| Hillcrest Nursery, North Fremantle |
| Years of Operation | 1912 - 1974 |
| Role Of Facility | Residential care provided by the Salvation Army for girls who were expecting babies and their young infants. [see also the Hillcrest entry under “Records Held by the Department”] |
| Sponsoring Agency | Salvation Army |
Other facilities in
Signposts that are
related to the
Sponsoring Agency | See the entry “Salvation Army” in the earlier section of Signposts, “Non-Government Agencies and their Subsidiary Institutions” |
| Address(es) | Harvest Terrace, North Fremantle (the facility still exists as an Aged Care establishment. No records are kept there).
44 Kings Park Road (during the Second World War). |
| Aliases | Salvation Army Maternity Hospital. |
| Brief History | The Family Court records adoptions occurring from the Maternity Home in North Fremantle from 1899 onwards. This was the predecessor to Hillcrest.
Many young women had babies at Hillcrest during its years of operation and occasionally Wards of the state would have been resident there. During the Second World War, Hillcrest relocated to 44 Kings Park Road (corner of Ventnor Avenue), returning to the Harvest Terrace site at its conclusion.
The facility ceased operation as a maternity home in 1974.
A limited chronology is included in Table 15. |
| Records | All existing Hillcrest records are held by the Department of Communities. These records include:
1. Labour Ward Report Books 1950 – 1974
2. Midwives Case Register 1941 – 1972
3. Register: Single Parents 1933 – 1966
4. Register: Married Patients 1941 - 1965
5. Notification of cases attended, books 1-7, 1968 - 1974
6. Adoption Placements – Parents 1962 - 1974
7. Adoption Placements – Babies 1965 – 1974
8. Babies Birth/Progress Book 1, 1927 – 1941
9. Babies Birth/Progress Book, 1958 – 1965
10. Day Book – Mothers, 1928 – 1953
11. Day Book – Infants, 1958 – 1965
12. Girls’ Record Books, 1 – 6, 1934 – 1953
13. Admission/Discharges Books 11 – 13, 1912 – 1974
14. Personal and Antenatal Records 1968 – 1974
The Heritage Museum at the Salvation Army’s Divisional Headquarters has a range of information about Army practices and facilities and holds some photographs and various other pieces of information.
In its Melbourne office, the Salvation Army has a searchable database of “The War Cry” for the years 1889-1896; 1896-1907; and 1910 forward. The War Cry edition for the Southern Territories includes information about Western Australia. |
| Access | While access to records is restricted to protect the privacy of individuals, people are encouraged to enquire. |
| Contact Details | Freedom of Information
Department of Communities
Locked Bag 5000, Fremantle WA 6959
Telephone: (08) 6414 3344
Country free call: 1800 176 888
Email: foi@communities.wa.gov.au
Website: www.communities.wa.gov.au
Salvation Army Museum:
The Salvation Army Historical Society,
333 William Street, Northbridge WA 6003
Telephone: (08) 9227 7010
Facsimile: (08) 9227 7134 |
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