Nature of Source
Medical records of those treated in a hospital or records of those born or who died in a hospital. The very early hospitals such as St. Thomas’s Hospital in London were built by the church and run by monastic orders but were shut down by Henry VIII during the dissolution of the monasteries between 1536 and 1541. Some secular hospitals had also been founded by voluntary contributions by individuals and by charities and these institutions expanded operations soon after the dissolution. The major hospital expansion began in the 18th and 19th centuries including Westminster Hospital (1719), Guy’s Hospital (1721) Middlesex Hospital (1745). Many parish-run hospitals were located in the poorhouse or workhouse with some of these institutions later commissioned as NHS hospitals.
Baptisms took place at lying-in (maternity) hospitals which were established in the 18th century. The birth and baptism records from the British Lying in Hospital, Endell Street, Holborn, 1747-1868, are contained within series RG 8 at The National Archives and can be searched at BMD Registers. Giving birth in general hospitals only became common practice with the establishment of the NHS. Before WWII, the vast majority of women gave birth at home although hospitals might have some record of a baptism having taken place within the grounds.
Modern patient records are subject to the Data Protection Act but close relatives can gain access to an ancestor’s patient records under the Freedom of Information Act. Patient records for adults aged 16 and over are closed for 84 years from the date of the record; for children between the ages of seven and fifteen closure is for 93 years and for infants aged nought to six closure remains for 100 years. For guidance on accessing patient records see the web site of the Health Archives and Records Group. In the absence of a patient name index, it is obviously critical to at least know the approximate admission date of the patient when looking for records.
Additional Resources
The following GenGuide sources could assist in researching hospital records:
Where Found
Hospital Archives (The Hospital Records Database. The database provides information on the existence and location of the records of UK hospitals. There are currently over 2,800 entries, which have been compiled by the Wellcome Library)
County Record Offices (Hospital registers including burials as well as other administrative records)
University Archives
London Metropolitan Archives (Admission and discharge records and other records for 130 hospitals, some outside London, including Guy’s, Royal Free Hospital, City of London Lying in Hospital and Saint Thomas’ and major charities such as the Foundling Hospital)
St Bartholomew’s Hospital Archives (The Archives holds the records of St Bartholomew’s Hospital as well as records on individuals and of other related hospitals, institutions, organisations in the City, East London and beyond, including The German Hospital, the Metropolitan Hospital and a number of parish records)
The Royal London Hospital Archives (The Archives holds the records of The Royal London Hospital as well as records on individuals and of other related hospitals, institutions, organisations including the London Jewish Hospital, Bethnal Green Hospital, Mile End Hospital and the Royal Brompton Hospital)
Royal Free Hospital Archives Centre (The archive collection is held at the London Metropolitan Archives. Records include admission and discharge records and other records covering the Royal Free Hospital, Royal National Throat Nose & Ear Hospital, Royal Free Hospital School Of Medicine, Childrens Hospital Hampstead, Coppetts Wood Hospital, Hampstead General Hospital, London Fever Hospital, New End Hospital, North Western Fever Hospital. A selection of photos from the archive can be viewed at Flickr)
Period Covered
1700 – Onwards
Genealogical Value
- Full Name and date of birth of patient.
- Date of admission and date of discharge or date of death.
- Address, age, marital status and occupation.
Further References
- Bourne, Susan & Chicken, Andrew H. Records of the Medical Professions: A Practical Guide for the Family Historian: S. Bourne and A.H. Chicken, 1994
- Carruthers, Dr Barry G. & Carruthers, Lesley A. A History of Britain’s Hospitals and the Background to the Medical, Nursing and Allied Professions: Book Guild Publishing, 2005
- Higgs, Michelle. Life in the Victorian Hospital: The History Press, 2009
- Higgs, Michelle. Tracing Your Medical Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians: Pen and Sword Books, 2011
- Mitton, Lavinia. The Victorian Hospital: Shire Publications, 2008
- Porter, Roy. Blood and Guts: A Short History of Medicine: Penguin, 2003
- Porter, Roy. Bodies Politic: Disease, Death and Doctors in Britain, 1650-1900: Cornell University Press, 2001
- Thomas, Amanda. The Lambeth Cholera Outbreak of 1848-1849: McFarland and Co, 2009 (includes references to and indexes of individual cases)
- Webb, Cliff. An Index of London Hospitals and their Records: Society of Genealogists, 2002
- Wilkes, Sue. Tracing Your Ancestors’ Childhood: Pen and Sword Books, 2013
- Wills, Simon. How Our Ancestors Died: A Guide for Family Historians: Pen & Sword, 2013
- Woolf, Alex. Past in Pictures: A Photographic View of Hospitals: Wayland, 2013
Websites
https://wellcomelibrary.org/collections/subject-guides/biography-and-family-history (Wellcome Library. The Library has lots of information about the lives of medical and healthcare personnel and patients that family historians and biographers may find useful)
www.londonlives.org/static/IllHealth.jsp (Researching Illness)
https://ezitis.myzen.co.uk (Lost Hospitals Of London. This website is in memory of all the hospitals that have closed in London since the NHS came into being in 1948)
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/historical-nhs-patient-records (The National Archives Research Guide: How to look for records of Historical NHS Patient Records. This guide provides general advice on what happens to National Health Service patient records, where they are held and who can access them)
https://hharp.org/library (Articles relating to Great Ormond Street Hospital and Cromwell House, Alexandra Hip Hospital, Evelina Hospital, Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Glasgow and other articles on the health and healthcare in 19th century Britain)
www.bartshealth.nhs.uk/barts-health-archives (St Bartholomew’s Hospital Museum and Archives. The archives hold records documenting the staff and patients and buildings throughout the hospital’s history. The archives also hold the records of other related hospitals, institutions, organisations and individuals)
www.bartshealth.nhs.uk/barts-health-archives (The Royal London Hospital Museum and Archives. The archives of The London Hospital, now The Royal London Hospital, date back to 1740, although patient records are only complete from 1883)
https://historydch.com (The History of Dorset County Hospital. The website is about the history of Dorset County Hospital before it became part of the National Health Service. Resources include Admission Registers, Burial Registers and Census Returns)
www.sgul.ac.uk/about/our-professional-services/information-services/library/about-the-library/archives/Genealogy (St George’s, University of London Archives and Special Collections: Opening up the Body: The Post Mortem Project: The Post Mortems as a Genealogical Resource, By Natasha Shillingford)
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/medicine (Science Museum History of Medicine. From the evolution of anaesthesia to the eradication of smallpox, discover the people, events, innovations and inventions that have shaped medicine as we know it today)
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/medicine/hospitals (Science Museum History of hospitals)
www.foundlingmuseum.org.uk (The Foundling Museum)
www.victorianweb.org/victorian/science/health/index.html (Victorian Web: Nineteenth-Century British Medicine and Public Health)
https://bulletin.ukahn.org/the-english-workhouse-at-night-1834-1914 (UK Association for the History of Nursing. The English Workhouse at Night, 1834-1914, by Stuart Wildman. This article examines a relatively neglected area of history, namely the issue of caring for the sick and vulnerable at night within workhouses in England)
www.medicinenet.com/medterms-medical-dictionary/article.htm (Medical Terms: Medical Dictionary. Easy-to-understand explanations of over 19,000 medical terms)
https://csidixie.org/numbers/mortality-census/graveyard-old-diseases (The Graveyard of Old Diseases, by Stephen Berry and Tracy L. Barnett. Glossary and descriptions of old diseases)
www.thornber.net/medicine/html/medgloss.html (Glossary of Medical Terms Used in the 18th and 19th Centuries)
http://rmhh.co.uk/illness.html (HALL Genealogy Website: Some Illnesses found in Genealogy)
https://accessgenealogy.com/america/old-medical-terms-diseases.htm (Access Genealogy: Old Medical Terms and Diseases)
www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/guides/old-parish-registers/deaths-and-burials/cause-of-death (National Records of Scotland: Old Parish Registers-Cause of Death: list of medical terms collected from various 18th and 19th century sources including the Old Parish Registers)
www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/victorians/health/victorianhealth.html (British Library: Learning: Victorians: Health)
National Archives Guide
Hospital collections guide. Medical records have historical significance to the social and medical history of Ireland. The National Archives holds records from a number of hospitals.
Online Databases
- Wiltshire, Salisbury Infirmary Hospital Records, 1767-1832. The records in this dataset are drawn from the minutes of the Infirmary’s weekly Court of Governors and Management Committee meetings and show the names of inpatients and outpatients admitted to and discharged from the infirmary during the week preceding the meeting.
- Derbyshire Hospital Admissions and Deaths 1892-1913. The records are taken from two sources: Derbyshire Royal Infirmary, Deaths 1892-1912 and Victoria Memorial Cottage Hospital, Ashbourne Admissions 1899-1913.
- Northamptonshire, Northampton General Hospital Admissions 1774-1846. The original hospital records can be found at the Northamptonshire Record Office and provide the individual’s ailment and the outcome of the case.
- Northampton Infirmary Child Patients 1744-1801. The dataset contains over 4,200 records detailing children aged 13 and under treated at the institution. Digitised from the Northampton General Hospital Archive, these records include patient names, ages, diagnoses, outcomes and sponsoring subscribers.
- Derbyshire Hospital Admissions and Deaths, 1855-1913.
- Surrey institutional records 1788-1939. Records from 16 institutions across, including poor law unions, workhouses, schools, infirmaries, goals and more.
- Yorkshire, Sheffield, Asylum & Hospital Admissions & Subscriptions 1748-1937. Subscribers to Sheffield infirmary; General Infirmary, List of subscribers.
- UK, Post Mortem Examinations and Case Books, 1840-1920. This collection is an index to post-mortem examination records and case books produced at St. George’s Hospital and Medical School in London, England. The records contain personal information about the deceased patient and notes written by the attending doctor.
- London, University College Hospital and Middlesex Student Records, 1828-1945. This collection contains records from two of London’s earliest medical facilities, University College Hospital and Middlesex Hospital. The records contain information about hospital staff, medical students, and maternity ward patients.
- London, England, Poor Law Hospital Admissions and Discharges, 1842-1918.
- Ireland, Patient and Staff Hospital Registers, 1816-1919. This collection contains various types of records from hospitals in Ireland and may include: discharge registers, returns of deaths, maternity ward registries and registries of hospital staff.
Hospital Records Database
The Hospital Records (HOSPREC) Database was the result of a collaborative project between the Wellcome Library and The National Archives to bring together information about the existence and location of the records of UK hospitals.
This information includes:
- the administrative details of the hospitals, and their status or type
- the location and covering dates of administrative and clinical records
- the existence of lists, catalogues or other finding aids
- links to some online hospital catalogues in The National Archives’ Discovery database.
The database is no longer being updated and was last updated in 2012.
HHARP
Historic Hospital Admission Records Project. The site provides access to a large collection of historic admission records from four British children’s hospitals: three in London (Great Ormond Street Hospital, the Evelina, and the Alexandra Hip Hospital for Children) and one in Scotland (Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Glasgow). The records span from 1852 to 1921 and include over 140,000 admission entries. Users can search the hospital admission records by patient name and year of birth.
AIM25
The archive project serves as a centralised online platform providing access to collection-level descriptions from over 140 institutional repositories, learned societies, local authorities, cultural organisations and livery companies in the Greater London area (within the M25 motorway). The archive includes hospital admissions registers and patient records such as the Belgrave Hospital for Children and an admissions register from 1929-1931 from Barts Health Archives.
Voluntary Hospitals Database
The site is an online resource providing information and statistics on voluntary hospitals in Britain and Ireland which were independent institutions founded prior to the establishment of the National Health Service. For each hospital expect to find details of location, foundation date, governors, staff, beds, patients and total income and expenditure with the facility to download more detailed statistics
City St George’s
University of London. Opening up the Body: The Post Mortem Case Books of St George’s Hospital. The site offers online access to digitised and catalogued post mortem examinations and case books spanning from 1841 to 1946. The collection consists of 76 volumes, covering an estimated 36,000 cases, primarily from the lower classes who were admitted to St George’s Hospital. Details include medical notes, patients’ admission to the hospital, treatments and medication administered and the medical history of patients.
BMJ archive
Searchable online access to every British Medical Journal article published since the journal’s first issue dating back to October 1840 The archive includes obituaries for doctors and notable figures in medicine.
Bath Ancestors
Mineral Water Hospital Case Book, 1751-1759. Search the hospital’s first case book and the only one to survive. It usually gives the name and age of the patient, where they were from, the date they were admitted and the outcome of their case.
Mary Evans Picture Library
Explore over 5,000 prints showing nurses, nursing and hospitals from the 1900s to 1980s from the archives of the Royal College of Nursing.
Wellcome Library Collection
Free to use access to images with themes ranging from medical and social history to contemporary healthcare and biomedical science. Media types include photographs, ephemera, digitised hospital admission registers, maps, paintings, etchings, advertisements and drawings.
London Lives
St Thomas’s Hospital Admissions Registers. The registers cover admissions and discharges, mostly from the 18th century onward, although many 18th-century admissions registers were destroyed during World War II with only a few surviving examples included.
Surrey History Centre Indexes
Patients in the St Peter’s Memorial Home in Woking.
CD Roms
N/A
