In the 1940s and 1950s, Canberra was a city of young people, public servants who'd come from elsewhere with no real thought of getting old in the city. Subscribe now for unlimited access . $ 0 / (min cost $ 0 ) Login or signup to continue reading Continue with Email Continue with Google Continue with Apple See subscription options Homes were allocated to the workers and older people who did not have family in the national capital faced sometimes dire living conditions.
"It was terrible for seniors, for older people in the ACT," researcher Margaret Findlater said. "They lived in appalling conditions in huts and in tents because if you were old in Canberra, there was nowhere for you to live. The houses were for working people.
"So if you didn't own your own house and you didn't have anywhere to live, you were on your own." A true community effort sought to rectify that situation, led by the National Council of Women, who wanted to provide houses for older people in Canberra, doing it one bake sale or gala event at a time. In 1954 , The Canberra Times founder Arthur T.
Shakespeare was elected the first president of the Goodwin Centre Development Association to guide the fundraising efforts. It was the foundation of Goodwin Aged Care Services which this year celebrates its 70 th birthday and this week published an account of its fascinating history. The local not-for-profit aged care provider now has facilities across Canberra as well as in Batemans Bay, with the first sod recent.