Records relating to the Canberra Mothercraft Society dating back to 1926 have been identified by Archives ACT as its Find of the Month for July.
Archives ACT said that from 1920 to 1930, Canberra’s population more than quadrupled.
“There was an eagerness to develop more support for new mothers, with a focus on maternal and infant welfare, particularly once mothers left hospital,” Archives ACT said.
“Of key interest was the establishment of infant welfare centres and the desire for every family of a newborn baby to be offered a home visit by a suitably qualified nurse.”
It said from these early ideas grew an organisation that would significantly improve the lives of Canberra’s mothers and their children and go on to become the longest continuing health service provider in the ACT.
Archives ACT said by October 1926, the push for services was largely driven by the Ainslie Social Service Association and its Secretary, Percy McNamara, who said: “We have no maternity hospital here in the Federal Capital Territory, and the working-class women suffer accordingly for the want of a qualified service.”
The Archives said agreement was made to establish a clinic to provide advice to mothers, with the Federal Capital Commission providing a venue and funding for a nurse for two years.
Archives ACT said the Canberra Mothercraft Society was formed at a meeting in Acton Hall in February 1926, which was noted as being “one of the largest gatherings of women ever seen in Canberra”.
It said the first health centre was officially opened in Eastlake (now Kingston) in July 1927, soon followed by others as their popularity increased, which was not surprising considering the ACT had by far the highest birth rate in Australia.
Archives ACT said by the end of the 1960s, the Society operated 32 baby health clinics across Canberra, from Hall to Mawson and Harman to Macquarie; however, by this time, the Society began to feel the strain and in 1969 asked the ACT Health Services Branch of the Department of Health to take over their management.
It said in the 1980s the Society established a 24-hour telephone advisory service and in 1997 oversaw the move of the new QEII Family Centre to Curtin, which celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 2013.
Archives ACT said in recent years the Society has also focused on providing assistance to grandparents.
Archives ACT would like to hear from anyone who has ever used any of the Canberra Mothercraft Society’s services. It can be contacted by email at this PS News link.
