For 77 years the Sydney Female Refuge Society provided a home for women escaping from prostitution and unmarried young girls who fell pregnant. The society operated from to and until was located in Pitt Street South. The refuge was established on 21 August by Sydney -siders concerned at the level of extra-marital pregnancies and prostitution.
The Refuge Committee made it clear they felt Sydney was no worse than other cities but that it did have unique problems of its own. The first of these was the legacy of young women sent out as convicts and separated from the guidance and support of their parents and families, leaving them susceptible to attack by unscrupulous men.
A second problem was caused by the lack of water and sanitation in the city which encouraged disease and poor health. Among their first decisions was the stipulation the new institution should be non-denominational and should abide by a clear set of rules. One of the first orders of business was the removal of the treadmill which was noted to have no place in the upcoming regime of female reform.
Entry to the refuge was either voluntary or made upon the recommendation of a magistrate , keeper of the gaol or a minister of religion. Once inside the inmates were expected to abide by the rules laid out and to stay for years during which time they worked in the laundry or as seamstresses to earn money for the upkeep of the refuge. Although the institution claimed to only accept voluntary admissions it seems that in some cases parents placed their children there - with varying results.
In December the society reported how,. Two young girls, aged respectively, fifteen and sixteen years, who were for some months inmates of the refuge, have since repeatedly called, and in the most feeling manner gratefully acknowledged their obligations to your committee, for the reception and treatment; their parents have also expressed their thankfulness for the beneficial change effected in their daughters. By around women had passed through the gates of the refuge [9] and by the committee could claim that forty-six have obtained situations, fifteen have been married, and thirty-one restored to their friends.
