FULL HISTORY OF THE SALVATION ARMY ~ THE SALVATION ARMY IN TANZANIA NEWS

The Salvation Army's Hop-In tents supported Australian soldiers on the frontlines during WW2

The Salvation Army was founded as the Christian Mission in the slums of London in 1865 by former Methodist minister, William Booth.

The name 'The Salvation Army' was adopted in 1878 and formally adopted by deed poll in 1880.

1880 was also the year that The Salvation Army began in Australia, when a tradie and a railway worker began preaching and offering meals on the back of a cart in Adelaide's Botanic Garden.

In 2015, The Salvation Army is excited to be celebrating 150 years of helping people in need around the world without discrimination. On this page you can find out more about the history of The Salvation Army over the past 150 years, as well as the history of some of our services.

The Salvation Army's Origins in London

A former Methodist minister, William Booth, founded The Salvation Army in the slums of London during 1865.

Booth wanted to make the church more accessible to the whole community at a time when many poor and working class people were excluded from the churches.

Originally known as the Christian Mission, the name 'The Salvation Army' was adopted in 1878 and since then the organisation's structure has been based on military lines.

Initially Booth's Mission intended to gather the poverty stricken multitudes of London's East End and link them up with existing churches. However, such people were regarded as outcasts and not welcomed by the wealthy and respectable church members of the day. As a result, Booth was forced to provide a more permanent organisation for the ongoing spiritual care of his converts.

Booth's concern for the destitute masses of England was not only spiritual; the more he learned of the plight of the thousands spurned by Britain's industrial revolution, the more determined he was to see lasting social change.

From the Army's earliest days, various social programs grew up alongside the mission's spiritual ministry, including food shops, shelters, and homes for 'fallen' girls. These were just the first elements in a broad scheme. In the early 1890s, Booth published In Darkest England - and the Way Out. Soon Booth opened labour exchange services, which would place thousands of unemployed persons in jobs. Discovering that some 9,000 people dropped from sight in London each year, he established a missing persons bureau.

Booth dreamt of a farm colony where the unemployed could be given honest labour and pleasant surroundings. He wanted to establish a poor man's bank, he offered legal aid to the destitute; and he envisaged an emigration scheme that would develop a new overseas colony.

During the 1890s, the Army established an employment bureau and helped find jobs for the unemployed. Work was also provided at Salvation Army salvage depots and rescue farms.

From this began a social service network that continues today in over 120 countries.

In Darkest England

Salvation Army founder William Booth's controversial blueprint for the welfare system in 1890 is still influential in the United Kingdom's delivery of government welfare today.

In 1890, Booth's controversial book, In Darkest England and The Way Out, was published in which he presented his plans for a program to help the poor and needy. His ideas were summarised in what he termed 'The Cab-Horse Charter' which read, "when a horse is down he is helped up, and while he lives he has food, shelter and work".

Booth realised that this meagre standard was absolutely unattainable by millions of people in Britain yet the fact remained that cab horses were treated to a better standard of living than many people.

He appealed to the public for £100,000 to start his scheme and a further £30,000 per year to maintain the program.

Despite a lack of immediate funds Booth decided to put his plan into action. The first thing to be set up was a labour bureau to help people find work. He purchased a farm where men could be trained in certain types of work and at the same time gain some self-respect, because often when men had been unemployed for some years their confidence needed to be restored.

From this farm colony, men could be further helped through emigration to an overseas colony, where labourers were few. Whole families could be helped to a much better standard of living.

Other projects included a missing persons bureau to help find missing relatives and reunite families, more hostels for the homeless and a poor mans bank which could make small loans to workers who could buy tools or set up in a trade.

Booth's book sold 200,000 copies within the first year. Nine years after publication The Salvation Army had served 27 million cheap meals, lodged 11 million homeless people, traced 18,000 missing people and found jobs for 9,000 unemployed people.

Booth's book was used as a blueprint for the present day welfare state in the United Kingdom when it was set up by the government in 1948. Many of Booth's ideas were incorporated into the welfare state system.

Read about The Salvation Army's history in Australia, and you will see Booth's ideas reflected in the early social programs, many of which continue today.

Founders William & Catherine Booth

William and Catherine Booth with 5 of their 8 children

William Booth

The Salvation Army founder, William Booth was born in Nottingham, England, on 10 April, 1829.

He married Catherine Mumford in 1855, and the couple went on to raise 9 children.

From his earliest years, Booth was no stranger to poverty. William was just 14 when his father died, and was already working as a pawnbroker's apprentice to supplement the family income.Although he despised the trade, William completed his six year apprenticeship to help support his family. Nevertheless, working as a pawnbroker created in him a deep hatred of the poverty and suffering he saw daily

A fiery, impulsive teenager, William became a Christian at age 15 and began attending the Wesleyan Chapel in Nottingham. A passion to reach the down-and-out of Britain's cities with the Gospel of Christ became the driving force throughout his life.

Booth's talent for preaching was evident even as a teenager, and his concern for the poor led him to take his message to where the people were - on the streets. Booth later worked as a travelling evangelist with various branches of the Methodist church; however, it was through preaching in the streets of London's slums that he discovered his life's purpose and The Salvation Army was born.

Catherine Booth

Catherine Mumford was born in Ashbourne, Derbyshire, on 17 January 1829. From an early age, she was a serious and sensitive girl with a strong Christian uprbrining. By the age of 12, she had read the bible through eight times.

However, it was not until she was 16, after much struggling, that she was really converted. In her hymn book she read the words, 'My God I am Thine, what a comfort Divine', and realised the truth of this statement for herself.

At 14, Catherine was seriously ill and spent a great deal of time in bed. She kept herself busy and was especially concerned about the problems of alcohol. She wrote articles for a magazine, encouraging people not to drink.

Catherine and William met when he came to preach at her church. They soon fell in love and became engaged. During their three year engagement, Catherine was a constant support to William through her letter, in his tiring work of preaching. They were married on 16th June 1855.

Unlike most weddings, theirs was very simple with no great expense; they wanted to use all their time and money for God. Even on their honeymoon, William found himself asked to speak at meetings. Together they accepted this challenge of being used by God, before even thinking of themselves.

At Brighouse, Catherine first began to help in the work of the church. She was extremely nervous, but found the courage to speak in children's meetings. She enjoyed working with young people, however it was unheard of for women to speak in adult meetings.

Catherine was convinced that women had an equal right to speak. At Gateshead, when the opportunity was given for public testimony, she went forward to speak, marking the beginning of a tremendous ministry. Catherine's preaching challeneged and touched many people.

Catherine found the courage to speak to people in their homes, especially to alcoholics, whom she helped to make a new start in life. Often she held cottage meetings for converts.

She was also a mother with a growing family of eight children and was dedicated to giving them a firm Christian knowledge. Two of the Booth children became Generals of The Salvation Army.

In 1865 when the work of The Christian Mission began, William preached to the poor and ragged, and Catherine spoke to the wealthy, gaining support for their financially demanding work. In time, she began to hold her own campaigns.

When William Booth became known as the General, Catherine was known as the 'Army Mother'. She was behind many of the changes in the new movement, designing a flag, bonnets for the ladies and contributing to the Army's ideas on many important issues and matters of belief.

Catherine died in 1890. Bramwell Booth, describing the last moments of her life, wrote:

"Soon after noon, I felt the deepening darkness of the long valley of the shadows was closing around my dear mother, and a little later I took my last farewell. Her lips moved, and she gave me one look of inexpressible tenderness and trust, which will live with me for ever. Again we sang:

My mistakes His free grace doth cover,My sins He doth wash away;These feet which shrink and falterShall enter the Gates of Day.

Holding her hand, the General gave her up to God. It was a solemn and wondrous scene ...the dear General bowing over his beloved wife and companion in life's long stress and storm, and giving her, his most precious of earthly joy and treasure, to the eternal keeping of the Eternal Father. ...Their eyes met the last kiss of love upon earth - the last word till the Morning, and without a movement the breathing gently ceased, and a Warrior laid down her sword to receive her crown."

For further information

For more information and photos, visit The Salvation Army Heritage site

You might also like to view our suggested Further Reading list and/or contact Salvationist Supplies (phone 1800 634 209, shop online at www.salvosuppliessyd.com or visit our store at Shop 1, 148 Elizabeth Street, Sydney) to browse through available books.

Blood & Fire is the incredible story of William and Catherine Booth and the founding of The Salvation Army, brought to life by Battlefield Media through a wonderful journey in sound and drama in a three-CD, nine-episode audio drama series (Battlefield Media is not affiliated with The Salvation Army).

Spreading to Australia

A Salvation Army soup kitchen, probably from the period of The Great Depression

On the 5th September, 1880, Edward Saunders and John Gore led the first Salvation Army meeting in Australia from the back of a greengrocer's cart in Adelaide's Botanic Park.

When Gore said, "If there's a man here who hasn't had a square meal today, let him come home to tea with me," little did he realise that within a century, The Salvation Army would feed hundreds of thousands of Australians each year.

Nevertheless, he was expressing the ethos of an organisation which, from its earliest days, was concerned for a person's physical as well as spiritual needs.

In a climate where religion had failed to really gain acceptance, Saunders, a railway worker, and Gore, a builder, presented themselves as ordinary men. Without theological training or the status of ordination, they invited their small audience to attend a meeting of The Salvation Army that evening.

A number agreed to attend, and Saunders and Gore formed themselves into a Corps (church) under Gore's temporary leadership. After an appeal to London for officers to be sent, Captain and Mrs Thomas Sutherland arrived in 1881.

From this humble beginning, The Salvation Army grew rapidly in Australia. Pioneer Salvationists faced rowdy and sometimes violent opposition, with at least two members being fatally injured. However, by 1890, mob attacks had virtually ceased, and by the early 1900s Salvationists were accepted in the community.

Key Moments Throughout History

The Salvation Army, particularly in its early days, has been characterised by a pioneering spirit that has resulted in some major achievements and fascinating early ventures.

1880 Salvation Army work begins in Australia

“If there’s a man here who hasn’t had a square meal today, let him come home to tea with me.” With those words, The Salvation Army began its work in Australia on 5 September, 1880.

Two converts of The Salvation Army in London, Edward Saunders and John Gore, led the first Salvation Army meeting in Australia from the back of a green grocer’s cart in Adelaide Botanic Park. As well as offering an invitation to the hungry, the meeting began the Army’s work of “saving souls”, proclaiming the power of God to bring peace to individual lives. This two-fold mission of the Army has often been described as “Christianity with its sleeves rolled up.”

1883 Prison ministry established

The Salvation Army’s world-wide prison ministry began during the 1880s when Major James Barker began conducting chapel services in the Melbourne gaol. The work quickly developed to include a ministry for ex-prisoners whereby Salvation Army officers – the ‘Prison Gate Brigade’ – would stand at the prison gate and invite men upon release to start a new life. The service aimed to keep people from returning to their old lives of crime.

Barker opened a prison-gate home in Carlton, Melbourne, in 1883, the first Salvation Army institution of its kind in the world. Other homes soon followed. The Salvation Army’s ministry to prisoners continues today and has been expanded to include court chaplaincy.

1885 Raised age of consent

The Salvation Army successfully campaigned to have the age of consent in the UK raised from 13 years of age to 16 years during 1885.

1885 Missing Persons work

Missing Persons work was one of the earliest Salvation Army social programs to develop. Established in London in 1885 as the Inquiry Department, by the end of 1885 there were offices in a number of overseas countries including Australia (Melbourne and Sydney). The ‘hallelujah detectives’, as they were called, searched for missing persons with a view to reuniting families. They also helped young women who were pregnant and unmarried to track down reluctant fathers and encourage them to support their children.

Today, with branches across Australia, the Family Tracing Service registers over 2,000 new searches each year, and between 75-80% of those are successfully closed. Drawing on links in 103 countries, the Service works internationally, restoring relationships across the world.

1890 First Employment bureau

In 1890, Australia experienced the worst depression the country had known, with unemployment worsening each day. By winter 1890, the Army had decided to open a free labour bureau in Melbourne to help people find jobs, the first known employment bureau in Australia to be operating in a formal way. Soon there were also labour bureaux operating in Sydney and Adelaide. As well as acting as job-finding agencies, the bureaux served thousands of meals to people out of work.

After the labour exchanges closed, the Army continued trying to find people work informally through its various social centres. Since the mid 1980s The Salvation Army has been back in the business of helping people find work, more recently through The Salvation Army Employment Plus.

1890s Pioneer for Safety Matches

Red-tipped safety matches were introduced by The Salvation Army in England during the 1890s at a time when matches were still produced using poisonous yellow phosphorus, which caused the fatal disease ‘Phossy Jaw’ in poor factory workers.

1900 World’s first feature film

Operating from 1897 to 1910, The Salvation Army Limelight Department was Australia’s first film production company. Among its many achievements, The Limelight Department is credited with producing the world’s first multi-media presentation using the moving picture film technology of the day.

The film, ‘Soldiers of the Cross’, was produced during 1900 and the Limelight Department also recorded the birth of the nation at Federation in 1901.

WWI ministry

It was during the First World War that The Salvation Army became recognised for the ministry of its chaplains, tending to the physical and spiritual needs of diggers wherever they were. One example was the chaplain to the First Infantry Brigade, “Fighting Mac” McKenzie, who went ashore with the troops at Gallipoli.

In one three-day period, Fighting Mac conducted 647 funerals and after one funeral service he found three bullet-holes in his hat. He was later awarded a Military Cross for his work, an honour virtually unheard of for a military chaplain.

The Salvation Army was involved supporting the troops in every theatre of that terrible conflict. At Le Havre, in France, the famous “Hop In” sign made its first appearance, accompanied by the Red Shield symbol of service. The Hop In centres offered soldiers a cup of tea and a bit of advice or encouragement if they needed it.

1920s Children’s holiday camps

Children living in the slums of Sydney during the 1920s rarely had the opportunity to experience life outside the slums. The Salvation Army decided to offer these children the ‘holiday of a lifetime’ at the Army’s Collaroy centre on Sydney’s beautiful northern beaches. During the Depression, mothers were invited too.

The Salvation Army continues to run Red Shield holiday camps for disadvantaged children at The Collaroy Centre at least twice a year, as well as holidays for single mothers and their children twice a year.

1923 Foster House opened in Sydney

During 1923 The Salvation Army opened Foster House in Sydney’s Surry Hills to provide accommodation for homeless men. Located in Foster Street, Foster House was a five-storey building with dormitory style accommodation that slept 220 men, the cots all lined up at attention.

Although useful in its time, by the 1990s rehabilitation methods had markedly changed. The emphasis today is on providing personal support to encourage men to lead more independent lives. To this end, In 1996, The Salvation Army opened a new, purpose-built facility near the original Foster House.

WWII ministry

As WWII commenced, The Salvation Army went to work, at home and on the battlefield offering home comforts, advice, support and spiritual assistance. The famous Salvation Army ‘Hop in’ tents and canteens were set up in training camps in Australia, in the deserts of North Africa and in the jungles of New Guinea. Where an Australian soldier, sailor or airman served, The Salvation Army endeavoured to be there too.

1964 Addiction treatment programs

The Salvation Army has worked with addicts since its beginnings in the East End of London in the 1860s. In Australia, a rehabilitation farm was set up at Collaroy in the early 1900s. However, The Salvation Army Bridge Program for rehabilitation began in earnest in August, 1964, when the Nithsdale clinic was opened behind Salvation Army headquarters in Sydney.

By 1969, the program had developed into the long-term residential program it is today, featuring three main phases of rehabilitation including time spent at a rural farm or industrial centre. Today the Bridge Program includes 12 facilities throughout NSW and Qld.

1965 Outback flying service

In January 1965, The Salvation Army Australia Eastern Territory purchased a four-seater Auster Autocar aircraft to be based in Longreach and used for outreach over the vast Queensland outback. Lieutenants Alf and Noela Dawkins were appointed to pioneer the flying padre service.

During six years in the job, Alf covered an incredible amount of miles, ministering to many people on isolated homesteads, including conducting weddings, baptisms and funerals. Since the Dawkins' time in Longreach, there have been five "flying padres". The base was moved to Mount Isa in 2000 when the name changed to the Outback Flying Service.

Today the service covers around two million square kilometres of central and north Queensland and supports more than 130 families on remote properties.

Australia is the only country in The Salvation Army world that operates flying padre services.

1974 Cyclone Tracy relief effort

When Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin, The Salvation Army was among the first to fly into Darwin on Boxing Day, 1974. The disaster called for an emergency relief program on a scale seldom seen anywhere in the world. The Salvation Army moved in hundreds of volunteers and provided food, clothing and comfort to the thousands who needed it.

Salvationists also assisted with the evacuation of 30,000 residents and helped them find temporary accommodation in the south. They then followed up for many weeks with relief assistance and family reunions.

1977 Granville rail disaster

When a crowded, peak-hour train was derailed at Granville, NSW, in January 1977, The Salvation Army arrived even before ambulances or emergency services. Auxiliary-Captain Frank Wilson of The Salvation Army’s social services centre at Mount Druitt was at the scene immediately, giving out drinks from his emergency services unit to shocked survivors.

Salvation Army officers from all around Sydney were then brought in to assist, and by midday 5,000 meals had been served. Emotional support was provided for families bereaved by the tragedy in an ongoing way.

1983 Salvo Care Line

In late 1983, The Salvation Army established a 24-hour telephone counselling service as a pilot project managed by Salvationist, Alan Staines. Alan had worked on the streets of Sydney’s Kings Cross and could see the need for such a service to meet the needs of people in crisis at any hour of the day or night.

The service was staffed largely by volunteers and initially operated in at the Staines’ house. Today, the volunteer counsellors at Salvo Care Line answer more than 55,000 calls every year.

1992 Oasis Youth Support Network

In June 1992, The Salvation Army opened Sydney’s first 24-hour crisis centre for homeless youth, the Oasis Youth Care Centre in Surry Hills. It was a joint project between the Advertising Federation of Australia and The Salvation Army.

Since that time thousands of homeless young people have been helped to rebuild their shattered lives/

In 1997, the Oasis Youth Care Centre amalgamated with the other Salvation Army youth services in inner city Sydney, and the decision was made to name the new network after the original Oasis - thus becoming the Oasis Youth Support Network.

1994 “Moneycare” financial counselling service

In order to better address the underlying factors contributing to financial hardship, The Salvation Army introduced its Moneycare financial counselling service in 1994. A free service offering a mixture of counselling and financial advice, Moneycare aims to break the cycle of dependence upon welfare assistance.

From one small office in 1994, the service now operates in 12 locations throughout NSW, ACT and Qld and assists more than 5,000 people each year.

1995 Rural chaplaincy created

The Salvation Army’s involvement in the Farm Hand appeal of 1994 highlighted the need for ongoing pastoral care in rural Australia. As a result, in 1995 The Salvation Army created the position of Rural Chaplain for NSW, to which Envoy Bill Sweeting was appointed.

With the ravages of drought continuing into the early 21st century, The Salvation Army expanded the Rural Chaplaincy, which now includes seven chaplains working in various parts of NSW and Qld. The chaplains travel thousands of kilometres across vast areas each year, bringing spiritual care, practical assistance and friendship to farmers and their families.

1996 Port Arthur shooting tragedy

The Port Arthur shooting tragedy of 1996 shocked the nation. A Salvation Army trauma management team, headed up by veteran Salvation Army chaplain Lieut-Colonel Don Woodland, travelled to Tasmania in response, providing counselling and ongoing support to the deeply traumatised victims.

1997 Thredbo landslide

When a landslide claimed 17 lives in the NSW ski village of Thredbo during 1997, The Salvation Army was there to assist in the rescue effort and to help rescue-workers, volunteers and families of victims by providing a basic catering service, counselling, and chaplaincy support.

Over a period of eight days, 16,000 meals and refreshments were provided. Salvation Army chaplain, Lieut-Colonel Don Woodland also assisted landslide survivor, Stuart Diver and his family, and they developed a close friendship.

2002 Bali

Salvation Army chaplains helped at hospitals and airports around Australia following the terrorist attacks in Bali which affected hundreds of Australians during 2002. Chaplains provided comfort and counsel to victims and their families, traumatised tourists, airport/ airline staff and emergency services personnel.

2004 Australia’s first Problem Gambling Centre

During November 2004 The Salvation Army announced plans to commence the Sydney Problem Gambling Centre, the first of its kind in Australia, in the city’s south-west.

The Problem Gambling Centre will work in cooperation with The Salvation Army Bridge Program for rehabilitation and its principles of abstinence, but will be a dedicated place for problem gamblers to seek help.

2004-2005 Tsunami disaster, South-East Asia

The South Asia tsunami disaster presented The Salvation Army internationally with the biggest-ever program of relief and reconstruction in its 135-year history, involving 5,000 Salvation Army personnel on the ground.

Because The Salvation Army had existing churches and programs in affected areas, local Salvationists were able to respond immediately after the disaster with relief and support. Reconstruction work and the rebuilding of lives will continue for years to come.

Founders William & Catherine Booth

William and Catherine Booth with 5 of their 8 children

William Booth

The Salvation Army founder, William Booth was born in Nottingham, England, on 10 April, 1829.

He married Catherine Mumford in 1855, and the couple went on to raise 9 children.

Catherine Booth

Catherine found the courage to speak to people in their homes, especially to alcoholics, whom she helped to make a new start in life. Often she held cottage meetings for converts.

She was also a mother with a growing family of eight children and was dedicated to giving them a firm Christian knowledge. Two of the Booth children became Generals of The Salvation Army.

Catherine died in 1890. Bramwell Booth, describing the last moments of her life, wrote:

My mistakes His free grace doth cover,My sins He doth wash away;These feet which shrink and falterShall enter the Gates of Day.

History of Booth College in Sydney

The first efforts in theological education for The Salvation Army in Australia began in 1883, only two years after the first leaders had arrived from England to take charge of the fledgling Army.

This training was exclusive to its officers (ministers), to give them some preparation for ministry.

In 1921 the Eastern Territory Training College was opened at 55 Livingstone Rd, Petersham and the Cadets [ministers-in-training] undertook a ten month residential course. Time in training was extended for cadets in 1965 to two years.
Between 1932 and 1935, because of the Great Depression and the need to economise, the college in Sydney was closed and all officer training was carried out in Melbourne.
1980 saw the Sydney Officer Training College, [now The School for Officer Training], move from Petersham to its present location at Bexley North. In 1996 The Salvation Army introduced a training program at the Lake Munmorah Campus with emphasis on Leadership & Discipleship for young adults within The Salvation Army.
February 1997 saw the commencement of theological education for Christians who wished to study, but were not looking at becoming an officer. This was the first semester of classes through the now School For Christian Studies and in June 1999 the new College of Further Education (now Booth College) building was opened on the site at Bexley North with modern classrooms and an updated library.

This inaugurated a unique program designed to bring the existing training programs under one umbrella

The School For Christian Studies
The School for Officer Training
The School for Youth Leadership
The School for Leadership Training (Stanmore)

History of Stanmore campus

Our Stanmore campus (also known as the School For Leadership training) stands on land that was part of a land grant to Captain Thomas Rowley in 1803. This original grant consisted of 240 acres of land stretching from Parramatta Road to Stanmore Road. Rowley sold the property in 1835 to James Holt.

In 1872 work was begun on part of "The Lodge", the main house on this property and in 1873 Alexander Stuart purchased the property. Stuart went on to become premier of New South Wales in 1882.
The property changed hands a number of times, but it is believed that "The Lodge" was extended to its present size in 1886.
In 1900 Herbert Booth purchased the property on behalf of his father, William Booth, for The Salvation Army in Australia. The property was renamed "The Harbour".
When the property was purchased the intention was for it to be the Women's Annexe for the Officer Training Garrison. Instead of being put to this use, women and girls were relocated from St Peters Home to continue an industrial laundry and sewing service. These new premises were far more spacious then the St Peters home. By 1932, the resident number had declined and girls on probation were also accommodated.
In the 1940's "The Harbour" was renamed "The Lodge".
In 1948, the premises became a young people's hostel. It continued to serve as this until the 1960's. In 1969 "The Lodge" became a children's home, when children were moved from Arncliffe. It remained as a children's home until 1987.
In 1987, the Centre for Officers Further Training was established and "The Lodge" began its work of further education. "The Lodge" is now the Stanmore campus of Booth College.
History of Salvation Army Op Shops
The first Salvation Army recycling depots were opened in Australia in 1880 and provided work, accommodation and food for men leaving prison - known as a "Prison Gate Brigade Home".

History of Salvation Army Recycling Programs

With little or no machinery the work provided was labour intensive and was ideally suited to the target population. Collecting, sorting and baling waste paper was one example of an early environmentally-friendly project that many centres engaged in.In time, "jumble sales" were added, which enabled the poor to clothe themselves and their children with items discarded by the “better off” members of the community. Later other household items were also recycled by what was known as "Salvage Departments”.

From these humble beginnings The Salvation Army has developed a multi-million dollar recycling service. We currently operate the largest international network of collection centres, retail stores and recycled clothing export services.

This development has been driven by our commitment to gaining the maximum benefits from the recycling industry in order to provide funds for the mission of The Salvation Army.

Recycling Programs in NSW, ACT, Qld

The Salvation Army in Sydney first operated a “Prison Gate Brigade Home” in Castlereagh Street (now buried under the Central Railway Station) from 1886 – 1887.

This moved to
- 169 Albion Street, Surry Hills (1887 – 1891)
- 21 Parramatta Road, Ashfield (1891 – 1894)
- Silver Street, St Peters (1894 – 1902)
- Edgeware Road, Enmore (1902 – 1910)
- finally to Bellevue Street, St Peters (1910 – to date).
Bellevue Street, St Peters was built around 1860 for a wool merchant named Captain George Talbot. The Salvation Army bought the house and land in 1904 and converted it to a “Prison Gate Farm” which opened in 1910. It was initially a 15 acre site, although The Salvation Army has sold much of this land over the years.

It had a piggery, housing up to 200 pigs, and stables to accommodate up to six horses. The house was a two-storey Georgian style villa of brick. The house was described in 1904 as being one of the most beautiful in St Peters and Tempe.

For about 120 years The Salvation Army operated in Sydney - initially as the Prison Gate Brigade, then Miroma Industries, Red Shield Industries, Red Shield Family Stores and now Salvos Stores.

A network of stores grew throughout NSW, ACT and Qld, some run by local Salvation Army churches and some operating in conjunction with Salvation Army Rehabilitation Services.

In 1994 the Rehabilitation Services Command was established with part of its responsibility being the Red Shield Industries / Family Stores operations throughout Australia Eastern Territory (NSW, ACT, Qld).

On 2 September 2001, Recovery Services Command and Red Shield Industries/ Family Stores administrative operations were separated to enable a more focused strategic direction for each.

On 1 January 2003, Red Shield Family Stores trading entity was renamed and branded "Salvos Stores"
History of the Family Tracing Service
The work of tracing family members goes back to the beginning of the Army’s Social Programme and actually started in 1885 as a result of a need seen by the founder of The Salvation Army, William Booth.

In the 1870’s and 1880’s there was severe poverty in the rural areas of the United Kingdom and in the larger provincial cities such as Leeds, Birmingham, and Manchester. At that time people began making their way to London, looking for work and a better life.

Instead they found problems – financial problems, unemployment and homelessness.

Many of these people approached The Salvation Army for assistance. Many were found to be in a sad situation by Salvation Army Officers who were working in the slums of London.

Meanwhile, in the provinces, their families were also approaching the local Salvation Army asking if The Salvation Army could help them make contact with their family members that they hadn't heard from for many months.

William Booth recognized that there was a problem, which required not only material but also moral and spiritual support.

William Booth put the matter in the hands of his daughter-in-law Florence, and with his usual approach to challenges, told her “Do something”. So in 1885 “Mrs Booth’s Enquiry Bureau” was started.

As The Salvation Army expanded and became international so did the work of tracing people in order to reunite them with their families. Today The Salvation Army tracing service operates in more than 100 countries.

In New South Wales the family tracing work commenced operation on 12 August 1920.

Modern Day

Today a good proportion of the work still has an international focus.

Currently, the NSW Family Tracing Service receives approximately 100 new search requests every month. It is estimated that about 85% of searches are successful.

While some searches are quite straight forward, the majority of our searches require a fair bit of detective work. This is time consuming and it means that some searches can take quite a while to get a result.
History of The Salvation Army's prison work
A member of The Salvation Army's Prison-Gate Brigade in action

In 1883, Major James Barker led the way to establish the first Salvation Army social institution anywhere in the world on a permanent basis, known as the "Prison Gate" programme.

The Salvation Army’s world-wide prison ministry began when Major James Barker began conducting chapel services in the Melbourne Gaol.

Barker saw that prisoners being released from the gaol had nowhere to go and no work, so they inevitably re-offended and returned to gaol.

The chapel services quickly developed to include a ministry for ex-prisoners. Barker leased a small house in Lygon Street, Carlton, to provide accommodation for prisoners discharged from Melbourne's gaols.

This led to the formation of the Prison-Gate Brigade, the members of which met discharged prisoners upon their release and offered them a home and the prospect of a job.

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Thursday, April 2, 2015