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Amelia (Emily) Luke
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Summary
Amelia (Emily) Luke established Sunny Brae Private Hospital at her home in Eumundi in January 1924.
Biography
Andrew Luke and Janet Scrimgour Peddie, both from the Dundee area, were married in Scotland in 1885 and shortly after left for Australia on the SS Rialto. They arrived in Maryborough in 1886 and for a few years they lived in Tinana. During that time three daughters were born – Mary Gentle (Polly) 1886, Isabella Murray (Bella) 1888, and Amelia (Emily) in 1889.
In 1893 it was decided to move to Eumundi so the children could attend the newly opened Provisional School. Land was selected and a dairy farm property called Fernknowe was established. The family grew with the addition of Mabel, Alex, and Jessie.
In 1910, Fernknowe was sold and the family purchased land to the west of the township of Eumundi and built a new home called Sunny Brae.
Emily and Bella relocated to Brisbane to undertake nursing training at the Lady Bowen Hospital and both were staff nurses at Inchcolm Private Hospital, Brisbane and accepted private cases as well. In April 1917 Bella married Jack Scargill a returned serviceman who had been severely wounded at Gallipoli.
After training and engaging in private nursing for some years, Emily Luke was at home on holidays in 1923 when she was asked by Dr Arthur Bearblock if she would consider opening a nursing home as he had nowhere to treat his patients. Sunny Brae, the Luke family home, took on a dual identity, both as a family residence and as a private hospital.
Sunny Brae Private Hospital opened in January 1924 to support soldiers when they returned from the Great War. A cottage was built beside the hospital for Andrew and Janet Luke.
In the following years Sunny Brae catered mainly for maternity patients, but a wide variety of general work was undertaken. ‘Nurse’ as Emily was affectionately known, was always on duty. Sunny Brae’s patients came from a wide area – from Kandanga, Brooloo, Kenilworth and Obi Obi, as well as Eumundi, Eerwah Vale, Doonan and North Arm. When Cooroy Hospital was closed during the 1940s patients came from Cooroy and Tewantin. Some came even longer distances simply because they knew and trusted their old nurse.
Nurse took a personal interest in all her babies and was thrilled to hear news of each one. She often received photos to show their progress. As years went by, pieces of wedding and twenty-first birthday cake arrived, addressed “To Nurse with love …”
A stroke in early 1958 caused Emily to close the hospital. She lived quietly at Sunny Brae under the devoted care of her sister Jessie. Emily died in 1973 at the age of 84.
Date of birth1889-08-22Date of death1973-12-01MenuPeople | Amelia (Emily) Luke
Amelia (Emily) Luke established Sunny Brae Private Hospital at her home in Eumundi in January 1924.
Biography Andrew Luke and Janet Scrimgour Peddie, both from the Dundee area, were married in Scotland in 1885 and shortly after left for Australia on the SS Rialto. They arrived in Maryborough in 1886 and for a few years they lived in Tinana. During that time three daughters were born – Mary Gentle (Polly) 1886, Isabella Murray (Bella) 1888, and Amelia (Emily) in 1889.
In 1893 it was decided to move to Eumundi so the children could attend the newly opened Provisional School. Land was selected and a dairy farm property called Fernknowe was established. The family grew with the addition of Mabel, Alex, and Jessie.
In 1910, Fernknowe was sold and the family purchased land to the west of the township of Eumundi and built a new home called Sunny Brae.
Emily and Bella relocated to Brisbane to undertake nursing training at the Lady Bowen Hospital and both were staff nurses at Inchcolm Private Hospital, Brisbane and accepted private cases as well. In April 1917 Bella married Jack Scargill a returned serviceman who had been severely wounded at Gallipoli.
After training and engaging in private nursing for some years, Emily Luke was at home on holidays in 1923 when she was asked by Dr Arthur Bearblock if she would consider opening a nursing home as he had nowhere to treat his patients. Sunny Brae, the Luke family home, took on a dual identity, both as a family residence and as a private hospital.
Sunny Brae Private Hospital opened in January 1924 to support soldiers when they returned from the Great War. A cottage was built beside the hospital for Andrew and Janet Luke.
In the following years Sunny Brae catered mainly for maternity patients, but a wide variety of general work was undertaken. ‘Nurse’ as Emily was affectionately known, was always on duty. Sunny Brae’s patients came from a wide area – from Kandanga, Brooloo, Kenilworth and Obi Obi, as well as Eumundi, Eerwah Vale, Doonan and North Arm. When Cooroy Hospital was closed during the 1940s patients came from Cooroy and Tewantin. Some came even longer distances simply because they knew and trusted their old nurse.
Nurse took a personal interest in all her babies and was thrilled to hear news of each one. She often received photos to show their progress. As years went by, pieces of wedding and twenty-first birthday cake arrived, addressed “To Nurse with love …”
A stroke in early 1958 caused Emily to close the hospital. She lived quietly at Sunny Brae under the devoted care of her sister Jessie. Emily died in 1973 at the age of 84.
Date of birth1889-08-22Date of death1973-12-01MenuPeople | Amelia (Emily) LukeDocument
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CollectionSunny Brae Private Hospital
Amelia (Emily) Luke. Sunshine Coast Life, accessed 28/04/2026, https://sunshinecoast.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/214