Timelines.
Maitland Hospital occupied its High Street site for over 170 years. A sense of its long history is inscribed in its different buildings that echo different eras, and in the items, memories and stories that are shared. There has also been an interest in recording and sharing this history publicly. One example is the timelines that have been placed on walls in the hospital.
In 1939, as part of a tour of newly constructed parts of the hospital, a Maitland Mercury article noted:
“A start has been made to write the history of the hospital in gold lettering in a recessed plaque in the board room.”
A noticeboard fitting this description is in the Maitland Hospital Collection. The dates and gold lettering on the noticeboard suggest that it is unlikely to be the timeline proposed in 1939. It seems it was created after 1960 when the new nurses’ home opened. The added dates at the bottom indicate it was subsequently updated.
(Maitland Hospital Collection 73)
For details about the buildings and dates listed on the timeline visit: Jigsaw of buildings.
Note: ‘E.M.’ refers to East Maitland and ‘W.M.’ refers to West Maitland.
This item is on display in the exhibition, A Conspicuous Object - The Maitland Hospital, at the Maitland Regional Art Gallery from 16 October 2021 to 2 February 2022.
A corner of the timeline can be glimpsed on the top right hand side of a photograph taken of the hospital president in 1974. The walls appear to have the same timber panelling as the timeline, and the timeline is clearly located in an office rather than a more public space.
Maitland Hospital President (Leonard Neville?), 1974.
The ‘Historical Record’ noticeboard can just be seen in the top right hand corner of the photograph.
(Athel D’Ombrain photograph)
In 2010 a new timeline was created for the extended and renovated - and very public - entrance hallway of the hospital.
The timeline in the front entrance of the hospital, 2020.
The graphics for the timeline, designed to accommodate the seating underneath.
Designed by Stephen Pinder of Big Colour Visual in Broadmeadow, the 2010 timeline uses sepia-coloured photographic images and text printed on to 12 panels of toughened safety glass. It is 14.5 metres long with individual panels up to 2.7 metres in height.
The 2010 timeline offers a collage of dates, buildings and people. Significantly, and in contrast to its predecessor, it begins with an Aboriginal art work (artist not identified) that depicts a topographical view of Maitland and an acknowledgement of Wonnarua land.
Detailed views of the 2010 timeline.
In talking with staff during 2020 and 2021 about the move to the new Maitland Hospital, there was a strong desire to see the timeline recreated in the new hospital. The task was handed to the Arts Working Group and the Collected Memory Project.
A new timeline was designed to go into the new Maitland Hospital. The new timeline focuses on marking the growth of the hospital through identifying and dating key buildings. The stories about people, events, objects and services are provided through changing displays in vitrines across the timeline, and through photographs and imagery located across public areas in the new hospital at Metford.
Visit A new timeline for more details about the timeline in the new Maitland Hospital.