospital officially was handed over to the Army on 1st April, 1942 and became the 114th
A.G.H. (Australian General Hospital). Following the end of the war the hospital reverted to
the State on 6th February, 1946.

From that date onwards the patients and staff were slowly transferred back, a ward at a time,
until the hospital was fully operational again. The hospital buildings were in a poor state of
repair but funds to bring them up to a modern standard were not available until
after the Callan Park Royal Commission of 1961, but this special funding dried up during the
early years of the Health Commission.

The principal officers of Kenmore over the years have been:
MEDICAL SUPERINTENDENT
Dr C. Ross 1895 - 1900
Dr E. Godson 1900 - 1910
Dr C.A. Hogg 1910 - 1921
Dr C.G. Moffitt 1921 - 1937
Dr S.J. Minogue 1937 - 1942
Dr S.G. Stevens 1946 - 1947 (Acting)
Dr D.A.S. Fraser 1947 - 1950
Dr A.L. Cooper 1950 - 1957
Dr D.R. Morgan 1957 - 1976
Dr F. Lumley 1976 - 1985
Dr W. Coombes 1987 - 1987 (9/3/87 to 22/9/87)
Dr N. Hills 1987 - 1989
Dr M. Wanigaratne 1990 - 1997
Dr D. Barraclough (Acting) 1997 - 2000
Dr B. Learoyd (Acting) 2000 - 2001
Dr J. Perica 2001 -

MANAGER (Assistant Superintendent until 1898)
Mr C.H. Richardson 1895 - 1906
Mr W.H.C. Ranken 1906 - 1922
Mr J.J. Fleming 1922 - 1930
Mr G.R. Hepplewhite 1930 - 1933
Mr A.G.B. Henderson 1933 - 1938
Mr J. McCrory 1938 - 1942
Mr W.C. MacDonald 1946 - 1950
Mr L.R. McKell 1950 - 1961
Mr R.G. McIntosh 1961 - 1962
Mr H.J.L. Ashton 1963 - 1966
Mr J.H. Yates 1966 - 1970
Mr M.A. Smith 1970 - 1972
Mr J.E. Miles 1972 – 1985 POSITION ABOLISHED

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Mr E.J. Barrass 1986 - 1987
Mr R.E. Neate 1987 - 1989 (Acting)
POSITION ABOLISHED - CREATION OF THE GOULBURN HEALTH SERVICE

CHIEF ATTENDANT/ CHIEF MALE NURSE
Mr C. Jones 1897 - 1900
Mr T. Skerritt 1900 - 1911
Mr W. Clegg 1911 - 1922
Mr G. McAuley 1922 - 1927
Mr H.E.S. Woodroffe 1927 - 1937
Mr J.T. Brown 1937 - 1941
Mr A.R. Haggar 1941 - 1942
Mr D. Ross 1946 - 1947 (Acting)
Mr F.L. Williams 1947 - 1961
Mr D.J.R. Godfrey 1961 - 1966
Mr A.D. Ryan 1966 – 1971
POSITION ABOLISHED ON 22ND APRIL, 1971

MATRON
Mrs M.A. Watson 1897 - 1898
Miss S.M. Pope 1898 - 1900
Miss A. Watson 1900 - 1905
Miss L. Ford 1905 - 1908
Miss W.M. Tait 1908 - 1912
Miss M.M. Colvin 1912 - 1927 (Died)
Miss A.M. Miller 1927 - 1940
Miss A.A.K. Thurbon 1940 - 1942
Miss J.M.R. Mackie 1946 - 1954
Miss M.M. Melbin-Helberg 1954 - 1959
Miss L. Walsh 1959 – 1971
POSITION ABOLISHED ON 22ND APRIL, 1971

SUPERINTENDENT OF NURSING
Mr A.D. Ryan 1971 - 1976
Mr R. Straker 1976 - 1978
Mr C.F. Swan 1978 - 1981
Miss C.M. King 1981 – 1987 POSITION ABOLISHED 1986

DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OF NURSING
Miss L. Walsh 1971 - 1974
Miss O.M. Tweedie 1974 - 1979
Miss C.M. King 1979 - 1981
Mr D.B. Fraser 1981 – 1986 POSITION ABOLISHED 1986

DIRECTOR OF NURSING
Miss C.M. King 1986 - 1987
Mr D.B. Fraser 1987 - 1994

DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF NURSING
Mrs M. Mortimer 1990 - 1994

MANAGER NURSING SERVICES
Mr K. Kidd 1994 – 2001 POSITION RETITLED
MANAGER NURSING SERVICES MENTAL HEALTH
Mr K Kidd 1994 – 2001 POSITION ABOLISHED 2000

DEPUTY MANAGER NURSING SERVICES
Jan Lucas 1996 – 2000 POSITION ABOLISHED 

2000 HEALTH SERVICE MANAGER
Mr K McCulloch 2001 – 

DEPUTY HEALTH SERVICE MANAGER
Ms N McLaren 2000 –

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: J.E. MILES
Jan 1995, Mar 1997, May 2000, April; 2001