Maryborough Hospital

Minimal medical services were available in Maryborough Old Town; however a new site in Lennox Street served the population well from 1865 until the mid-1880s. A new hospital reserve was declared on the outskirts of town at Walker Street and the foundation stone was laid in April 1885. Colonial Architect JJ Clark designed a complex of four brick buildings: a two-storey administration block, flanked by two, two-storey wards, and a one-storey kitchen block. A surgeon’s house was built concurrently. All were officially opened in May 1887. The separation of structures into linked pavilions to facilitate ventilation reflects nineteenth century miasma theory which believed that illness was spread through foul air. The use of pavilion design throughout Queensland at this time overcame the problems of poor ventilation and sanitation. Of the 76 such hospitals built in Queensland in the 19th century, only six survive. A ward for South Sea Islanders was also built in 1888. In 1928, local architect POE Hawkes designed the reinforced concrete Nurse’s Quarters and the Lady Musgrave Maternity Hospital. The hospital has continually been upgraded and expanded to fulfil local needs. The 1928 doctor’s house is now the Hospital Museum.