In 1875, the decision to build a small isolation hospital on the open land near to the old Powder House meant that it was far enough from the houses of the old town, but still within easy reach.

On a quiet sunny day what became known as Hospital Island was a pleasant place, but on a wild winter’s day with a high tide washing around the building it must have seemed the worst possible place for a frightened patient.

Audio Transcript

You see, this Isolation Hospital was kept because in the old days they used to have the boats that used to come in and if they've got fevers of any sort… Especially for, you know, there's a lot of the typhoid in those days.

In those days, my mother is nursing there till she was 70. You know she did tremendous work. And my mother went there in 1911 with 10 fever patients. And she was a single handed nurse then and there is no electricity, not at all there – only the oil laps and the oils toll and triplex. No hot water, mind. You can imagine it. Within the First World War, they had a lot of Australians in this country. [Unclear dialogue.] And, you know, I've had a message like, “Can't go home tonight. I can't leave this boy, he’s dying. I can't leave them so far from his home.”