Skip to main content

Dictionary of Sydney

The Dictionary of Sydney
Subjects
Health and Welfare
Health and Welfare Institutions
Women's health

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Women's health

Subject

Berne, Dagmar

Biffin, Harriett Eliza

Birth

Rachel Forster Hospital

Crown Street Women Hospital

Myee

Royal Hospital for Women

Australian College of Midwives - NSW Branch Incorporated

Australian Mothercraft Society

Buckland Convalescent Home Springwood

Crown Street Women's Hospital

Crusade to Women

Female Immigrants' Home

Government Asylum for Infirm and Destitute Women

Home of Hope for Friendless and Fallen Women

Ladies' Sanitary Association

Leichhardt Women's Health Centre

New South Wales Rape Crisis Centre

Newington Asylum

Parragirls

Royal Hospital for Women

Sydney Dorcas Society

Sydney Female Mission Home

Sydney Women's Liberation

Berne, Dagmar

Dakers, Jennifer

Dixson, Emma Elizabeth

Dagmar Berne c1890

Dagmar Berne, first woman medical student 1890

Dagmar Berne, first woman medical student, in academic dress 1890

Entrance to the All Night Refuge for Women and Children in Beauchamp Lane, Surry Hills March 1939

Florence Holloway's Obstetric Nursing certificate from the Royal Hospital for Women, 18 February 1908

Lady Denison opening new wing at Rachel Forster Hospital 21 August 1926

Leichhardt Women's Community Health Centre, Leichhardt 1975

Rachel Forster Hospital for Women and Children, Redfern 1942

Rachel Forster Hospital, George Street, Redfern 15 June 1938

Rachel Forster Hospital, Redfern 1944

Royal Hospital for Women, Paddington December 1936

The Rachel Forster Hospital's fifth birthday celebrations, Redfern 1927

The Sydney Infirmary: But the poor woman will die if she is not attended to 1869

The Sydney Milky Way; or Infant Poison 1875

Search

Browse

Browse
- Artefacts
- Buildings
- Events
- Natural Features
- Organisations
- People
- Places
- Structures
- Entries
- Multimedia
- Subjects
- Roles
- Contributors

Connections

Broader Subjects

Health and Welfare Institutions

Footer

Home
About
Copyright
Blog
Facebook
Twitter

Women's health

Berne, Dagmar

Dagmar Berne was the first female student of medicine at Sydney University and a pioneering doctor. Confronted by prejudice, she was obliged to travel overseas to qualify. She gained world-class degrees and was feted on her return to Sydney, yet was denied access to employment in general hospitals. She established a private practice, lectured, and worked with women's organisations to progress women's health in Sydney, before tuberculosis forced her to move to Springwood, and then Trundle, where she died suddenly in 1900

Biffin, Harriett Eliza

Harriett Biffin was a pioneer Sydney woman doctor. One of the second group of women to graduate in medicine at the University of Sydney in 1898, she was the first to establish a women’s joint medical practice in Sydney and a suburban general medical practice, and founded both The Medical Women’s Society of New South Wales and the Rachel Forster Hospital with Dr Lucy Edith Gullett.

Birth

Mothers in Sydney have given birth in a multitude of settings, from traditional Aboriginal environs, to the most technologically advanced hospital. From the women's business of Aboriginal mothers and grandmothers, and the traditional knowledge of white midwives, birth in Sydney moved, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, into the sphere of medical control and hospitals, with continuing feminist calls for more control and choice for women.

Rachel Forster Hospital

The Rachel Forster Hospital has provided services to women since 1922 including training for female doctors, and later nurses. Until the 1960s its staff were almost exclusively female. It became a public hospital in 1930 and developed into a centre for innovation in the treatment of breast cancer and orthopaedic surgery before closing in 2000.

Crown Street Women Hospital

Designed as a three storey 75 bed maternity hospital which could also provide visiting maternity nurses within a one mile radius, the brick building was constantly modified to provide better facilities until closure in 1983 saw it converted to apartments.

full record »

Myee

Late Victorian residence built for solicitor and Mayor of Rockdale John Horatio Clayton. It became a home for babies and young unmarried mothers who had been committed by the Children's Court to state care. Some mothers retained their babies after they left Myee, but many babies were adopted. From 1977 it was used as a home for secondary school aged boys who were considered to have intellectual disabilities.

full record »

Royal Hospital for Women

full record »

Hospital constructed for the Benevolent Society on Oxford Street Paddington around the Therry house, Flinton. Partly demolished in 1997 for repurposing as apartments.

Australian College of Midwives - NSW Branch Incorporated

Professional organisation supporting midwives in their work and providing services to women and birthing families.

full record »

Australian Mothercraft Society

Organisation to promote maternal and child health based on the work of Dr Truby King in New Zealand which was established when his controversial baby feeding methods were no longer used by the Royal Society for the Welfare of Mothers and Babies.

full record »

Buckland Convalescent Home Springwood

Convalescent hospital at Springwood endowed by Sir Thomas Buckland in 1934 as a public hospital' for the relief of female mental patients'.

full record »

Crown Street Women's Hospital

full record »

Maternity and women's hospital which became the largest in Sydney when it moved to Crown Street in 1897, catering for Sydney's inner-city population and training hundreds of doctors, nurses and midwives. Closed in 1983, its facilities were transferred to hospitals in Sydney's outer suburbs.

Crusade to Women

Home established by George Ardill for homeless female alcoholics.

full record »

Female Immigrants' Home

full record »

Organisation founded by Caroline Chisholm in 1841 to provide accommodation and support for the large numbers of single women migrating to New South Wales. The Home occupied a portion in the south west of the Immigrants Barracks on Bent Street opposite the corner of Phillip Street. It opened in November 1841 and closed on 5 May 1842 after providing for thousands of women.

Government Asylum for Infirm and Destitute Women

Established in part of Hyde Park Barracks in 1862. Closed in 1886 and the patients were removed to Newington Asylum on the Parramatta River.

full record »

Home of Hope for Friendless and Fallen Women

Hospital established in Newtown by George Ardill in 1884 for women to safely give birth.

full record »

Ladies' Sanitary Association

Women's community organisation which delivered lectures on sanitary housekeeping and disease prevention particularly in poor suburbs and communities and which lobbied for public conveniences for women.

full record »

Leichhardt Women's Health Centre

Health centre to provide low cost medical and complementary health care to women on low incomes.

full record »

New South Wales Rape Crisis Centre

Counselling service for anyone in Australia who has experienced or is at risk of sexual assault, family or domestic violence.

full record »

Newington Asylum

Asylum for infirm and destitute women established on the former estate of John Blaxland.

full record »

Parragirls

Support group formed by former Parramatta Girls to provide a contact register and support network for former occupants of the Parramatta Girls Home and their families.

full record »

Royal Hospital for Women

Founded as the lying-in hospital of the Benevolent Society in 1820, the Royal Hospital for Women operated in Paddington from 1901 to 1997, before moving to its current buildings in Randwick.

full record »

Sydney Dorcas Society

Nineteenth century charitable group offering home help and other assistance to pregnant women during their confinement.

full record »

Sydney Female Mission Home

Charity run home established to provide spiritual guidance and material support to abused women and girls.

full record »

Sydney Women's Liberation

Feminist group who campaigned against domestic violence, discrimination in the workforce and restrictive birth control information and procedures.

full record »

Berne, Dagmar

full record »

First female student to study medicine in Australia, who, during her short life, pioneered women's health services in Sydney.

Dakers, Jennifer

Women's liberationist who sought to provide practical help to women and children who were victims of domestic violence.

full record »

Dixson, Emma Elizabeth

Philanthropist, devout Baptist and wife of one of Sydney's most prominent businessmen.

full record »

Dagmar Berne c1890

full record »

By

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[9873_a025_a025000112]

Dagmar Berne, first woman medical student 1890

full record »

Contributed By

University of Sydney Archives

Dagmar Berne, first woman medical student, in academic dress 1890

full record »

Contributed By

University of Sydney Archives

Entrance to the All Night Refuge for Women and Children in Beauchamp Lane, Surry Hills March 1939

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[ON 388/Box 026/Item 040]

(Mitchell Library, courtesy ACP Magazines Ltd)

Florence Holloway's Obstetric Nursing certificate from the Royal Hospital for Women, 18 February 1908

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[MLMSS 8046 / Item 6]

(Mitchell Library)

Lady Denison opening new wing at Rachel Forster Hospital 21 August 1926

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Mitchell Library)

Leichhardt Women's Community Health Centre, Leichhardt 1975

full record »

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A6180/6]

Rachel Forster Hospital for Women and Children, Redfern 1942

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_10516 / Home and Away 10516]

Rachel Forster Hospital, George Street, Redfern 15 June 1938

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[ACP Magazines Photographic Archive ON 388/Box 033/Item 082, 3]

(Mitchell Library)

Rachel Forster Hospital, Redfern 1944

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_10794 / Home and Away 10794]

Royal Hospital for Women, Paddington December 1936

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_08134 / Home and Away 8134]

The Rachel Forster Hospital's fifth birthday celebrations, Redfern 1927

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[The Bulletin, 3 November 1927, p44 (detail) via Trove]

The Sydney Infirmary: But the poor woman will die if she is not attended to 1869

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Sydney Punch, 4 September 1869, p128)

The Sydney Milky Way; or Infant Poison 1875

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[Sydney Punch, 14 May 1875, p1 via Trove]

Health and Welfare Institutions