Japanese Hospital (Site)

Statement of Significance

• The site has historic value for its association with the Japanese community who made a significant contribution to the establishment and development of the Broome community.
• The site has historic value for its association with the period in the early 20th century when the Japanese community established their own hospital in the Broome community because of inequalities in the provision of medical services.
• The site has social value for the community for its links to the Sisters of St John of God who nursed at the hospital under the leadership of Mother Antonio O’Brien and to the headstone located in the Broome Cemetery erected to Sister Mary Immaculate Leahy who died at the Japanese Hospital.

History

The Japanese hospital was built largely through the donations of the Broome Japanese community. When first proposed in 1909, there was resistance to the establishment of a hospital for the Japanese community from the District Medical Officer, the Mayor of Broome and the Pearler’s Association. However the proposal had all the required formal approvals and the support of the Japanese and the Australian Governments.

The need for a hospital to serve the Japanese community, and particularly the divers, was a consequence of the many deaths in Broome. With difficulties in communication, heirachies of care among the sick and the perception among the Japanese that;

'the doctor in town was an absolute quack. He was so bad the his nickname was Dr Murder. … We had no choice but to try and establish our own hospital.'

The new hospital building was opened in 1911 and the grounds were beautifully laid out with tropical plants and trees tended by a few older Japanese men who had remained in Broome. The hospital was staffed by Japanese doctors who were accompanied by their families during there stays in Broome.

• Dr Suzuki 1910-1914
• Dr Yakuo Harada 1914-1918,
• Dr Tsukano tojojiro 1918-1921
• Dr Masuyam Masogoshi 1921-1924
• Dr Michio Sakai 1924-1927

The Sisters of St John of God provided the nursing staff and this was an unusual pairing of cultures and faiths although by the available accounts a successful one. The Catholic Sisters and the Japanese Buddhists respected each other’s culture and rapidly established a working relationship. The Sisters purchased essentials from the Japanese stores and the young Japanese children attended the Catholic School rather than the state school.

The hospital was named ‘Maza-Antoni’ to honour Irish born Rev Mother Antonio O’Brien the leader of the Sisters of St John of God in the Broome region. One of the Sisters who worked at the hospital, Sister Mary Immaculate Leahy, died of small pox and the Japanese community erected a marble obelisk in the cemetery in her honour.

In 1911, the Japanese Community provided funds and a builder to construct a Catholic School, and the Japanese community attended the Sisters’ evening classes in English, book-keeping and music. The bond achieved by the Sisters across language, culture and religion greatly assisted the wider community’s acceptance of the proposed Japanese Hospital with a Japanese doctor.

The hospital closed in 1928 as the new plastics industry reduced the demand for ‘mother of pearl’ and therefore the pearling industry declined. A dispensary service relocated to Gantheaume Point according to some sources and it is not known who occupied the former hospital building. In 1935, it was proposed to relocate the building to Beagle Bay Mission to serve as a hospital for the community, however this had not occurred by 1939 and other sources state that the building was divided, part to Gantheaume Point and the other to a pastoral station.

Aerial photographs of the site are inconclusive but it appears the buildings no longer existed on the site in 1947.

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

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Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.