Toowoomba Hospital Foundation reveals Toowoomba’s museum of health

Australia’s first appendectomy on a table in a bedroom and the transformation of mental health care, find out what’s to come in Toowoomba’s new Museum of Health.

Opening of stage one of the Museum of Health in the grounds of Baillie Henderson Hospital, Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Picture: Kevin Farmer

A beautiful old building that was home to the first regional Qld medical superintendent and a mental health treatment pioneer, is restored and ready to house the stories it contributed to the region.

The 136-year-old heritage-listed building in northern Toowoomba was built for Dr James Hogg, who ran what was then known as the Toowoomba Lunatic Asylum.

At the turn of the 20th century, Toowoomba Lunatic Asylum was known for its medical superintendents, such as Dr James Hogg.

While mental health care has come a long way since then and even today continues to develop best practices, Dr Hogg was known for applying transformative ideas to the institution, regarding the residents as his patients, rather than inmates who belonged in cells.

Frederick Hurman, with a portrait of his wife's grandfather Dr James Hogg, at the opening of stage one of the Museum of Health in the grounds of Baillie Henderson Hospital, Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Picture: Kevin Farmer

The 133ha property became a way to give those suffering from mental health issues a chance to be employed in meaningful work as a self-sustaining community, rather than being locked inside a cell, the museum’s committee chair Denis Lennox said.

The property even boasted a cricket field, he said.

“It’s a phenomenal international representation of the transformation of the care of the people who were referred to then as insane or lunatics,” he said.

“Because there was no effective medical treatment it was a place were they could be kept safe and be occupied.”

For this reason, the house has become the very first artefact in the Museum of Health, museum director Marcella Cullin said.

Dr Hogg’s legacy has been continued in his nine children, and their children’s children, many taking on roles as doctors, nurses and health practitioners within Toowoomba.

His granddaughter, Mrs Janet Hurman, worked as a nurse and said she was incredibly proud of his accomplishments.

Retired doctor Rob Brodribb at the opening of stage one of the Museum of Health in the grounds of Baillie Henderson Hospital, Tuesday, October 22, 2024. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Once the precinct is complete, the humble family home will showcase antique collections from both the Toowoomba Base Hospital and Baillie Henderson, recognising the region’s contributions to healthcare.

The museum will not just archive physical items, but also stories, such as the first appendectomy done in Australia, said retired physician Rob Brodribb, who was part of the Base’s archival team.

“It wasn’t done in a hospital, but on a table in a bedroom in Toowoomba,” he said.

For now the heritage-listed house’s rooms stand empty except for their fireplaces, and is just the first stage of Toowoomba Hospital Foundation’s $8.5 million project.

The three-stage project will eventually turn the area surrounding the house into a museum, cafe, events and office space.