Permanent Exhibition

The Museum’s permanent exhibitions explores three continuing themes

The History of Child Welfare in Australia

This exhibition the history of Child Welfare in Australia from the First Fleet in 1788 until the 1980s. The main feature wall has a timeline, which describes the development of Orphanages, Children’s Homes, Missions, and Foster Care.

Care Leavers Activism

This exhibition highlights the history of the Care Leavers Australasia Network, CLAN, and its activism to gain Redress for Care Leavers. Silent protest meeting posters are displayed. TV reports describe how CLAN was instrumental in achieving the Senate Inquiry for the Lost Australians and the Royal Commission to Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The Children’s Voices

The Children’s Voices room is a themed exhibition centred around direct quotes from adults explaining their childhood in ‘Care’. Artefacts and photos from many Orphanages, Children’s Homes, and Missions are also in the same themes and enhance the children’s voices.

The Australian Orphanage Museum in Geelong, Australia, is a unique museum dedicated to documenting and exhibiting authentic social histories about the experience of growing up in orphanages, children’s Homes, Missions and other institutions, including foster care, in Australia.