Ordnance Survey 1945-1965 mapping showing the five Epsom Cluster asylums In Epsom, Surrey, the former London County Council decided two create five suburban mental hospitals. These were mostly typical ‘lunatic asylums’ as they were initially known – large institutions to accommodate those with mental illnesses, disorders and learning difficulties. The Manor (1899), Horton (1902), Long…
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Play from 10:06 to watch our footage of Gartloch Asylum If you’ve ever watched a horror film or read a scary book about a psychiatric hospital in the middle of nowhere, you might picture somewhere like Gartloch Asylum. The imposing administration building with its two striking towers still stands today and is one of the…
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The Murray Royal Hospital in Perth is Scotland’s oldest surviving asylum and was one of the grandest built. The now derelict asylum was named after local man James Murray who funded the construction of the hospital after inheriting “considerable wealth.” Designed by William Burn, the original plans were based on designs for West Riding Asylum,…
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High Royds in Menston is one of the most well-documented and now infamous of the county asylums to be built, instantly recognizable by its looming clocktower. In 1885, some 300 acres of land was purchased and over the next 3 years construction work began to build one of the more lavish asylums ever constructed. The…
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In February 2024, we visited what remains of South Ockendon Hospital, and were shown around the beautiful recreation hall and other surviving rooms with kind permission of the Brandon Groves Community Club. The hall formed the centre of what was once a vast villa-plan institution for people with learning difficulties. Whilst not a county asylum,…
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Roundway Hospital dates back to the 1840’s when a committee of Justices approved plans for an asylum in Wiltshire. Forty-eight acres of land was purchased and architect Thomas Henry Wyatt was brought in to design the asylum, who went for an Italianate style. Stone for the buildings was mined locally and slate for the roof…
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In 2015, Beyond the Point was given exclusive access to film and photograph inside the derelict site, with filming requests from the likes of the Discovery Channel declined. This was done with the intention of creating a feature film entitled ‘Secrets of Severalls’, although it never came to fruition due to time constraints and the…
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Whitchurch Hospital opened as the Cardiff City Mental Hospital with the medical superintendent, Dr Edwin Goodall, reluctant to refer to it as an asylum. Due to Cardiff’s rapidly growing population an asylum was needed ad in 1898 construction started on this £350,000 hospital, which opened its doors in 1908. Whitchurch was a large asylum which…
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Today this former asylum is owned by the University of West England (UWE) and is home to hundreds of students who studying medical courses. With various hospital wards and beds – all of these are mockups used for training but fortunately the university have retained many features of the 140 year old building. St Peter’s…
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Officially opened in January 1906, St Cadoc’s Hospital is one of few original asylum buildings which is still used today. Although the majority of the site is sitting unused, mental health services for children, adults and the elderly are still provided on site, including in some of the original wards. In 1891 Newport was constituted…
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