ONE of Australia's few remaining isolation wards has received a cash injection from Tenterfield Council.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Prince Albert Memorial Hospital Isolation Ward, in Pelham Street, will have its signage upgraded and a timed light system installed, thanks to a $750 grant.
It is the latest cash boost to the heritage cottage that was once earmarked for demolition.
The isolation ward was built in 1919 to accommodate victims of the Spanish flu. But it was built too late for the pandemic, which killed more than 500 million people globally.
So over the years the weatherboard cottage was used to house nurses and as a workshop.
The building fell into disrepair after being closed in 2003, over-run with pests and pounded by bad weather.
Dr Ian Unsworth, who had moved to Tenterfield from Sydney in 2002, took up the challenge to save the cottage from demolition.
In 2018 and with the assistance of a $100,000 grant, he led a team consisting largely of volunteers to restore the building and turn it into an historical museum.
"The building and its history have now been preserved for generations to come," Dr Unsworth said.
"It is believed this is the only such isolation ward extant in regional and rural Australia today."
At its latest meeting, Tenterfield councillors unanimously voted to present the museum with the $750 funding.
Volunteers man the museum and curate exhibitions there.
The official opening of the restored Isolation Block was held on July 22, 2021.
In all, Council distributed $6000 to heritage projects across the town.
Restoration continues in the shop at 270 Rouse Street, with $1750 contributing towards the painting and sanding of the front of that building.
Four other applicants were successful in their grant applications.
They are:
- Julia Harpham; $500 to repair and maintain the brick chimney at the shearers' quarters in 6709 Bruxner Way;
- Geoffrey Hannah; $750 to replace aluminium windows with traditional wood-framed windows at 91 Molesworth Street;
- Kim Hill; $1500 to repair and replace sash windows and French doors at 89 Molesworth Street, and
- Angela Hines; $750 to paint and repair cracks on the front face of Logan Street.
Once the projects are complete, Tenterfield Shire Council will reclaim the $6000 from the NSW Government.
