Willard State Hospital Correspondence

Arranged by name of correspondent or by subject.

This series contains original correspondence to various officials of Willard State Hospital and copies of their replies.

Letters received by the Hospital Attorney (1916-1918) (#1201-1600) are original correspondence received from the State Attorney General's Office. Most correspondence concerns the disposal of the estates of patients who died at Willard State Hospital and/or inheritances bequeathed to patients.

A volume of letters (1919-1927) received from the Department of Architecture contains copies of letters sent to the State Hospital Commission concerning requests for building materials for building or improvement projects; letters approving requested repairs and listing materials and prices; blue prints of apparatus (few); and copies of certificates to construction companies for materials and work performed.

One letterpress copybook (June-August 1893) contains copies of letters sent by Willard State Hospital Superintendent Theodore H. Kellogg. These are mostly replies to inquiries into patients' conditions; notifications to next of kin of patients' deaths or discharges; notifications of changes in patients' legal statuses; and replies to inquiries concerning availability of employment.

A slightly later copybook (August 1893-October 1894) contains copies of similar outgoing correspondence but also includes a wider range of material, such as letters to the State Commission in Lunacy concerning patients' conditions, legal statuses, or discharges; a cover letter to New York State senators for an annual report; letters to the State Civil Service Commission announcing vacant positions; offers of employment to job applicants; and letters to local Superintendents of the Poor concerning payments of support for patients.

B1468-01: This accretion consists of a variety of correspondence primarily directed to or sent from the Office of the Superintendent. Types of correspondence includes Superintendent's letters (1932-1937); State Hospital Commission letters answered (1924-1934); correspondence with the Dept. of Mental Hygiene (1934-1936); Dept. of Mental Hygiene circular letters (1942-1950); State Architect letters (1927-1935); copies of replies to the U.S. Veteran's Bureau (1929-1934); and Western Union Telegrams (1960-1964).

Two volumes of Superintendent's correspondence contain indexes of addresses.

Container list.

These records were transferred to the State Archives from Willard Psychiatric Center at the time of its closure in April, 1995.

Records identifying specific patients are restricted in accordance with Mental Hygiene Law, Section 33.13, relating to confidentiality of clinical records. Access is permitted under certain conditions upon approval by the Office of Mental Health.