Crown Street Women's Hospital


Crown Street Women's Hospital was once the largest maternity hospital in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was located at 351 Crown Street, Surry Hills.
The hospital was one of several stand-alone maternity hospitals in Sydney, none of which remain. It opened in 1893, and was closed in 1983. During its 90-year life, it trained hundreds of midwives and doctors, and was a teaching hospital of the University of Sydney. Many thousands of Sydney's residents were born there. When Westmead Hospital opened in Sydney's west, Crown St Hospital's maternity facilities were moved there, along with the general medical and surgical departments of Sydney Hospital on Macquarie Street, and the hospital was closed.
The Canonbury annex was demolished around 1983, with the site redeveloped as part of McKell Park.

History

Founded by Dr James Graham in 1893, the Women's Hospital in Crown Street aimed to lift the medical standards for maternity care. In addition to providing wards for surgical cases and complicated births the Hospital provided treatment in homes. Initial funding of the Women's Hospital came from public subscription, obstetric nurse training and student fees, with assistance from the Government in obtaining furniture and surgical instruments. The Board of the Women's Hospital met for the first time on 13 August 1895. One of the Hospital's early achievements was providing instruction to women who had previously acted as midwives without any medical certification. On 30 October 1919 the Permanent Auxiliary Organisation was founded to centralise offers of assistance. Permanent Auxiliary Centres were opened at Abbotsford in 1933 and Bondi-Waverley in 1937. By its Golden Jubilee in 1943 Crown Street Women's Hospital had become the largest maternity hospital in New South Wales.
The hospital's nurseries were divided into five categories: D, Premature, Adoption, Founders Isolation and Main.
The Crown Street Women's Hospital was closed on 31 March 1983 and its facilities were transferred to Westmead Hospital.
The Crown Street Women's Hospital Medical Records were transferred to Prince Of Wales Hospital Randwick.

Hospital history timeline

Medical Officers quarters, labour wards, and operating theatre, recovery room, and nurses quarters