BINGARA DOCTORS

A number of Bingara doctors were professionally trained overseas and records indicate that the following once served as hospital doctors at Bingara:

• 1888-1889 John Clement Souter and his son Charles J. Souter, who left Bingara to take up an appointment as Medical Officer of Hilston Hospital.

• 1889-1897 Dr Gunther Neal who came to Bingara from Wollongong Hospital.  Dr Siegfried Gunther Nagel gained his M.D. and Ch. D. at Berlin in 1881, and served as a surgeon in the Prussian Army before migrating to Australia.  He later returned to Europe to become an eye surgeon.

• 1897-1898 Dr G.L. Murray appointed by the Hospital Board during the absence of Dr G.C. Cory.

• Dr G.C. Cory who travelled to London and later returned to Bingara by June 1898.

• 1899-1914 Dr J.W. Hart who left Bingara to serve overseas in World War One.  He didn’t return to Bingara and settled first in Emerald, Queensland and later in Sutherland, NSW.

The Warialda Standard, 28 September 1898 reported that Dr G.C. Cory has returned to Bingara from Europe and could be consulted at his former residence at the corner of Junction and Cunningham Streets, Bingara.  Dr J.W. Hart could be consulted in Cory’s late residence by January 1899.  

Two early doctors who served Bingara and district included Dr Frank Sturges (1908-1914) and Dr John Hart (1898-1914).  The next twenty years saw a succession of doctors.  Dr Finselbach was interned during the First World War, followed by Doctors Magill, McInerney, Cahill, Samuelson and Hudson.

After a period of some ten years in Bingara, Dr Shineberg disposed of his practice to Dr. T. Dudley Haggar and left for Tamworth in May 1938.

WARIALDA DOCTORS

In August 1913 part of lot 5, section 52 in Hope Street, Warialda was offered for sale.  On this allotment was the surgery occupied by Dr Matthews and office occupied by Peate and Murray.  The Warialda Standard announced in August 1918 that ‘there is good reason to believe that Warialda will have the services of a medical practitioner at an early date’.  Dr Barnett was in Warialda in November 1919 and in June 1921, Dr. T.E. George announced that he had taken over Dr. H.A.E. Noble’s practice in Warialda