Every once in a while, I try to find information about how Gramma Gallson would have be treated within an Ontario mental health facility between 1929 and 1960. Needless to say, information is next to impossible to find.
The being said, I did find an interesting article about this topic for the UK, which I am imagining, before the Ontario Mental Health Act of 1930, was likely in place.
The Treatment Act of 1930 replaced the Lunacy Act 1890 which stipulated that anyone admitted had to be "certified" which required a magistrate's oversight - in other words, needed a warrant. Also, there was NO option for self-discharge.
My good friend Linda brought to my attention a limited series on Cary Grant that's available on Brit Box. She gave me a "trigger" warning, meaning to be prepared for something within the series that might trigger me emotionally. I watched it yesterday - "Archie" - a 4-episode series about the early life of Archibald Leach, born in Bristol, England, who's father committed his mother into an insane asylum in 1913, then told everyone she had died. Cary did not learn until he was 31 that his mother was still alive in the mental institution.
While there are some dramatized story lines in the series that are not factual, I wonder about the hospital conditions that Mrs. Leach lived. In the series, she was in a ward room with 6-8 other women, but they show her being treated with kindness and also show her as being VERY coherent and able to make lively and combative conversation, even after being in an asylum for 22 years.
Unfortunately, Gramma Gallson's story took a different path with Uncle Phill was told that his mother was "too far gone" and told not to even visit her.
Cary got his mother out of the hospital when he learned about her whereabouts and set her up in her own apartment in Bristol with a nurse and the help of his by-then half brother, as Cary's father "remarried" one year after Cary's mother was committed. Wikipedia says Cary's older brother died before Cary's was born of tuberculous meningitis two days before his first birthday, for which Cary's mother blamed herself bitterly and from then on, suffered from clinical depression.
I haven't been able to find further research into why women were institutionalized in the early 1900's in Ontario. But I have come across papers and research done in other countries. For instance, in Ireland, a paper was done on women being institutionalized during that time period.
Some women were successful in securing a prompt release — generally within eight months to a year. However, in cases where patients could not learn to act “cheerful,” or work quietly, the potential for release significantly diminished over time, especially if they did not have family advocating for them outside of the asylum. As one senior hospital medical officer noted, “life in the asylum” could cause patients “to become institutionalized and detached from reality,” their world having shrunk to the interior of the asylum.
- Bridget Keown, October 17, 2017 https://nursingclio.org/2017/10/25/i-would-rather-have-my-own-mind-the-medicalization-of-womens-behavior-in-ireland-1914-1920/
I do think the key point here is advocacy - Gramma had no one advocating for her and only when Cary Grant became his mother's advocate, was she released.
The following is extracted from my book STIGMA (V3), so some of the content may feel out of content.
Phillip John Gallson was born in Zolpho Spring, Florida on March 18, 1926. Part of Uncle Phill’s story is pivotal to GG’s story even though he was only three and a half years old when he last saw her.
Uncle Phill also related his memories of abuse which Sharlene put to paper. The following is an excerpt:
[When my Dad’s father] went into the bush, food was rationed and the children were fed very little. Maw would even put marks on the food containers so she could tell if one of the children snuck something. If she found food missing she would ask who took it and this child would receive a beating with a cat-of-nine-tails which was a leather strap with nine smaller strips attached. If no one would confess, they would all be beaten. My Dad and his sisters resorted to sneaking and eating raw eggs from the hen house or raw potatoes from the ground. They were clever enough to put the tops of the potatoes back in the ground so the area appeared undisturbed. Beatings were frequent for all sorts of reasons. To avoid such a beating, my Dad once stitched a small chick together after accidentally squashing it with a cellar door. Amazingly, the chick survived! Maw refused to call my Dad, Phillip, his given name, saying that he would never be “filled up”.
This is likely the reason why Uncle Phill was called “Bobby” as a child.
Both my mother and Uncle Phill were accelerated by a grade or two when they entered public school after being home schooled by Mary. That alone is cause for pause. Mom graduated from Mattawa Public School with honours. When Uncle Phil graduated from grade 8, called "Senior fourth grade" at that time, he was also exempt from writing the high school entrance exam because of his high marks, but like her, he never attended.
Being an American citizen by birth, the US Army came looking for him in Canada in 1946. By the end of 1947, he had completed basic training, surgical tech school in Denver, Colorado, served at the 172nd Station Hospital in Sendai, Japan, then honourably discharged. As exhausting as this sounds, upon his discharge, he enrolled himself into a 6-month photography course in Memphis, Tennessee after which he returned to Mattawa to open his own photography studio in the summer of 1948.
Pardon the military pun, but why the about-face? Why then? In November 1947, his father had disappeared and by the summer of 1948, had not been found.
Earlier letters from Grampa’s siblings in Estonia were addressed to merely “John Gallson, Mattawa, Ontario” but by 1956, Box 306 had been added. It may be possible that Grampa arranged for certain mail to be delivered to the box while other mail was delivered to merely “Mattawa, Ontario”. Was Grampa secretly sending money to St. Thomas Hospital and corresponding with his Estonian siblings?
Uncle Phill was an honourable man, who would do the right thing for his family. Grampa's disappearance meant that Mary, who Uncle Phill still thought of as being his mother, and his younger half siblings had no one to look after them. Mary’s son Jackie would have been 18-19 at the time and his whereabouts were unknown to me. It is not unreasonable to assume that Uncle Phill came back to Canada and opened a photography studio in Mattawa, to be close to his family and help out.
Gallson Studio was a busy business between 1948 and 1950 in Mattawa. Phill Gallson or Gallson Studio were credited with many photos in the North Bay Nugget during those years. But Uncle Phill had become a man of the world and once you leave your small hometown, as they say, you can never go back. After Christmas of 1948, Uncle Phill took a few months away from his business to be with his father in the bush. In November 1948, Grampa wrote to Mom that he thought Bobby (Uncle Phill) was not going to do well in his job after Christmas and that he’d be wise to go “to work for 3 months” so he’d be “making something”. I believe this meant that Uncle Phill would be joining Grampa in the bush which he did, returning in March 1949.
The story relayed to me from Mom was that an invoice addressed to Grampa from St. Thomas Mental Hospital was mistakenly delivered to Uncle Phill. It requested money to pay for night gowns for a patient by the name of Flora Gallson. It seems very plausible that the mail sorter could have easily mixed up the Gallson boxes at the post office - after all they would have been the only two Gallson boxes around 1948.
Was this when Grampa told Uncle Phill about how the couple who wanted to adopt him separately from the girls when GG was institutionalized?
I can only imagine the shock and disbelief that Uncle Phill felt upon reading that letter from St. Thomas Hospital. He called the hospital and tried to arrange a visit with his mother but was discouraged by someone who said she was “too far gone” and visiting would only upset her and him. He made the decision not to go.
When Grampa returned to Mattawa, Uncle Phill headed back to the U.S. to reenlist in the army. In 1953, after serving in Korea and Japan and while on leave, he returned to Mattawa and met the most beautiful woman in town and a recent England emigrant, Marian Gamble.
If Grampa and Uncle Phill bonded during the several months they were in the bush together, something happened after this that led to Grampa not being invited or not attending Uncle Phill’s marriage to Marian in 1953. Barbara confirmed that they (Mary and the half-siblings) were not invited to this wedding. Uncle Phill’s wedding announcement says he is the son of “Mr. J. Gallson and THE LATE MRS. GALLSON of Mattawa.” Mattawa residents who knew the Gallsons must have thought Mary had died. This announcement made a very clear statement.
Uncle Phill’s sister-in-law, Helen Gamble, was 15 years old when she was Marian’s maid of honour. Helen revealed to Sharlene on a 2024 visit that the only family members that were welcome at the wedding were Mom and Aunt Jean under no uncertain terms. The wedding was held in Mattawa, a small enough village that everyone knew everyone. Mary, Grampa and all her children lived in Mattawa, but were not invited.
When Uncle Phill and his family came to our farm for visits, Sharlene and Phillip (Jr.) addressed their parents with “Yes, Sir” and “No, Ma’am”. Also, “May I be excused from the table?” caused Wayne and I, who had already left the table, to pause with “What’s happened?” looks on our faces.
Did Uncle Phill have any signs of childhood trauma? He, like my mother, suffered from the need to be perfect. He dressed impeccably at all times. Even in his pictures of horseback riding and tricks, he’s in a suit jacket. Sharlene said his closet was filled with many suits, meticulously rotated according to use. His house was immaculate, a strong compulsion from him that thankfully equalled the desires of Aunt Marian. When he was in the hospital just before he died, the nurses commented on how handsome he was, and how soft and well manicured his hands were! Uncle Phill never had a hair out of place.
Thus, the reason why the story of Mary sending him upstairs to put on a decent pair of pants when the minister came to visit, knowing he only had the ones he was wearing, was such a memorable event for him.
Sharlene Buszka wrote an amazing memorial to her mother, Aunt Marian, which contains a lot of information about Uncle Phill. Click the button below to see that memorial.
My sister Carol and I have had many discussions on Gramma's mental illness. It is puzzling to us. It makes no sense to us that one person in a family, randomly, out of no where, has a mental illness that incapacitates them so severely that they're admitted to an insane asylum, never to be released and basically never to be heard from again. Florence was admitted on a WARRANT! That means a judge's signature was required. What happened?
[Note: March 7, 2023 - I emailed Ontario Archives to asked where I might be able to access this warrant.]
Manic Depressive Psychosis; Manic
That is the diagnosis given in the documentation from St. Thomas Mental Hospital. If Gramma's was Bipolar (Manic Depressive), then likely this would have shown up in other members of the family. While there's a little depression in all of us, nothing has revealed itself to the tragic effects that my grandmother suffered. This is wrong.
What I've since learned...
A Google search and information from the CAMH website revealed that 80% of people with bipolar disease inherit it from a first-degree relative like a parent. But there’s only a 10% chance you’ll inherit it. In other words, there’s a 90% chance the children will not inherit the disease. Also some people don’t inherit the disease at all - they develop it after something traumatic, like the death of a loved one, a financial crisis, or other major life event.
Inherited bipolarism peaks between the ages of 15-25. Only using the documentation I was able to see, and piecing together GG’s life, knowing her children and grandchildren, I’ve come to the conclusion that GG did not inherit manic depression - she developed it after the move from Endicott, NY to Widdifield Township, Ontario at the age of 30, long after her children were born. For this reason, I also conclude that bipolar disease was not genetically passed on to her children or her grandchildren.
So I can only conclude that, in her case, it was not genetic and therefore it was either societal or triggered by an event.
If this indeed was her true disease, she would have been showing symptoms for years and by the time she reached her early 20's, she was in full blown Manic Depression. We know nothing about her before she boarded the S. S. Metagama except her birth date and family names. There is no one alive today who actually knew her at all.
Could her life after she landed in Canada all be signs of a woman in a manic crisis: leaving her England, leaving Canada, the series of job changes, a quick marriage. Imagine an English woman meets an Estonian man who can barely speak English. They have a whirlwind romance? And get married a few months later. Why so quick? What was the rush?
Extenuating Circumstances
As I've said in other postings on the website, I am convinced that my grandmother left a daughter behind in London (Phyllis Vera Peters). Maybe not so much anymore. More than likely Phyllis was Ellen's child. Why would Gramma named one child Phyllis Vera and another Joan Vera - seems weird.
Grampa's Army Medical Logs
I remember reading (many years ago) about a 18th century village, in Europe I think, where most of the residents were being diagnosed with mental illnesses and its was eventually discovered that the grain they were buying to make flour was moldy. I wondered in my mind if Gramma had somehow began ingesting something that caused her to deteriorate.
Seemingly unrelated, we got our hands on Grampa's detailed army records. It was somewhat surprizing that Grampa's army medical logs included his repeated bouts with syphilis. In fact he was treated THREE times for syphilis and gonorrhea. Although there is no cure for syphilis, the remedy at the time was mercury. Once syphilis is in your body, you have it. And it can go latent for years, then pop up again.
More Extenuating Circumstances
So now I'm thinking, what if Grampa's syphilis recurred after the birth of their three children. I'm not sure if "recurred" is the right word here. Syphillis went dormant. Unknowingly, he passes this onto Gramma. He had to have known. He would have been told in no uncertain terms that he was contagious, or the army medical doctors lied to him and told him he was cured. The only "cure" for sypillis at the time was salvarsan which is not mentioned once in his medical records.
They are in Endicott and Grampa is working for the best company, the Endicott Tannery and Shoe Company. He's been trying very hard to get his Naturalization Papers finalized and then.... his application expires and he suddenly pulls his whole family back to Canada. Is it possible that because he "knew" how to treat the syphilis, that he acquired mercury and BOTH Gramma and Grampa were medicating themselves? Mercury poisoning can make you crazy and would have likely contributed to terrible rows between them.
A Miscarriage Perhaps?
Aunt Jean once revealed that she strongly believed that her mother had had a miscarriage and that had lead to severe post-partum depression.
Mercury poisoning causes miscarriages.
Is it possible that because Florence was a British Subject and Phyllis was a British Subject, it was much easier to bring Phyllis to Canada, than to the USA? Phyllis was born in 1914, so in 1928, Phyllis was 14. Age of majority in England at that time was 21.
Is it possible that Grampa, medicating himself with mercury, began to unravel? After all, if a small amount works well, more will work better. Perhaps there were heated arguments about Phyllis joining the family and how Grampa couldn't afford another mouth to feed.
When Gramma was admitted to hospital in Toronto, Grampa would likely NOT have divulged that they had syphilis and had been taking mercury. So Gramma's now in the hospital, and doctors have no idea that she's suffering from mercury poisoning OR ... Grampa did tell the doctors, and they continue to treat her with mercury.
If Grampa continued to medicate himself with mercury, perhaps its the mercury poisoning that contributed to his decision to begin sleeping with the domestic that social services brought into his home to look after his three small children. Then of course, Mary Morrison, needed a home for herself and her two children. She likely did everything she could to keep herself in Grampa's home.
When Grampa file his Declaration of Intention for Naturalization (No. 1914) to the US government, he had 7 years from December 16, 1920 to complete the application. The application shows a lot of information. It states he crossed the border from Canada to the US on June 10, 1919. I search on Ancestry.ca through all the June 1919 border crossings at Buffalo and could not find his name. (Side thought: perhaps because he went by train, those records are somewhere else.)
After the death of Joseph Henry Peters in 1910, Hannah would have struggled I'm sure to make ends meet. Perhaps the Great West Railway helped her out.
My curiosity got the better of my wallet and I paid Find My Past to see the 1921 Census for Hannah. And I got a BIG surprize!
Hannah Peters; Head; 51y4m; F; Widow; ... Office Clearner @ Great West Railway, Paddington Ellen Peters; Daughter; 27y10m; F; Single; ... quilt Machinist @ Manor Park Works, Harlesden Edith Peters; Daughter; 18y4m; F; Single; ...Quilt Machinist @ Manor Park Works, Harlesden Albert Peters; Son; 16y2m; M; Single; ... Shop Assistant @ Matthews & Steel, Harlesden Phyllis Peters; Daughter; 7y5m; F; Father Dead; Full Time student Rose Smith; Sister; 39y2m; F; Single; ... Calander & Laundry @ Highfield Model Laundry
Phyllis? Daughter? Born 1924? When Joseph is dead and Hannah is 44? Nah nah, I say. (quoting John Pinet!!)
Who is this Phyllis?
This is totally Hannah throwing herself under the bus for someone. And I have much admiration for her. But who is she covering for?? Ellen or Florence? That in itself is question that may never be answered, even with DNA. But I know its one of them. All I have is the evidence and you can make your own decision.
I now know where Vera comes from - Phyllis Vera Peters. Gramma Gallson (Florence) named her 2nd born JoanVera.
Gramma Gallson's oldest child, Jean, named her first "born" Colleen Phyllis. She doesn't know why she chose Phyllis - says she just "liked" the name.
We know that Gramma Gallson names her children after special people - how special is Phyllis Vera to her?
Gramma Gallson was 16 when Phyllis was born (Ellen was 18) - could have been either.
My sister Carol thinks Gramma Gallson would not have left her child in England and immigrated to Canada in 1920. But I think she may have, if she had the intention of bringing her over once she got established. And with that in mind, she would have talked about Phyllis to her American born children. Aunt Jean would have heard Phyllis's name repeatedly. Aunt Jean and Mom were VERY chatty people and Gramma Gallson was likely the same.
Phyllis looks amazingly like Aunt Jean.
Phyllis with husband Bernard
Jean (middle) with Joan and Phill
If I have it right, Phyllis is a half-sister to Jean, Joan & Phil. And now the children's names had a "ring" to them: Phyllis & Phillip, Jean & Joan.
The resemblance could follow through Ellen as well.
So now I moved forwarded:
42A St. Mary's, Willesden, London
Phyllis wouldn't be of voting age yet.
1935 Electoral Register - 67 Victoria Ave., Wembley, London
1936 Electoral Register has the same address, same people
1937 Electoral Register - same address, same people with the addition of Bernard Bramwell Thorpe. Bernard and Phyllis were married Q2 1937
Interesting piece of history here:
About 1939 England and Wales Register
Historical Context
Initially taken due to the onset of war with the purpose of producing National Identity Cards, the register later came to be multi-functional, first as an aid in the use of ration books and later helping officials record the movement of the civilian population over the following decades and from 1948, as the basis for the National Health Service Register. The 1939 Register is an extremely important genealogical resource, not only for the rich detail and information recorded for each person and household, but also in helping to bridge a thirty-year gap in census data. The census taken in 1931 was destroyed during the Second World War and no census was carried out in 1941 due to the ongoing conflict. The register, as held by The National Archives, contains data only for England and Wales and does not include records from households in Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.
1939 Electoral Register Same address, only Hannah, Ellen and Edith and one "still living" therefore redacted. Not sure who this would be since Phyllis and Bernard moved out. (see below) Perhaps Albert moved back in?
1939 Electoral Register
Hannah Louisa - passed away January 28, 1948 leaving £1070 to her two daughters. I note that Phyllis is not mentioned and even though Phyllis was married and on her own, I think that if Phyllis were Hannah's true daughter, she would have been included in the probate.
On paper, according to documentation, Phyllis Vera Peters is the illegitimate daughter of Hannah Peters, and sister to Florence Peters, my grandmother.
Phyllis Vera Peters showed up on the 1921 British Census, within the family unit of Hannah, Ellen, Edith and Albert Peters. The mystery is whose daughter is Phyllis REALLY? Her birth registration lists Hannah as her mother, with no father. Hannah would have been 45 at the time, so I have come to the conclusion that Phyllis was either Ellen's or Florence's daughter.
I felt that if I could find a descendant of Phyllis, perhaps I'd get the answers I was looking for. So I continued my search through the Electoral Registers.
1946 Electoral Register - 89 Tudor Court
1954 Electoral Register - 89 Tudor Court Bernard is on the bottom of the previous column
Ellen has passed away. I recorded her passing as 1962, however I actually do not know if this is true.
My next step would be to try and find any Canning on Facebook and in particular Suzan Dove nee Canning and Brenda Canning nee Thorpe. I felt that women might be more inclined to keep old boxes of photos and memorabilia.
I found a marriage between a Suzan Canning and a Dove. Looking from the other "side", I could find a marriage between a JONATHAN Dove and a Canning.
I searched Facebook for months, looking for a Suzan Dove, Suzan Canning, Stephen Canning or Paul Canning in England. And then..... I find her. Suzan Birdsall Canning, who has "Friends" who are Dove's and a brother Paul!! I messaged her a few time, but I saw she wasn't very active on Facebook, but Paul was. So I FB messaged him and he messages back promising to tell Suzan to message me.
AND SHE DID!
This is a picture I already had of "Edie in her garden". This one and Gramma Gallson's passport picture were the only pictures we had of the Peters.
Suzan sent me this picture of Edie! Ancestry has a "colorize" option. It looks great!
This is a picture of Phyllis and Bernard Thorpe.
Bernard & Phyllis
Suzan let me know that her Mom, Brenda Thorpe was adopted. Phyllis had a son, Phillip, who only lived a few days, and then adopted Brenda. I was a little disappointed but Suzan also told me that her "Gran" (Phyllis) was very dear to her and she had great memories of her. Brenda died a couple of years ago (around 2020ish).
Suzan also had very fond memories of Aunt Edie and then revealed the open family secret: Brenda was actually the daughter of Aunt Edie and when Aunt Edie was dying she told Brenda that she was real family - not an outsider. Edie was born in 1903 and Brenda was born in 1943. The story is likely true. Phyllis would have known that when SHE was born, Hannah adopted her to save whatever scandelous repercussions against the reputations of Florence or Ellen. So Phyllis likely didn't think twice to adopt Aunt Edie's baby as her own, her only son having died as an infant.
Suzan was born Canning and married Jonathan Dove. They had 3 children and then Jonathan died. Suzan entered into a relationship with Giovanni Lisi and had 2 more children. She is now with Mark Birdsall and goes by Suzan Birdsall.
Shortly after this, Shelley Canning reached out to me on Facebook. She is Suzan's younger sister. Shelley had Aunt Edie's scrapbook which is where the drawing of Gramma Gallson came from. I hope to get more insight into this scrapbook soon.
UPDATE: Suzan Birdsall passed away January 2024, and her father passed away Christmas Day 2023.
When I've been searching the information on the S. S. Metagama, often the headline says the "Famous" Metagama. Even on Ancestry.ca, one of the welcoming banners talks about someone grandparents fleeing Poland on the Metagama. Below is a painting of the Metagama leaving Liverpool.
Pennington, Oswald Franklin; SS 'Metagama' Leaving Liverpool; Comhairle nan Eilean Siar; http://www.artuk.org/artworks/ss-metagama-leaving-liverpool-166581
This is from the Library and Archives Canada website from 2010, which I can no longer find:
Settlement Schemes by Glen Wright, Library and Archives Canada
Introduction
The genesis of post-First World War settlement schemes began in Britain during the war as a plan to settle ex-service men and women throughout the Empire. An Overseas Settlement Committee was established and, for the first time, the British government took a direct interest in emigration. Legislation was passed, agreements were entered into with the various Dominions, and potential emigrants were recruited and selected to resettle in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. These initiatives made the 1920s a unique decade in the history of British immigration to Canada.
Florence's time in Canada from February to October will likely remain a mystery but on October 23, 1920, she attempted to cross the American border to Buffalo, NY. I say "attempted" because there are TWO border crossing forms. The first one on October 23, 1920 is stamped REJECTED, but is then marked "passed NF 10/25/20" with her passport number. The second one is dated the day she actually crossed the border. I am assuming that the normal procedure to cross the border for non-Americans included a 2-day waiting period. The information on these cards are repeated on the large list below.
The pictures below are the only toddler pictures we have of my Mom (Joan), Aunt Jean and Uncle Phil. Its very odd there aren't more, because the picture of Grampa with Aunt Jean as a baby shows they had a camera. The story that Mom relayed was that Mary originally told the children that Mary was their real mother and that Gramma Gallson was there looking after them while Mary was away. This would mean that Mary would need to destroy any photo that existed of Gramma with her children.
In 1976, my sister Carol wrote to the Ministry of Health, St. Thomas Psychiatric Hospital, asking for information about Gramma. At that time, the hospital preferred to communicate with physicians, so instead of answering Carol directly, they sent a letter to Dr. Wall, Carol’s doctor in North Bay.
The additional information given here is that Gramma was only in St. Thomas Hospital from November 1945 to February 1960 - less than 15 years. She was actually in Toronto for the first 15 years of her commitment, from December 1929 to November 1945. Its very ironic that Mom worked and lived in Toronto in 1942. From Frankish Avenue to New Toronto Mental Asylum is a 50-min transit ride. So close and yet so far!
Carol wrote again in 1980, requesting more information.
From December 21, 1929 to November 9,1945 Florence was at New Toronto Hospital when she was transferred to St. Thomas hospital. This letter says she lived in Mattawa, but all documentation shows she was only in Widdifield.
Below is a picture of the New Toronto Hospital from inside one of the "cottages".
The Mimico Asylum was referred to as a "cottage system" with underground tunnels connecting all the cottages. This is the best site I found with pictures and history of the hospital. (CLICK HERE). The verandas have been removed and the buildings and property are now the Lakeshore Campus of Humber College.
Interesting side-story:
In all the years I lived in Toronto, I only ever tried to find the "hospital" by just driving around the area where the downtown hospital used to be. I didn't do a lot of research and only had a foggy idea about the "cottages". I even took Mom for a drive once to look around in an area I thought may have been where the hospital used to be, but didn't find anything interesting. Around 2010, I joined a theatre group called Etobicoke Players and volunteered to work as their Front of House Manager. I drove to the building where they held the plays, an older early 1900's type building, parked the car and looked straight ahead out the front windshield and saw this.
And I knew immediately what I was looking at. It was an epiphany!! 🙂 I remember saying out loud, "Holy crap! Thank you Gramma!"
In 1986, I wrote to the St. Thomas hospital, trying to prob them for more information.
Years later, I went to the Ontario Archives and made a personal request for information and this is all they would give me.
And in 1988, I wrote to Mary Morrison asking for information as I had nothing to lose.
