Paddington Green - the prequel

The Royal Hospital for Women was established on the Paddington site in 1905 by the Benevolent Society of NSW which itself was established in 1813 as Australia's first charity. Although the services of the hospital were moved by the state government to the public hospital site in Randwick in the early '90s, there is still a Benevolent Society office on the Oxford Street boundary of this site. Being a women's hospital, there is much trauma in the history of this site with regard to the adoption at birth of children of unmarried mothers. Today, however, the walk down through the grounds from Paddington Town Hall to Five Ways, is a delightful meander, ending as it does in the park on Glenmore Road. The historic photograph was dated 1931.

Paddington Green

In 1997 the services of the Royal Hospital for Women, which had stood on this site since 1901, were transferred to Randwick, to form part of the Prince of Wales Hospital complex. This original site in Paddington was developed as a housing estate, quite a charming housing estate, with many of the original buildings incorparated into the design. The only recognisable original feature I have included here is the 'smokestack' in the third image. Tomorrow, more of the original structure.