| Title | Mount Morgan's first Hospital early 20th Century |
| Description | The Mount Morgan Hospital was designed and built in 1889-1890 by Mr Thomas Glen Cornes (1842-1903), the superintendent of sawmills and carpenters at the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited and an original member of the Mount Morgan Hospital Committee. The Mount Morgan Hospital opened at a public function held on the afternoon of Saturday, 30th August 1890. Mr James Wesley Hall (1839-1901) addressed assembled guests. At the time, he was the first General Manager of the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited, the first president of the Mount Morgan Hospital Committee and the first mayor of the Mount Morgan Borough Council. He requested that the secretary of the Committee, Mr Banny, read a statement of the trustees summarising the financial status of the project. Mr James Wesley Hall passed the key to the building to the Treasurer Mr Green. He, in turn, handed it to the mayoress of the Mount Morgan Borough Council, Mrs James Wesley Hall (née Mary Frederica Dora ('Dora') Dempster), who had the privilege of opening the building. A Morning Bulletin article described the construction of the hospital as follows: 'The total length of the building over all is 148 ft, the width of the main portion being 74 ft. The verandah extends right round and is 11 ft. 6 in. wide, the roof of such being lined with tongued and grooved boards to prevent the radiation of heat from the iron. The wards, of which there are two, the north and south, are spacious, airy and comfortable apartments; they measure respectively 42 ft. long, 20 ft. wide, and 10 ft. high from floor to ceiling. Each ward is furnished with twelve beds which number can be augmented if the necessity arises. In each ward are seven 7 ft. x 4 ft. French casements, with fan-lights to open and close for ventilation. These casements are wide enough to allow the patient and bed to be conveyed bodily on to the verandah for change of air. Ventilators are fitted into the ceilings, and from each of them a double light chandelier will be suspended. Attached to each ward are complete bath rooms and lavatories, with hot and cold water laid on'. [Source: 1890 'The Morning Bulletin, ROCKHAMPTON.' Morning Bulletin (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1878 - 1954), 1 September, p. 4. , viewed 13 Jul 2016, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article52336973]. Gas replaced kerosene lamps and wood burning stoves in 1901. Electricity replaced gas in 1935. The building was partially demolished in 1968 to make way for a new building and further demolition occurred ca. 2011 to make way for a totally new facility. |
| Publisher | Australian Country Hospital Heritage Association Inc |
| Subject | Hall, James Wesley (1839 - 1901) |
| Subject | Hall, Mary Frederica Dora (née Dempster) (1864 - 1895) |
| Coverage - Spatial | Black Street, Mount Morgan, Queensland |
| Format of Original | Photographic image: sepia 11.8 cm x 8.5 cm; Scan .tif 3.3 MB 1329 x 870 pixels |
| Rights | This image is provided for the purpose of private study and research and must not be reproduced without the permission of the Australian Country Hospital Heritage Association Inc. |
