Fulham RoadWorkhouse/Infirmary Records

[auntynet]

I am researching Fulham Road Infirmary and am visiting LMA next month to look at these records.  I am trying to find out information on my Grandmother who gave birth to my mother there in 1920.  The Infirmary was part of the workhouse and came under The Westminster Board of Guardians. 

I have the record indexes for Westminster Board of Guardians,  I am just wondering if they are just for the admissions into the workhouse or would they include the Infirmary as well.

The records I will be searching are admissions, creed records, case books (female) and the masters log book and journal.  My mother and her twin sister were left at Fulham Road Infirmary and their birth was registered by WM Starns (Informant) who worked there.
   Many thanks

[sianeh]

I have a similar story - my grandmother was born in the Fulham Road Infirmary in November 1919 and the informant for her birth was also Wm Starns.  I have looked through the admissions books that are available on Ancestry.com, but they seem to be just for the workhouse, not the infirmary.  If you have any luck with the infirmary records, I'd be very glad to hear about it, as i'd quite like to come up to London myself to have a search through, if they're available.  There are unanswered questions surrounding my gran's birth (not the least of which is how her mother came to be in London!).

Good luck with your searching!

[Valda]

Hi

You can search the LMA holdings in their online catalogue

http://search.lma.gov.uk/OPAC_LMA/login.html

Just log in as a guest and then enter Westminster Board of Guardians for their holdings and also try St George Hanover Square since the two had amalgamated by then.

Fulham Road Infirmary was renamed St Stephen's Hospital (Chelsea) in 1924

http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cats/118/11907.htm

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hospitalrecords/details.asp?id=127&hospital=st+stephen%27s&town=&searchdatabase.x=86&searchdatabase.y=8

If the children were left there, there may well be other board of guardian records that may be of more use to you than the infirmary records (if they do not survive) if the children remained in the care of the poor law union.


Regards

Valda

[dawnsh]

Just a word of caution, the records of the 1920's you are hoping to see at the LMA may not be 'open' to view as they are less than 100 years old. They most probably won't be open until at least 2021 or 100 years after the date of the last entry.

You may have to pay for the LMA to do this research on your behalf.

Dawn

[auntynet]

FOA SIANEH

I am going to email LMA for some verification on these records, as there seems to be very little named Fulham Infirmary records, but as of some interest to us on the City of Westminster Board of Guardians records there is a record for a visiting committee on the lying in wards at Fulham Infirmary, so they did run a "maternity" service as such.

The records I am searching cover the date of your Grandmother, so I don't know if you want to get our heads together on ideas for this I believe you have to post 3 times to enable personal messaging service.  My mother was boarded/fostered out so there has got to be some sort of records.  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital which stands on the site of Fulham Infirmary have their own archivist do maybe worth emaling them.
Look forward to hearing from you.    Jeanette

[auntynet]

Dawn & Valda

Thank you so much for you advice.  Dawn I am ok with the records they are viewable after 1989.

My mum and her twin I believe were together until the age of 3 or 4, then fostered/boarded out.  There is a photo of my aunty in a white pinifore and apron and it says with Nurse ?? and the background of the photo looks like a very large room.  I believe Westminster Board of Guardians used Ashford schools, so another line to look at, and yes if they came under the charge of the guardians, then there should be more records.  I have got record Index for their committee meetings.

Hmmm one and a half days for searching (laughing) Is that going to be long enough  to find out who my Grandma was, too many of her name and of child bearing age (6 possibles)

Thank you very much for your input I would like to leave this on for a few days before I put completed.   Jeanette

[dawnsh]

Hi Jeanette

For the benefit of other Rootschatters who may find this topic in the future, please give us an update when you have been to the LMA and done your research as to what's available and the outcome.

Dawn

[Bilge]

Have a read of this link!

http://www.workhouses.org.uk

[auntynet]

     Will do Dawn towards the end of February