Colney Hatch Mental Hospital

[Estherlesley]

Good morning

I am researching my Grandfathers family tree and I believe he had an Aunt Hannah Barron, born in 1902 in London and died on 21 Jan 1925 in Colney Hatch Mental Hospital in London. I have contacted the London National Archives as I found out that patient records are held by them to ask about viewing records. Due to the current situation they are closed, however, when they open back up I have the option to visit and pay £7 for a day photography pass to take my own photos of records, or, pay a researcher which I think is a minimum of £80 for an hour. I live in South Yorkshire so I think both options are going to work out quite expensive. My question is, if I can get a death certificate should it tell me why she died? I am however struggling to to find any record of her death.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.#

Thank you

Esther

[Vossy]

Esther
Quite often you will find the admission records but the actual patient medical records are not always available. I found my great grandfathers admission records and also the records from the workhouse where he saw the doctor who sectioned him the the asylum(pre NHS times). When I contacted the modern NHS trust they told me that they couldn't release the actual medical records because they were less than 100 years old. The death certificate will have the cause of death though.

Vossy53

[wimsey]

her name appears in the death index as HETTY Barron - is that correct ?

volume 3a, page 497, Barnet district - aged 22

[emeltee]

If you are struggling to find any record of her death how do you know she died 21 Jan 1925?

Emeltee

[Peter Goodey]

Record from 1925 are unlikely to be open for browsing so visiting in person may not benefit you (although advance tickets are a lot cheaper than you're assuming).

So we're probably talking about a Freedom of Information request. Have you read their research guide on hospital records?

When the time is right I would recommend discussing your needs with the enquiry team there. To avoid confusion, we are talking about the London Metropolitan Archives not the National Archives.

https://search.lma.gov.uk/rg_pdf_cre...earch_guide=59

[Lesley Robertson]

Have you looked at the 1911 census? The only Hannah Baron shown as having been born 1902 in London is listed with her parents (Solomon and Jane) and her 6 siblings. If your grandfather is listed among them, it confirms that he did have a sister of that name!

[Estherlesley]

Esther
Quite often you will find the admission records but the actual patient medical records are not always available. I found my great grandfathers admission records and also the records from the workhouse where he saw the doctor who sectioned him the the asylum(pre NHS times). When I contacted the modern NHS trust they told me that they couldn't release the actual medical records because they were less than 100 years old. The death certificate will have the cause of death though.

Vossy53

Thank you Vossy, I will definitely try and get more details to obtained a death cert.

Esther

[Estherlesley]

If you are struggling to find any record of her death how do you know she died 21 Jan 1925?

Emeltee

Because I was told by a family member. Maybe I should have been a little clearer, I am struggling to find an official record/document of her death to allow me to order a death certificate.

[Estherlesley]

her name appears in the death index as HETTY Barron - is that correct ?

volume 3a, page 497, Barnet district - aged 22

I haven't heard that she ever went by the name of Hetty but I will definitely check this out.

Thank you

[Estherlesley]

Record from 1925 are unlikely to be open for browsing so visiting in person may not benefit you (although advance tickets are a lot cheaper than you're assuming).

So we're probably talking about a Freedom of Information request. Have you read their research guide on hospital records?

When the time is right I would recommend discussing your needs with the enquiry team there. To avoid confusion, we are talking about the London Metropolitan Archives not the National Archives.

https://search.lma.gov.uk/rg_pdf_cre...earch_guide=59

Hi Peter,

Thank you very much for your reply. I have just checked by email correspondence and it is with the London Metropolitan Archives and not the National Archives.

I haven't read through the hospital guide but I will do, thank you for attaching the link.

Thank you again for your help.

Esther