Image courtesy CALHN Health Museum.
South Australia’s History Festival 2023
The Happy Snaps and the Hospital Plans
Ever wondered what it was like training at the Northfield Infectious Diseases Hospital in the post war years? Or maybe you have wondered what the old Royal Adelaide Hospital site looked like over 100 years ago? THRF Group – Creative Health in collaboration with the CALHN Health Museum present an exhibition of photographs and architectural drawings from the CALHN historical collection.
The Happy Snaps:
Before it took its current iteration the site known as Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre was called the Metropolitan Infectious Disease’s Hospital. Opening in 1932, it replaced the overcrowded Infectious Diseases Block at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. From April 1948, the hospital was known as the Northfield Infectious Diseases Hospital or simply Northfield Wards.
Trainee Nurse Kathleen ‘Kate’ Brown worked at the hospital as part of her nursing training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. This collection of photographs are all taken from six pages of her photo album titled ‘Royal Adelaide Hospital Nov 1947 – Dec 50’. These photographs span the short period of time that she lived and worked at the hospital in 1948. The ‘happy snaps’ were taken by Kate and her friends and colleagues and show various aspects of life at the hospital.
The Hospital Plans:
The Royal Adelaide Hospital occupied the site at the Eastern end of North Terrace from 1856 to 2017. Over this time, an assortment of hospital buildings were built on the site. Many of the original 19th and early 20th Century buildings were demolished around 1963 when the hospital underwent major redevelopment.
The architectural plans and photographs show some of the original buildings that occupied the site and reflect on the ever-changing built environment of the hospital.
Important information: Please note: this event is held within a public hospital. We ask all visitors to follow SA Health guidelines and visiting requirements of the Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre.
Dates: 24 March – 5 July 2023
Location: THRF Group – Creative Health Gallery at Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre
Untitled (detail), 1948, 29.7 x 42cm.
The Happy Snaps and the Hospital Plans. Image courtesy CALHN Health Museum.
View from the back of the Royal Adelaide Hospital site, 1950, Image courtesy CALHN Health Museum.
Untitled (detail), 1948, 29.7 x 42cm.
The Happy Snaps and the Hospital Plans. Image courtesy CALHN Health Museum.
View from the back of the Royal Adelaide Hospital site, 1950, Image courtesy CALHN Health Museum.
