The Ovens Benevolent Asylum was opened in 1863 on a site in Warner Road adjacent to the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum. Known to generations of Beechworth residents as ‘The Benev’, the Asylum was one of a number of similar institutions across Victoria. It provided care for those who could not support themselves, particularly injured or aged miners, orphans, the elderly and the destitute. It has been described as the only institution that would treat the many Chinese miners at a time when there was extreme prejudice and antipathy towards them.
The Benev was funded by public donations from the citizens of Beechworth and managed by a local committee. The official laying of the foundation stone in December 1862 was marked by a big street parade and public celebration at which George Kerford, president of the institution, reported that over £700 had been raised, mainly from small donations of shillings and pence. This sum would allow the Benev to provide sanctuary and care for those in need, truly an asylum in the original sense of the word, in contrast to the harsh, punitive system of workhouses for the poor in Great Britain.
The original Ovens Benevolent Asylum building was of distinctive design, built in red brick on a granite base in the unusual Flemish Gothic Revival style. It was of one storey with four curved, Flemish gable ends on the main façade, paired windows in pointed Gothic style and brick patterning. Further buildings were constructed over the following years as the need for more beds became apparent.
In 1935, the name of the Benevolent Asylum was changed to Ovens Hospital for the Aged, becoming the Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged in 1974. As part of the move away from large institutions, in 1992 the Hospital for the Aged was amalgamated with the Ovens District Hospital to form the Beechworth Hospital, and the Warner Road site was closed. In recent years, an upmarket accommodation and wellness retreat has opened on the site, repurposing the old name of ‘The Benev’ OUR JOURNEY | The Benev
The Benevolent Asylum site was placed on the Victorian Heritage Register in 1982 because of its architectural and historical significance. The unusual Flemish style of the main building provides an early example of design specifically for the provision of aged care. The development of the Benev, along with the Lunatic Asylum and other civic buildings in the town marked the evolution of Beechworth from a goldrush town to an administrative centre for northeast Victoria. The Benev, the lunatic asylum/psychiatric hospital and the Beechworth Gaol were the major employers in the town for generations for Beechworth families, many of whom still live in the district.
Written by Dr Eileen Clark, Adjunct Research Fellow at Charles Sturt University.
See Eileen’s full bio here
Sources:
Beechworth Health Service. (2020). Our History. Beechworth Hospital History Ovens and Murray Hospital for the Aged
Ovens and Murray Advertiser. (1862) The Benevolent Asylum. Ovens and Murray Advertiser. 27 December. p. 2d–g. 27 Dec 1862 – THE BENEVOLENT ASYLUM. – Trove
The Benev. Our journey. OUR JOURNEY | The Benev
Victorian Heritage Database Report. Former Ovens Benevolent Asylum. FORMER OVENS BENEVOLENT ASYLUM
Photographs – Victorian Collections –
Left: https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/642aa5a370069cbace8c53de
Right: https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/60fa59044c2ba9808a928c27
Explore the Beechworth Cemetery Virtual Tour
Explore the Mayday Hills (formerly the Beechworth Asylum) Virtual Tour
