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Story: Mental health services

Ashburn Hall, around 1890

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Ashburn Hall, around 1890

New Zealand's oldest and only licensed private mental hospital, Ashburn Hall, opened in 1882. Isabel Hodgkins (sister of the well-known artist Frances Hodgkins) painted this scene of the buildings and grounds several years later.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: B-163-012

by Isabel Jane Hodgkins

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Warwick Brunton, Mental health services – Community care, 1990s onwards, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/29431/ashburn-hall-around-1890 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Warwick Brunton, published 6 April 2011.