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Records of the DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WELFARE
Series Descriptions
In 1876 Governor John Hartranft formed a commission to study the need for a state-owned hospital in southeastern Pennsylvania. A 200-acre tract in the northern part of Norristown borough was chosen for the hospital and work began on March, 21, 1878. Upon completion on February 17, 1880 there were only two other state-owned hospitals, one in Danville that opened in 1872 and one in Harrisburg that opened in 1851. Plans were underway to construct another at Warren. Norristown was built to alleviate the overcrowding in the psychiatric wards of the Philadelphia Almshouse and other hospitals in southeastern Pennsylvania. In 1880, the hospital was turned over to the Board of Trustees for operation. It operated under the "cottage plan," using small cottage structures to house patients instead of one large facility. During this perriod, the hospital was opened to both sexes and continued to be divided into men's and women's departments until 1923. Serving nearly 3,000 patients, in 1924 the hospital was reorganized under one superintendent. As with most hospitals at the time, there was a farm with animals on the grounds and the patients helped to operate the facility until the 1950s. As of 1998, the hospital still functions as a mental hospital.
Annual Report of the Commission to Inquire into Conditions of the Insane in Pennsylvania Hospitals,
1902.
(1 volume)
{series #23.241}
Published annual report of the commission appointed by a concurrent session of the Pennsylvania Senate and House of Representatives on July 11, 1902 to investigate conditions in Pennsylvania's hospitals for the insane. In addition to individual reports on the conditions in county institutions such as Wernersville, Retreat. Embreville, Allegheny County Hospital for the Insane, Lancaster County Hospital for the Insane, Somerset County Hospital for the Insane and the Hospital for the Insane at Warren, the volume also contains reports on hospitals for the insane in Wisconsin and New York including Matteawan and Willard. The report is illustrated with numerous photographs of the institutions.
Annual Report of the Commissioner of Health,
1910.
(2 volumes)
{series #23. 373}
Arranged by type of report.
Fifth annual report issued by Pennsylvania's Commissioner of Health who presided over the Department of Health. Part I of the report contains information on the Division of Medical Inspection, the Division of Laboratories and Experimental Station, the Division for the Control of Tuberculosis, the South Mountain Sanatorium for Tuberculosis, the Sub-Division of Dispensaries, the Division of Sanitary Engineering, the Bureau of Vital Statistics and on the activities of county medical inspectors and township health officers. Also included are bulletins by the Department of Health, transcripts of addresses delivered at conferences and conventions, and reports on field work, dairy inspections and disease outbreaks. Part II contains reports on epidemics, field inspections, water works, sewerage permits, and the issuance of purification plant permits. For related material see Records of the Department of Health (RG-11).
Annual Reports of the Board of Health and Vital Statistics,
1886, 1896.
(3 volumes)
{series #23.242}
Arranged chronologically by year of report.
First annual report of the State Board of Health and Vital Statistics that was established in and volume 1 and 2 of the annual report for 1896. This Board was replaced by the Department of Health in 1905 and related records may be found in the Records of the Department of Health (RG-11). These volumes contain records documenting the original organization of the State Board of Health and Vital Statistics, abstracts of minutes of the meetings of the Board, reports of the secretary, and reports standing committees such as the Committee on Water-Supply, Drainage, Sewerage, Topography and Mines; the Committee on Public Buildings and School Hygiene; and the Committee on Sanitary Legislation. Also present are copies of health rules and regulations, maps of cities and waterways, health statistics for Harrisburg, mortality rates for major cities, reports on epidemics, reports on quarantine and disinfection activities, and health circulars concerning sanitation procedures for slaughterhouses, abatement of nuisances, and the registration of marriages and medical practitioners. The 1896 volume includes reports of county inspectors, reports of health inspections conducted in various townships and boroughs, annual reports of the county boards of health and transcripts of lectures given at conferences which include topics such as the pollution of water supplies and public bathing establishments.
Annual Reports of the Board of Public Charities and Committee on Lunacy,
1894, 1897, 1907.
(3 volumes)
{series #23.243}
Arranged chronologically by year of report.
Printed reports of the Board of Charities and the Committee on Lunacy on conditions in county almshouses, county jails, penitentiaries, and in hospitals and asylums caring for the chronically insane, epileptics, and the criminal insane. Statistical charts reveal institutional expenses, hospital bed capacities, breakdowns of the number persons institutionalized by immigrant status, gender, and race, and the reasons for institutionalization, disease outbreaks, deaths, and related topics. Each volume contains a Committee on Lunacy report, which provides information on the weekly diet, patient admissions and discharges, and reasons for discharge the five state-sponsored mental hospitals at Harrisburg, Norristown, Danville, Warren and Dixmont. There are also a limited number of reports on private institutions.
Annual Reports of the Committee on Lunacy,
1885, 1887-1890.
(5 volumes)
{series #23.244}
Arranged chronologically by year of report.
Annual reports issued by the Committee on Lunacy. Each printed volume contains narratives on cases sent to the Committee on Lunacy by county or municipal overseers of the poor during a particular year. Also present are statistical breakdowns of the patient population at both state and private hospitals and asylums and narratives describing the nature of the population in the area served, the names of managers, the value of real estate and personal property, descriptions of new buildings and their capacity, receipts and expenditures, names of attendants, number of admissions and discharges, and information concerning employees, the library and amusements, restraints, diet, worship services, and the condition of the patients. Some reports have pullout maps, drawings and architectural renderings of county and state hospital and asylum buildings. Statistical breakdowns of the patient population by occupation, gender, race, whether insane or epileptic or other, the causes of mortality, types of diseases and number of patients exposed to disease outbreaks are also found.
Annual Reports of the Norristown State Hospital,
1882-1959.
(47 volumes)
{series #23.245}
Arranged chronologically by year of the report.
Printed annual reports containing lists of expenditures and receipts and statistical breakdowns revealing the number of patients admitted and discharged, their places of birth and counties of residence, occupations, marital status, ages, and whether by friends, overseers of the Poor or the courts. Also found are breakdowns on the types and alleged causes of insanity (old age, sunstroke, scarlet fever, domestic trouble, religious excitement and others), the duration of the disease before admission, causes of deaths, and the number of private patients. In addition to the statistical tables, there are lists of the names of those patients who recovered and those that died. These lists give their age, sex, race, country of origin, form of insanity, cause of insanity, period of residence, whole duration of attack, number of attacks, and age at first attack of insanity. Some reports show expenses and income from the farm and the soap and brush factories. There are separate reports for the mens' and womens' departments and they provide the names of staff members and their occupations, pathologist and medical reports, and information on patient amusement activities and religious instruction. Commencing in 1929 the reports contain discussions of occupational therapy, psychosis and psychopathic behavior, and community services. A number of loose photographs of the hospital from 1924 an later are also present.
undated.
(2 items)
{series #23.246}
Architectural drawings prepared for the construction of the Acute Admissions Building by the architectural firm Ritter and Shoy and for the construction of the building to house senile women, by architect Clayton J. Lappley.
Audio Tapes and Motion Picture Films,
1961-1962, 1968.
(7 reels)
{series #23.248}
Unarranged.
The audio tapes bear the following labels: Spot Announcements for Mental Health Week, Dr. Saradure WIFI 11/61; Miss Lynch WIFI, 11/61; Dr. Magure Cast WFLN 11/61; Russian; men's club 12/61; Schell, Dipicco 12/21/61; Don Shrift 3/19/62; J. Clark-A. Tait 5/15/62; H. Ewing 6/26/62; and staff conference women's C.A.S.T. The motion picture films are labeled "What Norristown State Hospital Provides," (8mm) and "Advances in Drug Management of Schizophrenia," (16mm).
1892.
(1 volume)
{series #23.249}
Arranged in chronological order by date of bill.
An oversize volume with bills pasted into it. Expenses are added in a column to the right. Present are many decorative billheads from the Philadelphia area for items such as medicine, reeds for chair caning, carpet, chairs, plaster, flour and paper.
Book of Steward Reports to the Board of Trustees' Executive Committee,
1896-1900.
(1 volume)
{series #23.250}
Arranged by date of report.
Reports from the Steward to the Executive Committee requesting approval for purchases of food, drugs, livestock, maintenance equipment, insurance and other items needed to run the hospital. Marginal notations in pencil reveal whether the board approved and ordered the materials.
Business Manager's Reports to the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees,
1927-1940.
(1 volume)
{series #23.251}
Arranged chronologically by date of report.
Reports to the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees by the business manager who handled the expenditures and receipts from the farm and the soap and brush factory. Reports contain discussions and recommendations regarding expenditures for supplies for the soap factory, the dentist, the poultry and cow barn, and livestock and information on the salaries of employees, the types of coal purchased, Commonwealth regulations concerning the sale of timber, policies automobiles and trapping on hospital grounds, and budgeting for new construction.
1907-1936.
(10 cartons)
{series #23.252}
Unarranged.
Contracts, correspondence, and change orders for the construction and renovation of buildings and major equipment purchases. Correspondence with the Department of Labor and Industry concerning building safety and the Department of Properties and Supplies concerning construction is also present. Information found concerns the construction of the auditorium, drilling two wells, building a bridge and outhouses, and the purchase of motion picture equipment, air compressors and insurance.
Daily Register of Admissions, Visits, Deaths and Discharged Female Patients,
1938-1940.
(1 volume)
{series #23.253}
Arranged chronologically by date of admission.
Daily register of admisstions, deaths, and discharges of female patients at Norristown State Hospital. Information provided about each patient includes date of admission, folio patient number, name, whether a new admission or returning from a visit, whether private or indigent, the county and district of residence, date of discharge, and method of discharge for private and indigent (discharged, died, visited, eloped). There are statistical totals for each category of information and some patients are noted as being prisoners.
Daily Register of Admissions, Visits, Deaths and Discharged Male Patients,
1938-1940.
(1 volume)
{series #23.254}
Arranged chronologically by date of admission.
Daily register of admissions, deaths, and discharges of male patients at Norristown State Hospital. Information provided about each patient includes date of admission, folio patient number, name, whether a new admission or returning from a visit, whether private or indigent, county and district of residence, date of discharge, and method of discharge for private and indigent (discharged, died, visited, eloped). There are statistical totals for each category of information and some patients are noted as being prisoners.
Index of 1,180 Post Mortems of the Insane,
1938-1940.
(1 volume)
{series #23.255} [RESTRICTED]
Grouped chronologically by year of death.
Indexed internally, alphabetically by mental disease, organ, and physical ailment.
A printed book that details the mental disease suffered by each patient who died, their age and gender, and a description of any other physical problems. Each entry also gives the weight of the brain in grams.
Index to Invoice Book, 1898-1903.
(1 volume)
{series #23.256}
Arranged alphabetically by name of company or individual.
A listing of companies and individuals providing supplies or rendering services to the hospital and the amount of money that was paid out to them per month.
Indexes to the Minute Books of the Board of Trustees,
1880-1957.
(9 volumes)
{series #23.257}
Arranged alphabetically by topic or name.
Each volume is an alphabetical index to the Minute Books of the Board of Trustees (a series not held by the State Archives at the time of this writing) listing names and topics and giving book and page numbers for each.
Indexes to the Minute Books of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees,
1888-1939.
(8 volumes)
{series #23.258}
Arranged alphabetically by topic or name.
Each volume is an alphabetical index to the Minute Books of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees {series #23.262} listing names and topics and giving book and page numbers for each.
Letter Press Books of John L. West, Steward,
1880-1900.
(26 volumes)
{series #23.259}
Arranged chronologically by date of letter.
Letter press book documenting letters sent by Hospital Steward John L. West in the course of managing the daily the finances of the hospital. Most letters concern payment from towns for the keep of insane patients from their community, the cost of commodities, and the acceptance of bids for clothing, food and other supplies.
Memorial Tablet Dedication Book,
1921.
(1 volume)
{series #23.261}
Arranged by order of speaker.
Booklet containing transcripts of speeches made by senators, representatives and hospital board members as they dedicated memorial tablets for various buildings on the hospital grounds. One of the tablets was for General John F. Hartranft, former governor of Pennsylvania, who once served on the Board at Norristown State Hospital.
Minute Books of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees,
1885-1939.
(4 volumes)
{series #23.262}
Arranged by date of meeting.
Minute books containing reports from various parts of the institution providing information about the hospital's financial status, supplies ordered, employees hired and fired, requisitions approved, approval of a new formula for less expensive bread, discussions with the city of Norristown regarding sewer discharge and related costs, employee regulations, the physical plant and many other aspects of hospital administration.
Monthly Financial Report Books,
1929-1939.
(1 volume)
{series #23.263}
Arranged chronologically by date of emtry.
Monthly financial report book providing a record of accounts received, transmittals, income trial balances, and monies due to the Department of Revenue. Also present are statistical breakdowns of the patient patient population by type of payment. Includes receipts for money received from county poor districts and the sale of surplus property. The financial reports also have breakdowns by classification of item (food, clothing, furniture, etc.), the budget balance, and show distribution by activity (repair, operation of plan, household, administration) and reconciliation of expenses.
[ca. 1955-1959].
(1 volume)
{series #23.264}
Arranged chronologically by date of newsclipping.
Newspaper clippings pasted and folded into a volume of the Mayview State Hospital Biennial Report, 1951-1952. The clippings are from local papers and provide information on the Superintendent, the Board, awards, building construction, gifts to the institution, volunteer recognition, the Secretary of Welfare, an announcement that hospital personnel would be required to live off of the hospital campus, the dismissal of 63 employees, and an investigation into conditions at Laurelton State Village. Also included is a pamphlet on Norristown State Hospital, ca. 1964, and "An Act Making Appropriations to the State Hospital for the Southeastern District of Pennsylvania," 1877.
Outgoing Shipments Record Book,
1933-1959.
(1 volume)
{series #23.265}
Arranged chronologically by date of shipment.
Record book og outgoing shipments from Norristown State Hospital. Information provided about each shipment includes date, item shipped, order number, charges, the name of the consignee and how sent. Types of items shipped include 2000 yards of canvas duck, a drill, coffee, bacon, paper cups, toilet seats, a motor, and coal samples.
Patient Population Record Book,
1953-1956.
(1 volume)
{series #23.266}
Arranged chronologically by date of activity (parole, admission, death, or escape).
Patient population record book for Norristown State Hospital. Information given about each patient includes name, patient number, name of county or poor district patient was from, whether the patient was admitted, furloughed, escaped, paroled, returned, or died, and a corrected census of Hospital patients.
1929-1933, 1935-1937.
(1 carton)
{series #23.267}
Arranged chronologically by month.
This series contains two different types of forms documenting payroll payments to employees. Payroll Requisition forms reveal the amount requisitioned for payroll, the name of the employee, the position, the payroll rate, the days worked, and the retirement deductions withheld, and are signed by the business manager and a notary. Payroll Record forms include the same information but are signed by the superintendent.
Proceedings of the Thirty-Second Semi-Annual Meeting of the Association of Trustees and Medical Superintendents of State and Incorporated Hospitals for the Insane and Feeble-minded of Pennsylvania,
1918.
(1 volume)
{series #23.247}
Arranged by type of material.
Proceedings of the Thirty-second Semi-Annual Meeting held in association with the Committee on Lunacy of the Board of Public Charities. Information provided includes the Association officers' names, the program agenda, the minutes of the meeting, reports on mental illness among men returning from World War I, and a report on the effect of the Draft Act on recruiting nursing and medical personnel.
Record of Proceedings before the Legislative Committee on Charges Against Hospital Management,
1895.
(1 volume)
{series #23.268}
Unarranged.
Printed record of proceedings and testimony regarding Norristown State Hospital documenting facility management, treatment and condition of livestock, use of funds, and complaints by various parties. The full title is: "In the Matter of Certain Charges Against the Management of the State Hospital for the Insane for the South-Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Proceedings Before the Legislative Committee."
Report of the Commission to Inquire into Conditions of the Insane in Pennsylvania Hospitals,
1902.
(1 volume)
{series #23.269}
Arranged by hospital or asylum.
The report documents conditions mental hospitals visited the Committee throughout Pennsylvania and also in New York and Wisconsin. Includes reports from sub-committees on the physical condition of buildings and fire protection, observations of officials who managed the insane, and exterior and interior photographs of the hospitals.
State Board of Agriculture Report Book,
1894.
(1 volume)
{series #23.270}
Arranged by type of material.
A printed volume containing minutes of the Board of Agriculture, extracts from the Secretary of Agriculture's Annual Report, an article on tuberculosis in cows at Norristown State Hospital, and reports on such diverse various subjects as animal feed, fertilizers, milk, anthrax, tuberculosis, pruning grape vines (with diagrams), and silo construction (with diagrams). Statistics on fertilizer composition and grain production are also present. The remainder of the volume contains reports of the Pennsylvania State Agricultural Society, State Horticultural Association, and Pennsylvania State Dairymen's Association concerning such topics as strawberries, salt, and letters received by these organizations. The exact title of the volume is: "Agriculture of Pennsylvania, Containing Reports of the State Board of Agriculture."
Transactions of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania at its Thirty-Seventh Annual Session,
1886.
(1 volume)
{series #23.260}
Grouped by type of material.
Transaction report book containing minutes, rules of order, the Treasurer's report, the President's address, reports from county medical societies, by-laws, and a list of the names of the members and presidents. Also included is information on the judicial council, censors (of doctors), the collective investigation of disease, medical legislation, mental disorders, the relationship between eyestrain and headache, puerperal convulsions, and the treatment of deaf children.
1947-1949.
(1 volume)
{series #23.271}
Arranged chronologically by date of transmittal.
Transmittal reports issued by the Department of Revenue to the Treasury Department that were transmitted by the Hospital's agent. Entries show the payee's name, receipt number, and the total remitted. Transactions are broken down into the sale of surplus materials, patients, county and poor districts, and amounts received.
United States Secretary of Agriculture Report Books,
1892-1893.
(2 volumes)
{series #23.272}
Arranged alphabetically by bureau or division.
Reports from the Secretary and Assistant Secretary of Agriculture; the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry; the head Chemist, Entomologist, Ornithologist, Mammalogist, Botanist, Vegetable Pathologist, Pomologist, and Microscopist for their respective sections; the Chief of the Division of Forestry; the Superintendent of Gardens and Grounds; the Departmental Statistician; the Chief of the Seed Division; the Division of Illustrations; the Division of Records and Editing; the Chief of the Division of Accounts and Disbursements; the Director of the Office of Experiment Stations; and the Chief of the Weather Bureau. Topics addressed include growing tea in South Carolina, road and irrigation inquiries, and fibers. The actual title on volumes is: "Report of the Secretary of Agriculture."
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