A family mystery....any advice?

[PabloC]

Hi, I wonder if anyone could help me? 

I’m trying to unravel something of a family mystery…

I am told that my grandfather, who was one of twelve, had a brother who was placed into care as he suffered from epileptic fits, as well as other disabilities.

No one knows anything about him really, other than he was placed in a home/institution possibly called Blackburn Whalley (I think that’s the correct spelling), which I presume was in the Blackburn area of Lancashire, although the family were from Liverpool. We have no idea when he died, but it was presumably as a child, although the death registers have not yet revealed anything, having searched right through to the 1960’s.

He was  in 1917, so this must have all taken place from then onwards. Both  his parents had passed away by 1927, so if he hadn't died by then, I'm wondering what might have became of him.

Does anybody know of a home/institution of this name or one that was in the area which might act as a starting point for my research?

Any help would be appreciated.

Regards

Paul

[The Geneal Geologist]

Whalley is a deanery in Blackburn, so that would match the place.
A "Whalley Asylum" is mentioned.
Any deaths in BMD online, assuming the name was kept, should be recorded as normal. It would appear Blackburn deaths for the name of interest is the place to start.
Good luck.

Regards,
Mark

[The Geneal Geologist]

Also try this link for more detail on particular Asylums:

www.mdx.ac.uk/WWW/STUDY/4_13_Ta.htm

[Galium]

Whalley Asylum later became known as Calderstones Hospital.  

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hospitalrecords/details.asp?id=1378&page=9

[PabloC]

Excellent 

Thank you both very much for your help!!

Paul

[cathyaus]

Hi Paul
I have recently traced a relative that I found out  was in Calderstones Hospital.
I contacted the Medical Records Dept & they were fantastic & found the details of the relative - even though she had been discharged from there back in 1976.

I knew that the relative that I was tracing was definately in Calderstones based on information in her father's Will - so I was able to give Medical Records the approximate years that she was there.

If your grandfather's brother died in an institution & had no living relatives - he would have been buried in a pauper's grave.

If you need the email address for Calderstones Hospital- let me know & I will give it to you.
Good Luck in your search
Cathy

[debbiecamera]

Calderstones Hospital NHS Trust website:
http://www.calderstones.nhs.uk/

The original hospital site is now a rather exclusive housing development. There was a similar hospital, Brockhall not far from Calderstones, also now an exclusive housing estate.

The builder who bought the land at Brockhall Hospital, a chap by the name of Gerald Hitman laid a memorial stone to all the residents of Brockhall Hospital, which is in the tiny church grounds near to the old site.

I don't know if such a thing was ever done for the residents of Calderstones though.

Debbie

[LizzieW]

I contacted the Medical Records Dept & they were fantastic & found the details of the relative - even though she had been discharged from there back in 1976.

That's interesting Debbie, when I had such trouble (officialdom using the 100 year rule, which doesn't actually exist) in getting the details of a g.uncle of mine who entered an asylum in 1907 and died there in 1964.  All I got were records up to the last entry in 1907, which I was told was the last entry in the records.  That I do not believe.  As he lived at the asylum from the beginning of 1907 to 1964, surely someone must have written something about him.  I wonder what would happen if I asked again in another 10 years for his records. 

Lizzie

[debbiecamera]

Hi Lizzie,
I'm not sure just what would have been kept. I've been a nurse for over 25 years and have written hundreds of thousands of entries in patients notes over the years I should imagine!

We were always told that patients records are destroyed 10 years after their death - otherwise the hospital would run out of space to store them. How true that is I don't know...