There Was Once an Asylum
This site not only provides an overview of mental health history and its implications for Goodna, but also explores the complex relationship between memory and history.
There are stories we may never know, but this site uncovers the history, revealing the layers of understanding that underpin the present.
It is done in a way that honours the patients, clients, and the people.
Anderson House
Built-in 1917
Anderson House (former female patient ward 7) is named after Mervyn Anderson, Toowoomba MLA, who was the former president of the Queensland Sub-Normal Children's Welfare Association and known to many as "Curley". The building remains highly intact and stands facing Ellerton Drive. Purpose-built as an admissions ward for female patients, the concept of an admission ward was to provide a facility where patients could be accommodated when first admitted to the institution. It was designed so that new patients could be kept under observation and receive more individual treatment. To achieve this aim, a building of a domestic scale and with individual cells was proposed. Initial sketches for the building were prepared by Ellerton in 1912, but final plans were not completed until February 1915. William Kerr was awarded the contract for a sum of £13,900, and construction commenced in 1915; the ward was opened in January 1917. The building is domestic in scale and set amongst semi-formal gardens, reflecting its original purpose and the principles of moral treatment. Positioned on a rise, the building is accessed from the south via stairs. In 1970, the toilets were refitted, providing additional showers and six washstands in the dormitory were removed. Anderson House is significant in demonstrating a new approach to the treatment of mental illness introduced by HB Ellerton in the 1910s. The concept of villa-type accommodation was developed in asylums in England in the late 19th century and was a departure from the practice of accommodating patients in large dormitories. The purpose of a villa-type ward, such as Anderson House, was to introduce a domestic scale to the environment for patients and emphasis was placed on the relationship with the outdoor environment. The building has important aesthetic values derived from its scale and form and is similar to buildings at Ipswich and Toowoomba asylums, and more utilitarian buildings such as the School of Musketry at Enoggera.
In 2020, the building accommodates offices with minimal alterations to the original fabric.
Chronology:
1916 construction completed
1970 alterations to the toilet and bathroom areas
