Showing posts with label Sanitarium. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sanitarium. Show all posts

09 September 2016

Once So Common, TB Sanitariums Dotted the Landscape



Once So Common, TB Sanitariums Dotted the Landscape

Many of us find ancestors who died of Tuberculosis (TB), also often referred to as Consumption.  I know that I did – my paternal grandfather. Richard Alfred Acey died 17 May 1940 at the Essex Sanatorium, Middleton, MA of Pulmonary Tuberculosis at the age of 25 – he died so young.

I was reminded of the prevalence of TB and the treatment (many isolated at sanitariums) when I read She's consumed by the story of the state's sanatoriums.

Mary Krugerud admits she’s “a wee bit obsessed” — and her 15 three-ring binders prove it. For 25 years now, Krugerud’s meticulous research has made her the authority on a forgotten niche of state history: Minnesota’s long gone but once innovative network of tuberculosis sanatoriums.

From Worthington to Wabasha to Walker, 19 massive round-the-clock tuberculosis care buildings opened between 1905 and 1918 — isolating patients and, in turn, lowering the number of cases of what was commonly called the Consumption.

You can similarly read about TB in Alabama in The first Tuberculosis Sanitarium in Birmingham area was located where English Village in Mountain Brook exists today and this masters degree thesis is an interesting read, The Rise and Fall of the Tuberculosis Sanitarium in Response to the White Plague.

If you think you had a relative who died of TB, a great place to start is Medical & Medicine >> Hospitals, Asylums & Sanatoriums (Cyndi’s List).




Please remember your relative who died of TB; share their story with us.

Know a great resource to help those researching TB-afflicated ancestors?  Please share.









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copyright © National Genealogical Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
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Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.
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10 March 2015

Ancestor's Mental Health or Any Medical Records Can Be Very Hard to Come By!

Created by darkday, https://www.flickr.com/photos/drainrat/14381555070/sizes/l.  [CC-BY-ND-2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/)], via flickr

As is often the case, a newspaper article has prompted this post.  This time, it was when I read Vanished mental-health archives stymie genealogists --Restrictions on accessing old mental-health records frustrate families trying to establish facts about ancestors (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette).

Not only have many mental-health facilities (also went by sanitariums, insane asylums, and numerous other names) closed making it challenging to determine where the records of these shutters institutions ended up, even if you can find where the records are archived, due to privacy laws, you may not be able to access the records.

If you have an ancestor who suddenly disappears and whom you cannot find a death for, or know is not incarcerated in a jail or prison, it might be time to consider that they were institutionalized.  If institutionalized you may need to check for a local, regional or state operated facilities. 

Additionally, depending on the time period and local laws, there might be a court proceeding in order to “admit” the individual as a patient or a suit by the patient to be “freed” from where they were institutionalized.  For example, in North Carolina, such records up until the 1960s might be found in Judgment Dockets (for civil cases), Special Proceedings Records or in so-called Lunacy Records, to name just a few relevant collections.  I tracked one person who ended up mentioned in all three of these record groups across over 15 years of records and across two counties with reference to a state-run facility, John Umstead Hospital (now called Central Regional Hospital). 

Here are some resources that might give you ideas or information about learning more about your institutionalized ancestors ....
+ Searching for Hospital Records (Juliana Szucs, Ancestry.com)
+ Seeking Asylum Patient? Head to Court (Sharon Tate Moody, The Tampa Tribune)


As always, if you know of additional resources, please post a comment!

Was your ancestor institutionalized?  Please share your experience in learning more about this ancestor.



Editor’s Note: Related Upfront with NGS posts ...






~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
copyright © National Genealogical Society, 3108 Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NGS does not imply endorsement of any outside advertiser or other vendors appearing in this blog. Any opinions expressed by guest authors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the view of NGS.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
Republication of UpFront articles is permitted and encouraged for non-commercial purposes without express permission from NGS. Please drop us a note telling us where and when you are using the article. Express written permission is required if you wish to republish UpFront articles for commercial purposes. You may send a request for express written permission to UpFront@ngsgenealogy.org. All republished articles may not be edited or reworded and must contain the copyright statement found at the bottom of each UpFront article.
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Think your friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any suggested topics to UpfrontNGS@mosaicrpm.com
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Unless indicated otherwise or clearly an NGS Public Relations piece, Upfront with NGS posts are written by Diane L Richard, editor, Upfront with NGS.
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