EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
RECOMMENDATION TO THE
HERITAGE COUNCIL TO
AMEND AN EXISTING REGISTRATION
NAME
DATE REGISTERED:
VHR NUMBER:
HERITAGE OVERLAY NO:
LOCATION
CATEGORY
FILE NUMBER:
HERMES NUMBER:
FORMER OVENS BENEVOLENT ASYLUM
(FORMERLY KNOWN AS OVENS AND MURRAY HOSPITAL FOR THE AGED)
20 AUGUST 1998
VHR H1510
HO76
5 WARNERS ROAD, BEECHWORTH
Heritage Place
10/023012
118
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR RECOMMENDATION TO THE HERITAGE COUNCIL:
To amend the existing registration for VHR H1510 in accordance with s.54 of the Heritage Act 1995 by:
 Including additional land and clarifying the extent of registration [under sections 27(1), 54 and
32(1)(a)].
 Adding a permit policy and permit exemptions in accordance with s.42(4) of the Act.
Reasons for the proposed amendment:
The registration of the Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum, formerly known as the Ovens & Murray
Hospital for the Aged. The place was added to the Register of Government Buildings in 1982 and was
transferred to the Victorian Heritage Register in May 1998. Only the buildings are included in the Extent
of Registration, but no land. Places first registered after 1982 usually include significant buildings, the
land on which they sit and an appropriate curtilage. The registration of the place is being updated to
reflect this change.
The existing registration documentation is provided at Attachment 1 of this report.
TIM SMITH
Executive Director
Recommendation Date: 15 May 2015
PROPOSED EXTENT OF REGISTRATION
All of the place shown hatched on Diagram 1510 encompassing all of Lot 3 on Plan of Subdivision 704124, all
of Lots 1, 2 and CM1 and parts of Lots 5, 6, B and CM2 on Plan of Subdivision 708844.
The extent of registration of the Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum in the Victorian Heritage Register affects
the whole place shown on Diagram 1510 including the land, all buildings, roads, trees, landscape elements
and other features.
2
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
AERIAL PHOTO SHOWING ADDITION OF LAND
Note: Buildings listed in the former Register of Government Buildings had no land, including no land
underneath the buildings.
3
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
PROPOSED STATEMENT OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE
What is significant?
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum (later known as the Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged),
consisting of the main building (1862-70) and the 1881 extension, the former Chinese ward, the former
laundry and isolation ward (now part of what is referred to as the recreation wing), all thought to have been
constructed in the 1860s, the Wallace Memorial Ward of 1890, the 1938 gatehouse, the 1939 Coronation
oak tree and the remnants of the original landscaping.
History Summary
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum was built to provide accommodation and long-term care for the
elderly, infirm or destitute who were unable to care for themselves. The Asylum was initiated by a
committee formed in 1861 and made up of Beechworth’s prominent early citizens, including James Ingram
and George Kerford, who later became Premier of Victoria. Construction began in 1862 on an elevated site
overlooking the town. The main building was designed by John Coe and constructed in three stages, as
demand for the institution’s facilities increased. The first stage, the central section of the main building,
containing two dormitories and four smaller rooms, was constructed in 1862-63. This was extended in a
similar style towards the west in 1866-67 and to the east in 1870. The recreation wing incorporates a laundry
and an isolation ward which are thought to have been built during the 1860s, as was the building known as
the Chinese ward later used as a chapel. An extension to the 1866 wing was built in 1881. The Wallace
Memorial Ward, funded by the local mining entrepreneur and parliamentarian John A Wallace and designed
by the architect Donald Fiddes, was constructed in 1890 solely for female residents. The buildings were set
amidst a designed landscape with a variety of trees, shrubs and flowers. The entrance to the complex was
moved in 1938 from Albert Road to Warner Road, and a new gatehouse was built, which has been relocated
to the rear of the site. The large oak at the rear of the 1881 building was grown from one of the acorns from
the Royal Park, Windsor, which were distributed throughout the Empire to commemorate the coronation of
King George VI in 1937 and planted here in 1939. The Benevolent Asylum was renamed the Ovens
Benevolent Home in 1935, and became the Ovens and Murray Home in 1954. In 1974 it became the Ovens
and Murray Hospital for the Aged. A major redevelopment programme, which began in the 1960s,
transformed the site into a specialist geriatric centre servicing all of north-east Victoria. This required the
construction of a number of new buildings between the 1960s and 1980s, and the old buildings also
underwent major renovation works at that time. In 1992 the Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged was
amalgamated with the Ovens District Hospital to form the Beechworth Hospital. By the late 1990s many of
the buildings were considered inadequate and the hospital was closed in 2005. The site has now been
subdivided and sold, and many of the 1960s and later buildings have been, or are being, demolished.
Description Summary
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is a complex of buildings on an elevated site overlooking the
Beechworth township to the west. The main building (1862-70) is a single-storey building in an unusual
Victorian Tudor style. The front façade is most decorative, with walls of tuck-pointed bi-chrome brick laid in
a diaper pattern, and four projecting bays with curvilinear parapeted gables. There are paired Gothic pointed
windows and unusual wrought iron finials. The U-shaped plan encloses a courtyard at the rear. The 1881
extension to the 1866 wing is in a similar Tudor style, but of a simpler form, with stepped parapeted gables
and flat arched windows. The originally detached single-storey brick former laundry and isolation ward are
now incorporated into the former recreation wing. The former Chinese ward is a free-standing single-storey
brick building with a gable roof and an enclosed verandah along the west side. The Wallace Memorial Ward
is a free-standing red brick building with cement dressings. It is domestic in character, with a central
4
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
projecting arched portico with decorated bargeboards and is flanked on both sides with bull-nosed
verandahs on turned timber posts. The site has been subdivided and many of the later twentieth century
hospital buildings and additions have been demolished. Remnants of the original landscaping survive,
including evidence of the route of the original entrance drive and turning circle, and important specimen
trees: two exceptionally large and outstanding Arbutus unedo, a Cedrus deodara and a Quercus robur, along
the route of the original driveway; a fine Cedrus deodara in the centre of the turning circle; and at the rear of
the main building the Coronation oak, Quercus robur.
How is it significant?
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is of architectural and historical significance to the State of Victoria. It
satisfies the following criterion for inclusion in the Victorian Heritage Register:
Criterion A
Importance to the course, or pattern, of Victoria’s cultural history.
Criterion B
Possession of uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of Victoria’s cultural history.
Criterion D
Importance in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural places and objects.
Why is it significant?
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is significant at the State level for the following reasons:
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is historically significant as an example of the philanthropic welfare
facilities which were established throughout Victoria during the prosperous and confident post-gold rush
period. Many of Victoria's major health and social welfare institutions were initiated at this time in response
to the public desire to assist disadvantaged groups, at a time when governments provided few such services.
Benevolent asylums were established in Melbourne and regional centres from the 1850s to care for the
aged, poor and infirm, but few of these institutions have survived intact. The individual asylum buildings at
Beechworth, notably the main wing, with its several wards and dormitories, the laundry and isolation ward,
the Chinese ward and the later Wallace Ward, built exclusively for women, helps to provide some
understanding of the problems associated with life for the disadvantaged in nineteenth century Victoria. The
1938 former gatehouse is an unusual feature which provides evidence of the continuing need for the
institution during the 1930s depression. The remains of the original landscape and trees on the site reflect
the importance attached to a picturesque garden setting for such institutions at the time, when nature was
seen as a panacea for social ills. The 1939 Coronation oak is the only known surviving King George VI
commemorative oak in Victoria. [Criteria A and B]
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is architecturally significant as an outstanding example, largely intact
externally, of a benevolent asylum, a nineteenth century building type designed to provide long-term
accommodation for those unable to look after themselves. It is probably the best surviving example of a
nineteenth century benevolent asylum in Victoria. The main building and the more simply designed Wallace
wing are important examples of purpose-designed benevolent asylum buildings, designed on a smaller, more
domestic scale than other benevolent asylums in the state. It is significant as an unusual example of a the
Victorian period Tudor style, which was adopted for several benevolent asylum buildings in Victoria in the
mid-nineteenth century. [Criteria B and D]
5
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is also significant for the following reasons, but not at the State level:
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum is significant for its association with the early history of Beechworth. It
demonstrates the civic development that took place in Beechworth after the peak of the gold rush, when the
town was emerging as the administrative centre of north east Victoria. It is a reflection of the prosperity of
the local community in the 1860s, following the gold rushes, and is a monument to the communitymindedness of early settlers. It is significant as a major community asset, which was an important source of
employment in the town, and which served the people of Beechworth and north-east Victoria from 1863
until 2005. It is significant for its association with some of Beechworth’s prominent early citizens, such as
James Ingram and George Kerferd, who were instrumental in the establishment and the continuing existence
of the asylum in the nineteenth century, and John A Wallace, the local entrepreneur who funded the
construction of the Wallace Memorial Ward in memory of his wife, Theresa. It is also associated with the
local architects John Coe and Donald Fiddes who designed the buildings. The elaborately decorated façade of
the main building has been a prominent landmark in Beechworth since the 1860s.
6
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
PROPOSED PERMIT POLICY
DRAFT ONLY – NOT YET APPROVED BY THE HERITAGE COUNCIL
Preamble
The purpose of the Permit Policy is to assist when considering or making decisions regarding works to a
registered place. It is recommended that any proposed works be discussed with an officer of Heritage
Victoria prior to making a permit application. Discussing proposed works will assist in answering questions
the owner may have and aid any decisions regarding works to the place.
The extent of registration of the Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum in the Victorian Heritage Register
affects the whole place shown on Diagram 1510 including the land, all buildings, roads, trees, landscape
elements and other features. Under the Heritage Act 1995 a person must not remove or demolish, damage
or despoil, develop or alter or excavate, relocate or disturb the position of any part of a registered place or
object without approval. It is acknowledged, however, that alterations and other works may be required to
keep places and objects in good repair and adapt them for use into the future.
If a person wishes to undertake works or activities in relation to a registered place or registered object, they
must apply to the Executive Director, Heritage Victoria for a permit. The purpose of a permit is to enable
appropriate change to a place and to effectively manage adverse impacts on the cultural heritage
significance of a place as a consequence of change. If an owner is uncertain whether a heritage permit is
required, it is recommended that Heritage Victoria be contacted.
Permits are required for anything which alters the place or object, unless a permit exemption is granted.
Permit exemptions usually cover routine maintenance and upkeep issues faced by owners as well as minor
works. They may include appropriate works that are specified in a conservation management plan. Permit
exemptions can be granted at the time of registration (under s.42 of the Heritage Act) or after registration
(under s.66 of the Heritage Act).
It should be noted that the addition of new buildings to the registered place, as well as alterations to the
interior and exterior of existing buildings requires a permit, unless a specific permit exemption is granted.
Cultural heritage management plans
The Conservation Management Plan for the Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum (Ovens and Murray Hospital
for the Aged), completed by Bryce Raworth in 2006 may provide guidance for the future management of the
site.
Overview of significance
The Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum has had many alterations and additions during its lifetime, but its
cultural heritage significance lies in its use as a benevolent institution from the 1860s until the mid-twentieth
century. Most important are the buildings constructed as part of the asylum during the nineteenth century:
the various wings of the main building, the former recreation wing which incorporates the original laundry
and isolation ward, the Chinese ward (later used as a chapel),and the Wallace Memorial Ward. The 1938
former gatehouse is an unusual feature which provides evidence of the continuing need for the institution
during the 1930s depression. The complex retains the general form of a nineteenth century asylum complex,
a building type unique to the nineteenth century, with a number of separate buildings in a garden setting.
The remnants of the Asylum gardens are therefore significant. The interiors retain evidence of the original
room arrangements and such features as windows and some coved timber ceilings in the main building.
7
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
a) All of the buildings and features listed here are of primary cultural heritage significance in the
context of the place. The buildings and features of cultural heritage significance are shown in red on
the diagram. A permit is required for most works or alterations. See Permit Exemptions section for
specific permit exempt activities:
•
main building, including the 1862-70 sections and the 1881 addition
•
the former laundry and isolation ward within the recreation wing
•
the former Chinese ward/chapel building
•
the Wallace Ward
•
the 1938 gatehouse
•
the 1939 Quercus robur
•
two exceptionally large and outstanding Arbutus unedo, a Cedrus deodara and a Quercus
robur, located along the route of the original driveway from Albert Road
•
a fine Cedrus deodara in the centre of the turning circle at the front of the main building.
b) The following buildings and features are of no cultural heritage significance. These are shown in
yellow on diagram. Specific permit exemptions are provided for these items:
•
Late twentieth century buildings
•
Late twentieth century additions to the nineteenth century buildings.
c) Archaeological: Ground disturbance may affect the archaeological significance of the place and,
subject to the exemptions stated in this document, requires a permit.
8
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
PROPOSED PERMIT EXEMPTIONS (UNDER SECTION 42 OF THE
HERITAGE ACT)
DRAFT ONLY – NOT YET APPROVED BY THE HERITAGE COUNCIL – RECOMMENDED UNDER SECTION 33 OF
THE HERITAGE ACT
It should be noted that Permit Exemptions can be granted at the time of registration (under s.42(4) of the
Heritage Act). Permit Exemptions can also be applied for and granted after registration (under s.66 of the
Heritage Act)
9
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
General Condition 1
All exempted alterations are to be planned and carried out in a manner which prevents damage to the fabric
of the registered place or object.
General Condition 2
Should it become apparent during further inspection or the carrying out of works that original or previously
hidden or inaccessible details of the place or object are revealed which relate to the significance of the place
or object, then the exemption covering such works shall cease and Heritage Victoria shall be notified as soon
as possible.
General Condition 3
All works should be informed by Conservation Management Plans prepared for the place. The Executive
Director is not bound by any Conservation Management Plan, and permits still must be obtained for works
suggested in any Conservation Management Plan.
General Condition 4
Nothing in this determination prevents the Heritage Council from amending or rescinding all or any of the
permit exemptions.
General Condition 5
Nothing in this determination exempts owners or their agents from the responsibility to seek relevant
planning or building permits from the relevant responsible authority, where applicable.
Specific Permit Exemptions
Exterior
•
Minor repairs and maintenance which replace like with like.
•
Removal of non-original items such as air conditioners, pipe work, ducting, wiring, antennae, aerials
etc and making good in a manner not detrimental to the cultural heritage significance of the place.
•
Installation or removal of non-original external fixtures and fittings such as hot water services and
taps in a manner not detrimental to the cultural heritage significance of the place.
•
Repair and replacement of non-original fences and gates in a manner not detrimental to the cultural
heritage significance of the place.
•
Installation or repair of damp-proofing by either injection method or grouted pocket method in a
manner which does not affect the cultural heritage significance of the place.
Interior
•
Painting of previously painted walls and ceilings provided that preparation or painting does not
remove evidence of any original paint or other decorative scheme.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of non-original carpets and/or flexible floor coverings.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of non-original curtain tracks, rods and blinds.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of hooks, nails and other devices for the hanging of mirrors,
paintings and other wall mounted art.
•
Removal or installation of notice boards.
10
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
•
Demolition or removal of non-original stud/partition walls, suspended ceilings or non-original wall
linings (including plasterboard, laminate and Masonite), non-original glazed screens, non-original
flush panel or part-glazed laminated doors, aluminium-framed windows, bathroom partitions and
tiling, sanitary fixtures and fittings, kitchen wall tiling and equipment, lights, built-in cupboards,
cubicle partitions, computer and office fitout and the like.
•
Removal of non-original door and window furniture including, hinges, locks, knobsets and sash lifts.
•
Removal of non-original glazing to internal timber-framed, double hung sash windows, and
replacement with clear or plain opaque glass.
•
Refurbishment of existing bathrooms, toilets and kitchens including removal, installation or
replacement of sanitary fixtures and associated piping, mirrors, wall and floor coverings.
•
Removal of tiling or concrete slabs in wet areas provided there is no damage to or alteration of
original structure or fabric.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of ducted, hydronic or concealed radiant type heating provided
that the installation does not damage existing skirtings and architraves and that the central plant is
concealed, and is done in a manner not detrimental to the cultural heritage significance of the place.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of electrical wiring provided that all new wiring is fully
concealed and any original light switches, pull cords, push buttons or power outlets are retained insitu. Note: if wiring original to the place was carried in timber conduits then the conduits should
remain in situ.
•
Installation, removal or replacement of electric clocks, public address systems, detectors, alarms,
emergency lights, exit signs, luminaires and the like on plaster surfaces.
•
Installation of new fire hydrant services including sprinklers, fire doors and elements affixed to
plaster surfaces.
•
Installation of new built-in cupboards providing no alteration to the structure is required and there is
no intrusion on original coved timber ceilings in the main building.
Landscape Exemptions:
•
The process of gardening, including mowing, hedge clipping, construction and maintenance of
bedding displays, removal of dead shrubs, disease and weed control, and maintenance to care for
existing plants.
•
The removal of dead or dangerous trees to maintain safety. If the tree is identified as being of
primary or contributory cultural heritage significance, the Executive Director must be notified of
these works within 21 days of them being undertaken.
•
Replanting of removed or dead trees and vegetation with the same plant species to conserve the
significant landscape character and values.
•
Management of trees in accordance with Australian Standard; Pruning of Amenity Trees AS 43731996.
•
Management of trees in accordance with Australian Standard; Protection of Trees on Development
Sites AS 4970-2009.
•
Subsurface works involving the installation, removal or replacement of watering and drainage
systems or services outside the canopy edge of significant trees in accordance with AS4970 and on
the condition that works do not impact on archaeological features or deposits.
•
Removal of plants listed as noxious weeds in the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994.
11
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
•
Vegetation protection and management of possums and vermin.
Hard landscape elements:
•
Maintenance and repair to roads and pathways that are not part of the original design, and do not
affect the cultural heritage significance.
Specific Exemptions:
•
All internal and external works (including demolition) of late twentieth century buildings and late
twentieth century additions to the nineteenth century buildings, excluding the construction of new
buildings or new additions.
12
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
•
RELEVANT INFORMATION
LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY
Indigo
HERITAGE LISTING INFORMATION
Heritage Overlay:
HO76
Other listing:
Classified by the National Trust at a State level (B622)
HISTORY
Contextual history
Beechworth owes its existence to the discovery of gold in 1852. The Beechworth area was first settled by
squatters from 1837, but the discovery of gold resulted in a rush of miners to the area - about 8,000 arriving
by November that year. The British, Chinese and Americans were the largest immigrant groups on the
goldfields. The Ovens was an important river system in north-east Victoria and gave its name to the
goldfields in this area. The town developed around the Gold Commissioner’s Camp, established in 1852 on
the granite hill on the north bank of Spring Creek. The township was first known as Mayday Hills, but when
surveyed in 1853, it was named Beechworth. The main overland route between Melbourne and Sydney
passed through the town until the 1870s (when the railway was built further to the west), and until then
Beechworth was one of the richest towns in Victoria and the financial and administrative centre of the
north-east .
Most of the earliest shelters on the Ovens goldfields were canvas tents. For many years labour was scarce
and expensive and when the diggers decided to build more permanent homes they usually built it
themselves. These were usually modest structures, using primitive building techniques and readily available
materials such as split slabs and logs, and gradually extended as time and funds allowed. During the late
1850s and early 1860s architect-designed buildings tended to be confined to government buildings and
churches. There were few if any architect-designed houses in Beechworth. This changed with the increasing
prosperity of the miners, and especially after the election of a Council in 1856 and the introduction of
building regulations. Many of the town’s major buildings were erected during the following five years,
including the Ovens District Hospital (1856, VHR H358) and the Burke Museum (VHR H345, begun in 1857 by
the Young Men’s Association as a hall and library), and the first town hall in 1859. By the early 1860s a group
of important administrative buildings, known as the Beechworth Justice Precinct (VHR H1464), had been
completed along the south side of Ford Street, and a large gaol (VHR H1549) was begun to the north of this
in 1858. The Beechworth Lunatic Asylum, later the Mayday Hills Hospital (VHR H1864-67), was built in 186467, and the landmark post office (VHR H867) was completed in 1870.
The Ovens gold rushes peaked in 1857, and during the following two decades, the population of Beechworth
decreased (though the last mining company in the district only closed in 1956). Despite the decline in the
gold industry the town was sustained well into the twentieth century by the presence of the government
institutions founded in the 1850s and 1860s: the asylum and the gaol.
Tourism has now become a major industry in Beechworth. Tourism began in the 1880s with the town’s
reputation as a health resort and picturesque beauty spot. The declining prosperity of the town had the
advantage that the post-World War II development that led to the destruction of so much of Victoria’s
nineteenth century fabric during the 1950s-70s was avoided. At this time there was an increasing awareness
of the importance of Victoria’s early history and heritage. In the 1960s the National Trust was active in
classifying Beechworth’s early buildings, and efforts began to restore buildings which had fallen into
13
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
disrepair. The retention of much of the town’s historic character has now made it a popular tourist
destination.
Benevolent asylums in Victoria
During the prosperous 1850s a number of charitable institutions, including benevolent asylums, were
established throughout the colony, driven by nineteenth century philanthropic ideals and funded by the
wealth of the post-gold rush period. At this time the responsibility for health care was left entirely to families
and to charitable institutions. A number of benevolent asylums were established in Melbourne and in the
larger towns (including Ballarat, Bendigo and Castlemaine) to care for those who were elderly, infirm or
down on their luck. While the government provided some financial assistance, voluntary subscriptions were
the major source of income for the asylums. In contrast to the squalid conditions in English workhouses,
Victorian asylums accommodated the poor in imposing public buildings set amidst spacious grounds. By
1910-11 there were eight benevolent asylums in Victoria. They were run by private organisations but
received government funding, as well as receiving private contributions, municipal grants, money from
fundraising events, and payments from patients.
Place history
Beechworth was a significant social welfare centre in Victoria, and in the 1860s the Government subsidised a
benevolent asylum and financed a lunatic asylum in the town. A large proportion of the population in the
Ovens area were engaged in activities that made them peculiarly liable to permanent injury or illness. Mining
was dangerous, and conditions on the goldfields were harsh and unsanitary. When the Ovens Hospital
opened in Beechworth in 1857 it was the only medical and surgical hospital between Melbourne and
Goulburn in New South Wales. The Hospital was intended to provide short-term care for the sick and
injured, but there was no place which cared for those with permanent conditions who required long-term
care, or for the aged, infirm or destitute. In July 1861 a meeting was held to discuss the idea of providing
some form of asylum for these people. A committee was formed with George Kerferd, later to become
Premier of Victoria, as president. James Ingram was a long-serving committee member, associated with the
committee, mostly as Vice-president or President, for 67 years from 1861 until shortly before his death in
1928, weeks before his 100th birthday. Arthur Fife was the first collector (of money) and the first paid
secretary, holding the post until 1901.
The nineteenth century buildings
A five acre site for a benevolent asylum was granted by the Government in March 1862, and a further two
acres were purchased by the hospital committee, on a hill to the east of the town. The architect John Coe
drew up plans and specifications for the new Ovens Benevolent Asylum using the benevolent asylums at
Ballarat, Bendigo and Castlemaine as models. The contract was awarded to the builders Messrs Redfern &
King to construct two wards (each measuring 22 x 16 ft) and four other rooms, at a price of £843 (the final
cost was £939.19.10. Three of the rooms were to be for patients and the remaining room was for the
superintendent or matron. The foundation stone was laid on Christmas Eve 1862, and the building was
completed on 4 April 1863 and opened on 10 August 1863. Contracts were also let during 1863 for other
building works, such as a detached kitchen, a bedroom, a laundry, closets (presumably earth or water
closets), fencing, a drying room and a ‘dead-house’ (mortuary).
By the end of 1863 the asylum was already at capacity, with 23 residents and more seeking admission. Half
of the residents were orphaned or deserted children, but the asylum was not able to care for these, and
many were sent to Melbourne industrial schools.
In 1866 John Coe designed an extension at the western end of the earlier (1863) building, in the same style,
containing two wards (22 x 16 ft) and two large dormitories (48 x 183ft), to address the overcrowding
problem. The contract was let to the builders Greig & Wilson and was completed in February 1867 for
14
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
£1125, of which the Government had contributed £1000. Beechworth’s third hospital, Mayday Hills
Psychiatric Hospital, opened in the same year.
In 1870 the Asylum was extended again, with a matching addition to the east, to accommodate sixteen new
residents as well as a new linen store. It was constructed by James Tilsley at a cost of £727.10.0. By the end
of 1870, a total of 225 residents had been admitted to the Asylum, and with deaths and discharges, there
were 47 residents. In 1870 a cottage was built near the north-east end of the Asylum for the Secretary (this
was demolished in 1958). In 1881 an additional building for fifteen residents was constructed, probably at
one end of the present ‘recreation block’, at the rear of the main building.
In 1890 the 12 bed Wallace Memorial Ward was built, the first solely for female residents. It was financed
almost entirely by a donation of £1100 from the local mining entrepreneur and parliamentarian, John A
Wallace, whose wife had died in child-birth a few years before. It was designed by the architect Donald
Fiddes and built by Thomas Sandham and John Lyell for a cost of £1176. In 1973 this ward commenced use
as a Day Hospital, and later became the hospital administration building.
The Asylum considered that it had a duty to care for all people, whether European or Chinese. Many of the
Chinese miners were in a particularly difficult situation as they aged, with no family to care for them. They
often relied on ‘outdoor relief’ (the distribution of food and clothing) from the Asylum. The Chinese
contributed generously to funds for the local hospital and the Asylum, and two Chinese men were among
the life governors of the Asylum. By 1900 the Asylum was giving relief to over 100 aged and ill Chinese,
largely in the form of food and clothing. This relief ended only in 1941.
Changes in the twentieth century:
Although the Asylum was seriously affected by the depression of the 1930s which seriously drained its
financial resources, expansion and considerable improvements were carried out at this time. Electric lighting
was installed in 1930 and a new sewerage system in 1933; and in 1935-36 the block containing the kitchen,
laundry, services, stores and staff dining room was upgraded; and bathrooms were renovated. The sick ward
was also extended, and a duty room, sterilising room and toilets were added. In 1935 the Ovens Benevolent
Asylum became the Ovens Benevolent Home.
The original entrance to the institution was in Albert Road. But in 1938 new gates (the John McConvill
Memorial Gates), a gatehouse (since relocated within the site) and a circular driveway were constructed
from Warner Road, closer to the building entrance.
The Asylum gardens have been an important part of the site since the nineteenth century. A picturesque
garden setting was considered to be therapeutic. The gardens also served a practical purpose, being used to
grow vegetables for the residents: by 1872 it was noted that all the vegetables for the asylum (with the
exception of potatoes) were grown in the grounds by the residents. The large oak tree behind the main
buildings is one of many grown from acorns from the Great Park, Windsor in England and made available
throughout the Commonwealth to commemorate the coronation of King George VI in 1939. The acorns for
Australia were forwarded to the Australian Automobile Association, which divided them among various
organisations in each state. The Royal Automotive Club of Victoria (RACV) offered these to the various
Victorian municipalities in Victoria, but the Beechworth tree is the only one known to survive.
The name of the institution changed several times during the twentieth century. In 1954 it became the
Ovens and Murray Home, and in 1974 it again changed, to the Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged, in
recognition of its changing role at that time.
15
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
Following Work War II the Commonwealth Government decided that benevolent homes should provide
more therapeutic, as well as custodial, care. The Beechworth Asylum required major changes. In 1950
conditions were so poor that the elderly refused to go there: some former inmates were camping out at the
powder magazine in preference to returning to the Asylum. A master plan was prepared for the site, which
led to a number of changes: in 1954 a new bathroom block was built to the south-east of the 1866 wards; in
1957 the Superintendent’s residence was demolished and in 1959 was replaced. But it was not until the
1960s that significant change began to occur, and a major redevelopment programme from the mid-1960s
until the 1980s transformed the former asylum into a specialist geriatric centre, providing services for the
aged of north-east Victoria. A nursing home was built, the existing dormitories were remodelled and their
verandahs enclosed. A number of new buildings were added to the site, including a new administration
building, day hospital, kitchen wing, mortuary, service block and staff flats. A range of new health services
were introduced, including physiotherapy and occupational therapy (in the old Chinese ward), and a library
was established.
A restructure of the Victorian public health sector occurred in the 1990s, and in 1992 the Ovens and Murray
Hospital for the Aged was amalgamated with the Ovens District Hospital to form the Beechworth Hospital,
which became the Beechworth Health Service in 1998. After the Mayday Hills Psychiatric Hospital closed in
1995, the Beechworth Hospital took over its psychiatric services. However by the later 1990s, many of the
buildings on the site were dilapidated and outdated, and the site was vacated in 2005.
The site has now been subdivided and sold (2015), and many of the 1960s and later buildings have been, or
are being, demolished.
VICTORIAN HISTORICAL THEMES
06
Building towns, cities and the garden state
6.4
Making regional centres
08
Building community life
8.3
Providing health and welfare services
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
The Ovens and Murray Hospital lies on an elevated site overlooking the town of Beechworth to the northwest. The buildings date from various periods from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The main
building, constructed in 3 stages (c1863, c1867 and c1870) is a single-storey Victorian Tudor Revival building
with the front façade featuring four projecting curvilinear parapeted gables. The walls are tuck-pointed bichrome brick on a dressed granite base and the roof is made of corrugated iron. The front façade features
paired Gothic pointed windows, dark brick diaperwork and unusual wrought iron finials. The U-shaped plan
encloses a courtyard at the rear. There are a number of unsympathetic additions (some of which have been
demolished (2015), and the stone dressings have been over-painted. Most of the interiors have been almost
completely stripped and remodelled over the years to accommodate the modern hospital. Although the
interior retains no original decorative schemes, the original room layouts and windows largely survive, and
the coved timber ceilings can be seen beneath the later suspended plaster ceilings.
The so-called ‘recreation wing’ at the rear of the main building incorporates two early buildings, probably
part of the original 1863 asylum: the laundry and the isolation ward. These originally detached buildings now
form part of a longer wing, with new buildings added, the space between the early buildings roofed, and a
verandah added along the length of the east side.
16
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
The building most recently used as a chapel may have been one of the buildings constructed in 1863, before
the opening of the Asylum. It is labelled on an c1950s aerial view as the ‘Chinese Building’. It is a single
storey brick building with a gable roof and an enclosed verandah along the west side.
The 1881 building, built as an extension to the 1866 wing is constructed of face brick on a granite base with a
gabled corrugated iron roof. It is of a simpler Tudor Revival style than the 1860s wings, and has a stepped
parapeted gable and flat arched windows. It is largely intact externally.
The Wallace Memorial Ward is a free-standing red brick building with cement dressings. It is domestic in
character, with a central projecting arched portico with decorated bargeboards flanked on both sides with
bull-nosed verandahs iron-roofed on turned timber posts. In the 1980s it was refurbished for use as the
administration building. The 1980s additions at the rear of this building have now been demolished.
The 1938 gatehouse has been relocated from the entrance on Warners Road to a site at the rear of the main
building, between the recreation wing and the 1939 oak tree. It is a small timber structure, square in plan,
with a hipped tiled roof and windows around all four sides.
The other buildings extant on the site in 2015 are of later twentieth century construction and are of little
heritage value. Some of these are being, or have already been, demolished.
OBJECTS AND INTERIORS
There are no original surviving decorative schemes or objects in any of the buildings.
LANDSCAPES, TREES & GARDENS
Located to the north of the main building, along what was the route of the original driveway from Albert
Road, are two exceptionally large and outstanding Arbutus unedo, a Cedrus deodara and a Quercus robur
and in the centre of the turning circle a fine Cedrus deodara. In the courtyard at the rear of the main building
is a magnificent English Oak, Quercus robur, planted on 9 August 1939 to commemorate the coronation of
King George VI.
INTEGRITY/INTACTNESS
There has been a continual development of the complex during its lifetime. The post-World War II
development was generally unsympathetic to the form of the early Asylum, and these later buildings
obscured views of the early buildings, so that it was difficult to gain an understanding of the form of the
nineteenth century Asylum. Works are continuing to remove many of these later accretions. The interiors
have been almost completely stripped of original features, although the original room arrangements can be
understood, and the original timber ceiling survives under later plaster ceilings in the main building. The
front elevation of the main buildings is largely intact, but the original appearance of the rear elevations
remains partly obscured, despite the partial removal of late twentieth century additions. The 1881 building
remains largely intact externally.
The Wallace Memorial Ward retains much of its original front façade, but later additions at the rear have
been removed, exposing the openings made to connect these additions to the Wallace Ward.
The landscape (while altered from its origins when the entrance drive was from Albert Road) and the
designed landscape which included a variety of trees, shrubs and flowers, still retains evidence of the original
drive and turning circle and important specimen trees.
17
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
CONDITION
The former asylum buildings are generally in poor condition. Since the complex ceased its use as a hospital in
2005, the buildings have been unused. Many of the later twentieth century buildings and later additions to
the nineteenth century buildings have been, or are in the process of being, demolished, leaving the rear of
the main buildings and the Wallace Ward exposed to the elements. Work is continuing on the site. [January
2015]
PROPOSED TEXT FOR THE BLUE HERITAGE PLAQUE
Note: The 1998 registration documentation did not include blue plaque text.
Established in 1862, this is an outstanding example of the benevolent asylums built in Victoria in the
nineteenth century to provide care for the elderly, infirm or destitute. It remained in use as part of the
Ovens & Murray Hospital for the Aged until 2005.
KEY REFERENCES USED TO PREPARE ASSESSMENT
Roy C Harvey, Background to Beechworth From 1852, Beechworth 1978.
Ian Hyndman, Out of the Goldfields: A History of the Ovens & Murray Hospital for the Aged, Beechworth
1993.
Bryce Raworth, ‘Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum (Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged), Warner Road,
Beechworth 3747, Conservation Management Plan’, Prepared for the Department of Treasury and Finance,
September 2006.
Carole Woods, Beechworth A Titan’s Field, North Melbourne 1985.
18
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
ADDITIONAL IMAGES
Early aerial view of site (c1950s)
19
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
Recent aerial view of hospital site (VHR H1510)
Key:
1 1862-63 wing
2 1866-67 wing
3 1870 wing
4 Recreation wing, incorporating c1863 laundry and isolation ward
5 Chapel, formerly ‘Chinese’ building
6 1881 wing
7 Wallace Memorial Wing
8 c1938 gatehouse
9 1939 oak tree
20
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
Front elevation of main building
Detail of brickwork on front façade
Front entrance
Demolition of later buildings in progress in rear courtyard
Removal of plaster ceilings in main building has Additions to rear of main building are being removed.
revealed original timber coved ceilings above.
21
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
The 1881 wing at the end of the 1866-67 wing
Former Chinese Ward, later used as a chapel
The recreation wing incorporates the c1863 laundry and isolation ward, with an enclosed verandah added.
The Wallace Memorial Ward
Rear view of Wallace Ward, with later additions
removed.
22
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
The 1938 gatehouse
The 1929 oak tree
23
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
ATTACHMENT 1
EXISTING REGISTRATION DETAILS
TO BE SUPERSEDED BY THE FOREGOING RECOMMENDATION
EXISTING EXTENT OF REGISTRATION
Amendment of Register of Government Buildings
Beechworth United Shire
Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged, Warners Road, Beechworth (the exterior fabric of the buildings
described in the plan held by the Ministry for Planning and Environment).
[Victoria Government Gazette No. G39 12 October 1988 p3086]
[Transferred to the Victorian Heritage Register 23 May 1998 (2 years after the proclamation of the Heritage
Act 1995 pursuant to the transitional provisions of the Act)]
EXISTING STATEMENT OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE
What is significant?
Construction of the Ovens Benevolent Asylum (now the Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged) began in
1862 on an elevated site overlooking the township of Beechworth. A building containing two dormitories
and a number of smaller rooms was constructed initially and in 1867 two additional wards and a third
dormitory were added. A second building, the J. A. Wallace Wing, was constructed in 1899 as a female ward.
24
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
Gold was discovered in the vicinity of Beechworth in 1852 and the following year it was declared a town. The
gold rush peaked there in 1857 and by the 1860s prospectors were moving to newer goldfields in the
district. Beechworth became an administrative and legal centre for the north-east region of Victoria and by
the time it became a municipality in 1863, many administrative buildings had been constructed. Such
buildings as the Lunatic Asylum, the Benevolent Asylum and a number of churches were subsequently built,
as emphasis turned to the development of Beechworth as a residential town as well as an important
administrative centre.
The original Benevolent Asylum building was designed in an unusual Flemish Gothic Revival style. The single
storey building is of red brick on a dressed granite base, and the main facade is dominated by four curved,
Flemish gable ends, those at the extremities being added to the original central section in 1867. This facade
incorporates paired windows of pointed Gothic form and dark brick diaperwork patterning. The adjacent J.
A. Wallace Wing of 1899 was designed by Donald Fiddes as a separate building. Also constructed of red brick,
Fiddes adopted a conservative approach, designing a simple domestic scale building with central projecting
gable porch and flanking bull nosed verandahs.
The Benevolent Asylum was renamed the Ovens Benevolent Home in 1935 and The Ovens and Murray Home
in 1954. Many buildings have been added to this site, particularly since the 1960s, including a poorly sited
addition to the front of the original building. Extensive internal renovations have also been made to the
original buildings.
How is it significant?
The Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged in Beechworth is of architectural and historical significance to
the State of Victoria.
Why is it significant?
The Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged is of architectural significance as an unusual example of Flemish
influenced design from the 1860s. Although the facade has been partly obscured, it remains intact, and,
together with the more simply designed Wallace wing, are important examples of early buildings designed
for the specific purpose of aged care. The Flemish gables remain as a dominant form of Beechworth's urban
landscape.
The Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged is of historical significance due to its association with the early
development of Beechworth and its dominant siting within the town. It is illustrative of the civic
development that took place in the town after the peak of the gold rush, when Beechworth was emerging as
the administrative centre of the north east of Victoria.
EXISTING PERMIT POLICY
There is no current Permit Policy for the place.
EXISTING PERMIT EXEMPTIONS
General Conditions: 1. All exempted alterations are to be planned and carried out in a manner which
prevents damage to the fabric of the registered place or object.
25
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118
General Conditions: 2. Should it become apparent during further inspection or the carrying out of works that
original or previously hidden or inaccessible details of the place or object are revealed which relate to the
significance of the place or object, then the exemption covering such works shall cease and Heritage Victoria
shall be notified as soon as possible. Note: All archaeological places have the potential to contain significant
sub-surface artefacts and other remains. In most cases it will be necessary to obtain approval from the
Executive Director, Heritage Victoria before the undertaking any works that have a significant sub-surface
component.
General Conditions: 3. If there is a conservation policy and plan all works shall be in accordance with it. Note:
A Conservation Management Plan or a Heritage Action Plan provides guidance for the management of the
heritage values associated with the site. It may not be necessary to obtain a heritage permit for certain
works specified in the management plan.
General Conditions: 4. Nothing in this determination prevents the Executive Director from amending or
rescinding all or any of the permit exemptions.
General Conditions: 5. Nothing in this determination exempts owners or their agents from the responsibility
to seek relevant planning or building permits from the responsible authorities where applicable.
Minor Works : Note: Any Minor Works that in the opinion of the Executive Director will not adversely affect
the heritage significance of the place may be exempt from the permit requirements of the Heritage Act. A
person proposing to undertake minor works must submit a proposal to the Executive Director. If the
Executive Director is satisfied that the proposed works will not adversely affect the heritage values of the
site, the applicant may be exempted from the requirement to obtain a heritage permit. If an applicant is
uncertain whether a heritage permit is required, it is recommended that the permits co-ordinator be
contacted.
26
Name: Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum
VHR number: VHR H1510
Hermes number: 118