Tasmanian Index of Children and Families contained in files of SWD1 (Neglected Children's Dept)
Publication No. 295   Size: A4 Weight: 330g grams
Joyce Purtscher has recently published yet another index, the result of many
months of painstaking transcriptions. This time she has indexed the
Tasmanian Archives SWD1 files of the Neglected Children’s Department and
provided a link to the actual online content of each file. For many this
will provide a unique opportunity to extend our knowledge, not only of our
family trees, but also our knowledge of Tasmania’s social history during the
years 1888–1936.
Most communication in this era was by letter writing
and the noting of odd telephone conversations. The files contain pitiful
letters written by parents, children and carers pleading for help. There are
descriptive police reports on their findings of living standards in the bush
and towns, and treatments of children fostered out and adopted. There are
graphic reports by those in charge of institutions telling us of punishments
and character descriptions, in a frankness not tolerated by today’s public
servants. For some, the content may prove confronting but nevertheless an
invaluable new research aid.