A century ago

Princess Mary Hospital for Children
 
In April 1917 New Zealand’s Governor (The Earl of Liverpool) laid the foundation stone of a building to house the first hospital solely for the care of children in Auckland. Fifteen months later the hospital was officially opened by her Excellency, the Countess of Liverpool.

The Auckland Star newspaper wrote a report of the opening, and I was able to find it and I enjoyed reading the earnestness and pride with which this building was regarded. The microfiche copy I saw is badly blurred in parts, so I have not tried to show it as it was printed. Instead, I have written out bits to give a flavour.

With the depletion of our manhood as the result of the war, the value of child life has become greater than ever, and the aged man of (? means) is more and more devoting his attention to the preservation of the life of the potential citizen. Various institutions are extending their activities in the same direction, and hospitals, among others are making greater provision for the care and treatment of the young. The Auckland Hospital has set a noteworthy example .. by the erection of a new building to be devoted solely to the treatment of growing manhood and womanhood.

The reporter then goes into some detail on the process of her Excellency being welcomed, and who by, mentions her being “conducted through the building”, being given flowers, and afterwards enjoying a cup of tea in the lower part of the building. The chairman of the Hospital Board (a Mr W Wallace) gave “her Excellency a silver and greenstone key, and invited her to declare the new building open.” The key was inscribed on one side with her name and on the other with the occasion; the opening of the hospital on 06 July 2018.  


The last time that I worked at Auckland DHB (in 2008 for a few months) I had an office on the upper storey of this building. I did not know its history at that time. A new hospital was built for children mid century, and that was replaced by the current children's hospital (known as Starship Hospital) was built in the 1980s. The second Princess Mary Hospital was demolished to make way for the Conolly Unit, an inpatient psychiatric unit, which opened in 1992.