Documents from the Prestwich Lunatic Asylum

[Jenjen]

My documents arrived today detailing my great uncles stay in the Prestwich lunatic asylum. I feel rather as though I am prying into something I shouldn't. Anyway there is a reference about family history and it says....
Insanity- Aunt paternal died in CAP.
Does anyone have any idea what CAP might be? On free bmd I have found that she died in 1878 n Prestwich.
Jen

[Peter Goodey]

Aunt paternal died in CAP. Does anyone have any idea what CAP might be?

County Asylum, Prestwich (just guessing ;))

[Creighton]

My 2nd great grandfather died in Prestwich Lunatic Asylum in 1873. His name was French Flanders HEMS, and he was only (about) 33! The P.M. showed the cause as brain disease, general paralysis and exhaustion. It is strange that the death certificate doesn't show a lot of detail, as his occupation was unknown and there is no mention of his spouse. The informant was a Wilson EAGER - in attendance. I would like to know why he was placed there.

[Peter Goodey]

I would like to know why he was placed there.

"General Paralysis" or "General Paralysis of the Insane" was the usual 19th century expression for tertiary syphilis.

[Creighton]

Oh dear - well that would paint a rather sad picture of my ancestor |blush| . He was married and had 3 children so I wonder how he came by that souvenir. I guess we shall never know the answer to that one.

[Jenjen]

Why didn't I think of that? I was also thinking it might be Cheadle as that was also a lunatic asylum. Anyway the records office have been very prompt and forthcoming with the records that are available. It was just $5 for the information which included the photograph. This uncle was swept under the carpet, poor man. Those Victorians!
Jen

[Jenjen]

You were correct it was indeed the Prestwich Asylum. I heard back from Manchester and the lady did die at the asylum in 1879 and the records are at the Lancashire record office. I will be in England in June and will visit the record office. I will try to look up asylum records for anyone who has no opportunity to go there.
Jen

[Jenjen]

This message is for Rossyln
Yes, you would have to wait 100 years after the last record before they would be made available. However if you have not contacted Manchester RO you might want to give them a try to confirm that the records were all in one batch. If they were in more than one then some may be available. I managed to get one set from 1901 but will have to wait until 2017 for the rest.
f you want to know more about the asylum you can go to this site
http://www.gmcro.co.uk/education/education4.htm
Lots of info. here.
Jen

[R Williams]

Dear jenen, thankyou very much for replying, i am very grateful, yes i have checked MRO and unfortunatley we will have to wait until 2013, i was just curious to whether you had more info about Prestwich itself, but very grateful, none the less . Rosslyn

[Gilbert]

Could someone please assist me in trying to locate my late grandfather?
Have been doing the family history for some years now and know the pitfalls of family folklore, and as no one talked about him it was only when we older that we were told he was in the asylum. Now I had assumed from these stories that he had been admitted to Ashton-under-Lyne,and not being able to locate a death certificate for him anywhere in the country.
Three years of banging my head against a brick wall finally a lady in Ashton checked the register for me only to find there was no record of him, so now I need to know if he was admitted to Prestwich. I am unable to do this myself as I live in Australia so would really appreciate any help given me.
His name Henry Andrew Bradley
Born 1882 Greenfield, Yorkshire
The date of admission not known but taking a rough guess abt 1925 and he was still alive in 1946, still residing at Greenfield when admitted.
Thank you Stella

[Peter Goodey]

I think you really need to find his death certificate as a first step. This will tell you where he died.

Use the national GRO indexes since there's doubt about his location.

Greenfield was to the best of my knowledge then administered by the West Riding of Yorkshire and if he was sent to a County Asylum, this would surely be the appropriate county.

[Gilbert]

Thank you Peter for your response.
I have been looking for my grandfathers death for five years now life would be that much easier if I could locate where he did die.
Greenfield/ Saddleworth still come under Yorkshire but they are on the Lancashire side of the Pennies, to transport someone they have to travel over the snake pass which during the winter months is usually closed. This is why I assumed he would have been taken to Ashton Asylum but he is not in the records, next clue Grandmother went to visit him now and then and with out transport local Asylums would be much easier to reach instead of traveling into Yorkshire.
Well it is back to the drawing board once again.
Regards
Stella

[Peter Goodey]

Snake's too far south, surely?

Trouble is , there wasn't a national system of health care in those days and it wasn't so easy to use another county's facilities even if they were handier.

[Gilbert]

I have contacted Saddleworth Family History Society to see if they can help so keeping my fingers crossed I get a reply. Thanks for you help.
Stella