Winterton Mental Hospital 1950s/60s - any ex-employees?

[brightmount]

Myself and another distant cousin are trying to find out about someone on our family tree who doesn't seem to have left any kind of footprint. Her name is Elizabeth Owen, b. 1889 lived in Middlesbrough. We have all the names etc of her family, but are trying to find out more about her life, as it was said that she died in 1965 in Winterton Hospital, where she had been for many years. We believe she never married.

I am aware that according to Durham Archives list of the records they hold, there are many records for Winterton Hospital, however we have been informed that her case notes were not among the 2% retained after 1945, and her death in 1965 is during a period for which they do not have records.

Just a long shot - I wondered if anyone actually knew her ... either through having worked at Winterton Hospital, or through another association. She was apparently committed to a pauper's grave and forgotten, and we would like to honour her memory with the rightful respect she deserves.

[bendywendy]

Hi brightmount

Have you puchased her Death Cert to see what details it has listed, especially cause of death and place of death.

Have you found her resting place? the hospital will have had local graves either on their own land or with the local authorities.

Have you tried the National Archives at Kew to see if they hold any records for the years you require. Is the following the one you are looking for??

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hospitalrecords/details.asp?id=316&hospital=winterton&town=&searchdatabase.x=0&searchdatabase.y=0

also..
http://www.winterton-hospital.co.uk/
‘Behind the wall: The life and times of Winterton Hospital’ ... If you wish to purchase the book, it is available at County Durham Books and should be available to buy at your local library. The cost of the book is £9.95 (usually £2 for P&P).

http://www.countyasylums.com/mentalasylums/winterton01.htm


By 1965 the Asylum / Hospital would have been under the unbrella of the NHS and so those records will be held by the NHS in storage somewhere and I don't know about accessing NHS records for those that are dead, but you could try contacting these...

http://www.ectanonymous.co.uk/ect-anonymous-uk/1-winterton-hospital
 Winterton Hospital
Other names/synonyms: Sedgefield Asylum Date opened: 1859  Date closed: 1996
Location: Salters Lane, Sedgefield, County Durham.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winterton_Hospital
∞
Records Located at:
Durham County Record Office
County Hall
Durham
DH1 5UL
Tel: 0191 383 3253
Fax: 0191 383 4500
Email: record.office AT durham.gov.uk
∞
Patient Records Information
Contact:
Department of Health
Richmond House
79 Whitehall
London
SW1A 2NS
Email: dhmail AT dh.gsi.gov.uk
Telephone: 0207 210 4850
Textphone: (for deaf and hard of hearing): 0207 210 5025
∞
http://www.winterton-hospital.co.uk/
http://www.muthergrumble.co.uk/issue06/mg0622.htm
http://www.patients-association.org.uk/FAQ-Category/8

Bendywendy

[brightmount]

Thanks for all those suggestions. I will work through and see if there's anything we have missed.

Since I posted this thread, I have got what we think is her death certificate, and it gives the place of death as Holywood Hall Hospital, Walsingham. I've looked this place up and it appears to be a mix of TB and dementia patients (her death was heart failure). Assuming this is the right person, I wonder if she was transferred, as a relative is convinced the family spoke of Winterton.

So next question: does anyone know anything about Holywood Hall Hospital?

[bendywendy]

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hospitalrecords/details.asp?id=322&page=28
Holywood Hall Hospital, Bishop Auckland     Post 1948 NHS
Held at Durham County Record Office

Winterton or Walsingham, could possibly have become "confused" with either place being the other 
Bendywendy

[JTBTW]

Hollywood Hall hospital was a former sanitorium situated in Wolsingham in Weardale, Co. Durham.
Many former long stay patients from Winterton were transferred to Hollywood Hall, which closed it's doors in the 1980's. it is now an upmarket housing estate and the original main part of the building was converted into apartments.

In all likelihood the case record will have been transferred with the patient so should have survived. A great many records were destroyed in a flood at Winterton Hospital. I would assume that the County Records office will have the file, however it is likely to be closed for 100 years.

[brightmount]

Thank you. I would be very interested to speak to anyone who may have worked at Holywood Hall between 1963-1965, as they may have known Elizabeth Owen. Also anyone who may have known staff there as we are unable to account for the informant on her death certificate, assuming we have the right one.

[JTBTW]

Perhaps your best bet would be to start topic titled Hollywood Hall / Wolsingham, Co Durham.
I would hazard an educated guess that most staff ( at that time) would live in and around the Wolsingham area, so you would be looking at places like Frosterly, Tow law, Eastgate, Westgate, Stanhope, Crook, and of course Wolsingham itself.

I would think many of them will now be of a good age.

[brightmount]

Thank you, I have posted a new topic, and your suggestion that former staff may still live locally has given me some more research ideas!

[robcat]

I have only just registered with this site so hope I am not too late with this subject. I recently discovered my g'mother died in Winterton hospital in 1976, having always thought she had died many years previously. Her death cert gives the name of a member of staff who notified her death. Durham R O have no further records . Do you know if the graveyard is still there?