Murray's asylum ,kinnoull

[snowolf]

Hi,
This has me a bit curious.
I have a person who married in 1914, her occupation is a dairymaid , but it states her usual address is as Murray's Asylum , Kinnoull.
I'm wondering if the asylum had their own dairy ? ....or could she have been an inmate but on a day release as a dairymaid  (did they have that in these days ?).
Was Murray's asylum there for years ?
one of the witness at marriage was a peter murray.....mmmmh

any ideas please ?
thanks a million ,
Snowolf

[bleckie]

Hi Snowolf

Murray Royal Hospital is still there, Once upon a time it had it's own dairy and it had it's own pig herd up until the 1960s.

By the date you are looking at I do not think the Murray's had anything to do with the hospital.
It's original name when built was James Murray's Lunatic Asylum

May be of interest     
 http://134.36.1.31/dserve/dserve2/history/thb29hist.html

Yours Aye
BruceL

[snowolf]

Hi Bleckie,
Thankyou for your reply  ..i found the article you gave the website for intresting ,

thanks again,
Snowolf

[chrispaton]

Records from 1802-1993 for the Murray Royal Lunatic Asylum are available at the University of Dundee Archive service, catalogued under THB 29 - see the catalogue at http://134.36.1.31/search/search-all.htm. Type the reference in only and all sorts will pop up - there may well be some employment records in there, or perhaps mentions of the dairy in minutes?

(I've just written a book about a murder in my family in 1866, due for publication in June 2012, which includes some content about the asylum, so have been through some of the case papers there, rather than administrative.)

You'll also find quite a lot on the asylum via Google Books, including various annual reports etc, which may be worth a look - not sure how recent these go though.

The building is still there, it is now the main hospital for Perth.

Chris

[carrumba]

Just a quick correction to the previous post - Murray Royal is still a psychiatric hospital - Perth Royal Infirmary is the main "hospital" though all is increasingly centralised now in Dundee.

I have been within the walls of Murray Royal before (just for an hour!  They let me out again!) after a head injury and the place then was all you'd expect from a "Lunatic Asylum".  It felt very Victorian and imposing, even in the late 1990's!  Kinnoull Hill was a bit of a magnet for the unwell through the ages- in medieval times it also hosted a leper colony.

[chrispaton]

I stand corrected! I believe there is a major renovation or building works happening there soon, may already be underway. Spoke to one of the staff recently who is an informal archivist, gathering all sorts of images and materials to do with the place - very helpful.

Chris

[bleckie]

Hi

If memory is correct the new Murray Royal will open to patients this summer

Although some of the wards at present are still in use.

Hi carrumba I take it it was the old original building you visited,
Bridgend was the leper colony. Kinnoul was used for gardens and herb growing see attached link

http://bgk.org.uk/history.html

Some details of the project at Murray Royal
http://www.mhdproject.scot.nhs.uk/Newsletters/Newsletters.htm


Yours aye
Brucel

[carrumba]

Bleckie-

Cheers for that!  That is a result of my "youth" - Bridgend was always referred to as "Kinnoull" as in "that bit over the water" and has warped my image of that particular location.  I stand happily corrected :-)

Yes it was the old building I believe.  Kinnoul hill is really interesting from the tower folly to the "Lunatic" Asylum and working Monastery that most people don't is there as they grow up in Perth.   

[bleckie]

Hi Carrumba

I was born over the water in Bridgend.

My late father worked for Mansfield Estates and so we lived in a tied house.

I remember the free cakes passed through a skylight at the bakers in Bridgend.

Yours Aye
Brucel