friends of willow court – Willow Court Tasmania

“Stories from the Asylum” Official Opening

November 27, 2020 2 Comments

Covid safe reception area set up for official opening.

Today Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Kate Warner AC and
Mr Richard Warner AM officially opened the “Stories from the Asylum” exhibition at Willow Court. The Willow Court Training Centre closed 20 years ago this month and the Friends of Willow Court have put together this display of storyboards from previous staff, residents, family members, along with a line up of guest speakers and music from Derwent Valley Band Brass Quintet.

Sandra Heatherington (Friends of Frascati House) Mr Richard Warner AM and Her Excellency Professor the Honourable Kate Warner AC with Tony Nicholson OAM (Chair Friends of Willow Court)

Willow Court History Group have also added to the collection with 7 podcasts that can be found using QR codes. Six of these recordings have not been released before and have come from recordings of Oral History in 2015.

Dr Christina Henri’s “Roses from the Heart” Bonnet Project

We also welcome Dr Christina Henri who conceived the ‘Roses from the Heart’ project in 2003. Her memorial has expanded to include a number of art forms and is now recognised as a global public art phenomenon with the ‘bonnet’ symbolism a metaphor for convict women and their children. Dr Christina Henri would be happy to chat with anyone interested in her project and those with convict lineage.

Saturday Program 28 November

10 – 11:30

Punishment and Health in convict Van Diemen’s Land – Hamish Maxwell-Stewart

11:30 – 12

Renovating Madness – Liz McQuilkin poetry readings

12 – 1 pm

Music – Derwent Valley Band Brass Quintet

1 – 1:30

Renovating Madness – Liz McQuilkin poetry readings

2-3 pm

Sharing Some Insights into the Closure of Willow Court – Pete Smith

Sunday Program 29th November

10 – 12

Digital Future for Tasmanian History – Hamish Maxwell-Stewart

12-1 pm

Music Derwent Valley Band Saxophone Quartet

1 – 2 pm

Punishment and Health in convict Van Diemen’s Land – Hamish Maxwell-Stewart

2 – 3 pm

Reflections on Lachlan Park Hospital school – Margaret Reynolds – former teacher

3:30 – 4 pm

Music Derwent Valley Band Saxophone Quartet

Willow Court History Group’s Podcast display

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Oral History recording

May 29, 2017 3 Comments

Last Saturday a group from the Friends of Willow Court and one member of the Willow Court History Group went for a day training session at the Glenorchy Linc. The training was provided by “Oral History Tasmania” who have a high standard of professionalism and ethics when recording the stories of Tasmanian’s and is a part of the national group, Oral History Australia Inc.

The Friends of Willow Court are members of Oral History Tasmania and have been part of the recording history project that the Willow Court History Group have been a part of for the past 3 years. We have accumulated many hours of podcasts across of broad spectrum of the history at Willow Court, Royal Derwent Hospital and Lachlan Park Hospital.

When gathering Oral History recordings we have been abiding by the “Oral History Australia Inc.” Guidelines of ethical practice. We have recorded oral history from 1938 to the closure in 2000. This has been lived experience from patients, all levels of care staff, trades persons and senior management.

We are looking for people who are able to contribute to the oral history repository of Willow Court. We need more people who experienced being a patient, senior policy makers, cleaners, Millbrook Rise staff and patients, Parents and Friends Association, Community support organisations and people who may have been regular visitors at the site. We also have an interest in finding more Doctors, senior and junior nursing staff who worked on the east side of the Royal Derwent Hospital and I’m sure I have missed many areas of the history so please contact us at:

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Friends of Willow Court AGM

September 28, 2015 No Comments

The Friends of Willow Committee invite interested people to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Derwent Valley Council’s Friends of Willow Court Special Committee to be held on Wednesday 7th October 2015, 7pm at the Derwent Valley Community House, The Avenue, New Norfolk. Please come and hear the latest from this committee and the Derwent Valley Council about what the plans for future use for the site are. If there has been a time when Willow Court needs friends, it is now. There is a wonderful and talented group of local individuals that have been on this committee for the past three years and longer for some that have trained themselves professionally to manage such a historic tourist site at Willow Court. They have arranged and participated in workshops and behind the scenes tours with some of Tasmania’s leading tourist attractions managing Port Arthur and the Cascades Female Factory, they have trained with leading tourist industry trainers in Thematic Interpretation and Influencing Ethical Decision Making. Over the last year while the site has been closed they have also made a professional Strategic plan, met with the Legislative Council Committee on Tasmania’s Built Heritage and engaged with The Federal Government around listing the site for World Heritage.

While at times this was overwhelming for the small number of people on the committee we did accomplish much and have clear plans for the future.

Does this sound like something you wish to be involved with?

Pictured here with the Legislative Council’s Build Heritage Committee is (right) Anne Salt, (middle) Vivienne de Bressac and (left) Sharon Hutchison.

Other Committee members are Tony Nicholson, Nadia Lobb, Denise Rushworth, Emily Bullock, Rodney Quarrell, Graham McLean, Lin Hopkins, Rebecca Tudor, Mark Krause and Anne McKinstray.

There have been many other people who have willingly given their valuable time over these past years. Also we can’t forget Cr. Frank Pearce.

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Friends of Willow Court Training Day at Port Arthur today.

November 24, 2014 No Comments

Today a number of volunteers from the Friends of Willow Court had a training day at Port Arthur. We looked at the booking systems that the site uses to handle the 250,000 visitors per year, website integration, staff training in tour guiding and retaining staff in regional Tasmania. There was much discussed and then we were offered to tag along with some of the Port Arthur tour guides through the thematic introduction tour and a tour of the isle of the dead. We were invited back to continue the ongoing co-relationship between Willow Court and Port Arthur. The Friends of Willow Court would like to thank the Port Arthur staff for their generous support and thank Graham McLean for offering his 12 seater bus for free (except fuel). No volunteer was paid for being at the training day. This is an ongoing part of the preparation that is going on in the background preparing for the opening of Tasmania’s newest tourist attraction.