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Lincolnshire County Lunatic Asylum
Yeah I know she's been covered a multitude of times, but to me, It will always remain one of my top visits. How can you not love St John's!
St John’s hospital in Bracebridge heath has a long and interesting history. The Asylum was built in 1852 and enlarged on several subsequent occasions. It was originally established jointly by Lindsey, Kesteven, Holland, Lincoln, Grimsby and Stamford, and managed by a Board of Visitors appointed by the contributing authorities. Kesteven and Grantham withdrew from the arrangement when the contract of Union expired in 1893 (eventually establishing the Kesteven County Asylum at South Rauceby, 1897). The hospital was set in grounds of 120 acres which included gardens, farmland and a burial ground. In 1940 female patients were transferred to other hospitals, mainly Storthes Hall near Huddersfield, to make space for an Emergency Hospital, and many did not return until well after the end of the War. Administration of the hospital passed to the National Health Service in 1948. By the early 1960s it was known by its final name of St John's Hospital. Patients were admitted from Harmston Hall Hospital when that hospital closed. St John's Hospital itself was closed in December 1989 with the remaining patients transferred to other establishments. The site was sold for housing and most of the buildings apart from the central block were demolished.
Italian style elegance.
The hospital had male, female and children’s wings and used some of the traditional medical techniques in that day to cure insanity, including electric shock treatment.
Conditions such as depression and post natal depression were classed as a mental illness and treated the same as someone with schizophrenia. Brain surgery was believed to cure mental illness and was commonly used in asylums such as this. If a patient was deemed unfit to decide what treatment they wanted, the doctors would decide for them.
The famous cat in the children's ward
The following names, among others, were used for the Institution, sometimes interchangeably:
1852-1893 Lincolnshire County Lunatic Asylum or Lincolnshire County Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1894-1915 Lincolnshire Lunatic Asylum
1897-1898 Lindsey, Holland, Lincoln and Grimsby District Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1903-1920 Lincolnshire Asylum
1898-1902 Bracebridge Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1902-1919 Bracebridge District Lunatic Asylum
1919-1948 Bracebridge Mental Hospital
1930-1938 Lincolnshire Mental Hospital
1939-1960 Bracebridge Heath Hospital
1961-1989 St John's Hospital, Bracebridge Heath
The hospital was also used as a wartime Emergency Hospital in the period 1940-1943, and a few records of this function survive with the asylum records.
The corridor of cells
I couldn't imagine being thrown into a salmon pink cell!
Or even a sickly green one either
The corridor of crosses. The Lincoln Crest.
That wonderful staircase.
She just oozes atmosphere throughout.
Deep in the cellars.
The honeycombed ceiling even continues down here.
The safe door in the admin block. Solid metal and bloody heavy.
Close up of the lock.
And the beautifully crafted key that fit it.
Here's some men at work.
And a fungi.
Head towards the door, and shit....... No floor.
Some nice peeling paint.
Vintage wallpaper.
A couple of door shots. I like doors.
Room with a view.
And to finish with.... A couple of items I managed to win on that well known auction site.
Postcard dated 1899.
Other side of the postcard regarding the minutes book, and the fantastic Asylum truck.
Ta for looking
Yeah I know she's been covered a multitude of times, but to me, It will always remain one of my top visits. How can you not love St John's!
St John’s hospital in Bracebridge heath has a long and interesting history. The Asylum was built in 1852 and enlarged on several subsequent occasions. It was originally established jointly by Lindsey, Kesteven, Holland, Lincoln, Grimsby and Stamford, and managed by a Board of Visitors appointed by the contributing authorities. Kesteven and Grantham withdrew from the arrangement when the contract of Union expired in 1893 (eventually establishing the Kesteven County Asylum at South Rauceby, 1897). The hospital was set in grounds of 120 acres which included gardens, farmland and a burial ground. In 1940 female patients were transferred to other hospitals, mainly Storthes Hall near Huddersfield, to make space for an Emergency Hospital, and many did not return until well after the end of the War. Administration of the hospital passed to the National Health Service in 1948. By the early 1960s it was known by its final name of St John's Hospital. Patients were admitted from Harmston Hall Hospital when that hospital closed. St John's Hospital itself was closed in December 1989 with the remaining patients transferred to other establishments. The site was sold for housing and most of the buildings apart from the central block were demolished.
Italian style elegance.
The hospital had male, female and children’s wings and used some of the traditional medical techniques in that day to cure insanity, including electric shock treatment.
Conditions such as depression and post natal depression were classed as a mental illness and treated the same as someone with schizophrenia. Brain surgery was believed to cure mental illness and was commonly used in asylums such as this. If a patient was deemed unfit to decide what treatment they wanted, the doctors would decide for them.
The famous cat in the children's ward
The following names, among others, were used for the Institution, sometimes interchangeably:
1852-1893 Lincolnshire County Lunatic Asylum or Lincolnshire County Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1894-1915 Lincolnshire Lunatic Asylum
1897-1898 Lindsey, Holland, Lincoln and Grimsby District Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1903-1920 Lincolnshire Asylum
1898-1902 Bracebridge Pauper Lunatic Asylum
1902-1919 Bracebridge District Lunatic Asylum
1919-1948 Bracebridge Mental Hospital
1930-1938 Lincolnshire Mental Hospital
1939-1960 Bracebridge Heath Hospital
1961-1989 St John's Hospital, Bracebridge Heath
The hospital was also used as a wartime Emergency Hospital in the period 1940-1943, and a few records of this function survive with the asylum records.
The corridor of cells
I couldn't imagine being thrown into a salmon pink cell!
Or even a sickly green one either
The corridor of crosses. The Lincoln Crest.
That wonderful staircase.
She just oozes atmosphere throughout.
Deep in the cellars.
The honeycombed ceiling even continues down here.
The safe door in the admin block. Solid metal and bloody heavy.
Close up of the lock.
And the beautifully crafted key that fit it.
Here's some men at work.
And a fungi.
Head towards the door, and shit....... No floor.
Some nice peeling paint.
Vintage wallpaper.
A couple of door shots. I like doors.
Room with a view.
And to finish with.... A couple of items I managed to win on that well known auction site.
Postcard dated 1899.
Other side of the postcard regarding the minutes book, and the fantastic Asylum truck.
Ta for looking
