Challenges of Seeking Records and Gravesites Related to 19th and 20th Century Mental Health Facilities
Researching family history is often a journey filled with surprises, but few areas of genealogical study present as many challenges as tracing ancestors who spent time in mental health facilities during the 19th and 20th centuries. Historical attitudes toward mental illness, the secrecy surrounding asylums, and recordkeeping practices make it difficult for modern researchers to find documentation or locate gravesites of individuals who were institutionalized. This blog post explores the key challenges genealogists face when seeking records and burial locations of those who lived and died in these institutions.
Stigma and Historical Attitudes Toward Mental Illness
One of the biggest obstacles in researching mental health records is the deep-rooted stigma associated with mental illness, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Families often conceal or erase information about relatives who were institutionalized, meaning their names may not appear in oral histories, family Bibles, or personal letters.
In many cases, individuals who were institutionalized were described in euphemistic or misleading ways on census records or death certificates. For example, a person might have been listed as "away" or "ill" without a specific diagnosis. This secrecy extended to the institutions, where patient identities were frequently anonymized to protect the family's reputation.
Access Restrictions to Mental Health Records
Many mental health records are difficult to access due to privacy laws and institutional policies. While general medical privacy laws such as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) in the United States protect modern records, many older records are still restricted. Even when legal protections do not apply, some state archives and historical societies maintain strict guidelines for accessing these documents.
Examples of restricted records:
Patient Admission and Discharge Records – Many institutions closed their records to the public, making it difficult to determine when an ancestor was admitted or released.
Case Files – These often contain personal details, treatment notes, and correspondence, but they are frequently sealed or destroyed.
Census Records – While U.S. federal census records from the 19th and early 20th centuries list individuals residing in institutions, they do not provide details about the nature of their confinement or treatment.
Each country has its own policies regarding mental health records, and researchers often need to petition government agencies or file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to access relevant documents.
Incomplete or Destroyed Records
Even when restrictions are lifted, finding mental health records can be an uphill battle due to poor record preservation. Many institutions closed in the mid-to-late 20th century, and in the process, patient files were lost, destroyed, or deliberately disposed of.
Why Are Records Missing?
Intentional Destruction: Some institutions purged old patient records to protect privacy or reduce storage needs.
Fires and Natural Disasters: Older hospitals were prone to fires, which destroyed invaluable historical data.
Neglect and Deterioration: Poor storage conditions led to fragile documents becoming unreadable over time.
Examples of Lost or Incomplete Records
The Pennsylvania Hospital for the Insane, founded in 1841, had significant record loss due to institutional reorganizations.
The Willard Asylum for the Insane (New York) stored thousands of patient suitcases with belongings, but patient files were not preserved.
The British Lunacy Commission (established in 1845) kept limited patient records, and many were discarded in the 20th century.
Researchers hoping to locate a relative in these institutions often find themselves piecing together small clues from alternative sources.
The Challenge of Unmarked and Mass Graves
Finding the burial site of a family member who died in a mental health institution presents another layer of difficulty. Many 19th and 20th-century psychiatric hospitals operated their own cemeteries, often with minimal recordkeeping.
Why Are Graves Difficult to Locate?
Lack of Markers: Many patients were buried in unmarked graves or with numbered markers rather than names.
Mass Burials: Overcrowding and budget constraints led some institutions to conduct mass burials, making it nearly impossible to locate individual remains.
Cemetery Closures and Redevelopment: Some hospital cemeteries were later repurposed, with bodies exhumed and reburied elsewhere without detailed documentation.
Separation from Public Cemeteries: Many institutions had separate burial grounds due to the stigma associated with mental illness, meaning patients were not buried alongside family members.
For example, the Topeka State Hospital in Kansas had a cemetery where many patient graves went unmarked, and the Central State Hospital in Indiana used numbered markers instead of names, making identification challenging.
Alternative Strategies for Researching Institutionalized Ancestors
Despite these challenges, genealogists have developed strategies to track down information about ancestors who were institutionalized.
Using Census Records and Death Certificates
Federal and state census records (e.g., 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920) often list individuals residing in asylums.
Death certificates sometimes mention the institution as the place of death, providing a clue to where the person spent their final years.
Checking State Archives and Historical Societies
Many mental health institutions transferred their records to state archives before closing.
Some states maintain limited hospital admission records, cemetery registers, or administrative reports.
Exploring Newspapers and Obituaries
Local newspapers sometimes published institution admission notices, patient escape reports, or obituaries that mention an asylum.
Obituaries may reveal information about burial locations even if the institution kept no public death records.
Visiting Former Hospital Sites and Cemetery Records
If an institution still exists or has historical documentation, visiting in person may help uncover burial information.
Some abandoned hospital cemeteries have been documented by local historical societies or online grave indexing projects such as Find a Grave.
Contacting Religious Organizations
Some institutions had religious affiliations, and church records may contain information on patient burials.
Catholic hospitals or other faith-based institutions sometimes maintained better burial records than state-run asylums.
The Role of Advocacy in Preserving Institutional Cemeteries
The growing interest in genealogy has led to advocacy efforts aimed at preserving and identifying gravesites linked to mental health institutions.
Examples of Advocacy Success Stories
The Willard Suitcases Project – Discovered hundreds of patient belongings from Willard Asylum in New York, raising awareness of forgotten patients.
The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum (West Virginia) – Efforts have been made to document and preserve patient records and cemeteries.
Cemetery Restoration Projects – Some states have undertaken efforts to preserve and mark former asylum cemeteries, such as the Georgia State Lunatic Asylum Cemetery Restoration project.
Many genealogists have also contributed by documenting institutional cemeteries on platforms like Find a Grave and BillionGraves to ensure these individuals are remembered.
Conclusion
The search for records and gravesites of ancestors who spent time in 19th and 20th-century mental health institutions is fraught with challenges, including stigma, restricted access, record loss, and unmarked burials. However, with persistence, alternative research strategies, and the growing movement to preserve institutional cemeteries, many researchers are making progress in uncovering these lost histories.
Consider exploring census records, state archives, newspapers, and cemetery indexes if searching for an institutionalized ancestor. While the road may be difficult, bringing these forgotten individuals back into family histories is a rewarding and meaningful endeavor.
Have you had success researching ancestors in mental health institutions? Share your experiences in the comments below!
Comments