Central Islip State Hospital Records

Accessing Central Islip State Hospital Records

9/10/2019

Updates 11/22/22

My grandfather was dropped off at a police station on Christmas Eve of 1922 and never saw his mother again. The story has stuck with me for my entire life. As a kid, I couldn't imagine never seeing my mom again, and as a mom, I cannot imagine parting with my children. The extenuating circumstances must have been extreme, but they're remained a mystery nearly 100 years later. What we do know is that my great grandmother ended up at Central Islip State Hospital, and presumably died there, though no death certificate has been located.

I've been trying to dig and uncover a bit more of the mystery- which sent me looking for her hospital records from Central Islip State Hospital. The hospital was originally opened in 1889 under the name New York City Farm for the Insane, and later became Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, which is still in operation today.

Image from Abandon Online- click to see more pictures of Central Islip Psychiatric Center

All of Central Islip State Hospital records are located in the New York State Archives, series 20200. But, they are locked and sealed due to the New York State Mental Hygiene Law. In order to be granted access, one must write to a letter requesting disclosure to the Office of Mental Health (OMH) at:

Health Information Management Unit
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
NYS Office of Mental Health
998 Crooked Hill Rd
West Brentwood, NY 11717-1087

In the letter, I’ll be including the probable admission time, why we believe she was a patient there, and proof that I am indeed her descendant. These types of records are incredibly personal in nature, even 100 years later, so if they are not able to disclose them, I am asking for a copy of a photo (if available) her place of residents, employment information, next of kin, and any visitor information that might be slightly less confidential.

Unfortunately, I had no luck obtaining any medical records. I've heard from hundreds of you who are in the same boat! I've recommended requesting death certificates for those who passed on at Central Islip, as it provides a bit of information and some closure, but my own request for a death certificate was denied because of the Mental Health and Hygiene Laws!

What do you think about the confidentiality and mental health laws as they pertain to genealogical research? Should records be freely available after 100 years? Or kept under lock and key? Tell me your thoughts in the comment section!

*Update: When I wrote this post, I had no idea how many other people were looking for records of their loved ones from Central Islip. If you'd like to be updated about this topic, please leave your email below. There's power in numbers, so perhaps all of us together can petition for a breakthrough!
[don't worry, unless there's big news, you wont hear from me ... I have far too many kids to send out lots of emails!]

79 Comments

Ali

11/21/2019 02:25:15 pm

Many of my ancestors worked at CI Hospital. My great grandparents did and their parents did! My great x2 aunt came to the US from Ireland in 1892 to work at CI as a nurse. She saved up and wrote to her sisters. Two arrived as a nurse and a seamstress in 1911. The sister that was a seamstress became the supervisor of the sewing room. In 1913, they saved up enough for my great x2 grandmother and her daughter to come work there. Her daughter would meet her husband there. Employees lived on the grounds and in the early days were not allowed to leave except for a few days a month.

If you have an ancestry account you can view many census records from the 1910, 1915, 1920, etc records which have lists of those who were inmates at CI! I hope you can uncover more about her!

Alexandra Kulick link

12/18/2019 06:10:37 am

Ali, that's fascinating! It sounds like they would have been there at the same time as my g. Grandmother. I've looked on ancestry, but I'm guessing she's not in the census because she was there for a short time and died, or there's a case of unrecognizable spelling. I hope to take a trip to CI, it seems they have a museum these days!

Bruce

9/12/2021 12:30:23 pm

I too am shocked at the interest many of us have in long departed ancestors. My great-aunt was sent to CI and spent 50 years there before dying. I have not even been able to get a death certificate as I am told Suffolk County controls it rather than the State of New York. I see no rationale for the secrecy surrounding these records. My great aunt would be 124 years old and died 50 years ago. I doubt she would care. The privacy laws in 1920 (when she was admitted) were non-existent. At the time she was a young mother and I suspect she might have had nothing more than post-partum depression (unheard of in 1920). Our knowledge of the genetic basis of mental illness has changed the need for some of this information. I also believe some of these patients were declared "insane" to cover up thefts and other crimes perpetrated against them. I am not a lawyer, but it seems to me a good attorney could institute a class action suit to unseal these records as long as a certain time period or need has been established.

Kristin Walker

2/20/2020 04:27:11 pm

This is almost exactly the situation I am in and I have been looking for years to find anything I can about my great grandmother because it haunted my grandmother her whole life that her mom was taken away and then died before she was to come home from Central Islip.

Suzan

6/13/2021 02:16:34 pm

There are MANY graves on Find A Grave that are only a number and nothing else. It would be nice to give these numbers a name and dates if possible. It might help those looking for long lost relatives.
Everyone deserves to be remembered.

Linda Remillard

1/31/2022 10:37:03 am

I had a paternal grandmother who was in St Lawrence State Hospital in Odgensburg. Her only crime was stealing coal in Oswego NY. She died there in 1912 I have a death cert. My maternal great grandmother died in 1912 in Central lslip State Hospital. Just got her death cert. Just want more info.

Angela Rosario

9/6/2021 06:33:14 pm

I had an Aunt who was the sweetest soul you can meet. She was married to a man that in my mind kept my aunt like a recluse because she was very pretty and felt he didnt like to spend lot of money or go out and he kind of kept her isolated from friends and family.

In 1960 my Aunt was hospitilized at Pilgrim Hospital.

My family has always questioned through out the years if my Aunt had Schizophrenia.

Her hospital record indicate she was hospitilized for Tuberculosis and anxiety disorder.

Untreated TB could lead to altered mental status and TB meds can also induce psychiatric symptoms so I would like to see her medical records to kinda of clarify what was done to her in there.

While there she was given a hysterectomy, and given thorazine even though admitting diagnosis was anxiety tuberculosis.

I personally feel she was traumatized at that facility given her life time fear of doctors and hospitals and never took would allow any one to give her any medication ever. ( fears she did not have prior to admission there.)

I have letter she wrote prior to admission that demonstrate her to be a kind clear coherent individual who cared about others well being, was looking for work, and described her being able to care for herself despite her financial constraints imposed by her husband and circumstances.

Then suddenly she gets TB is hospitalized given hysterectomy and thoraszine then life time of people questioning her sanity despite me never seeing the behaviors the claim she had.

As a nurse this is a mystery to me till this day. I remember being outside that hospital sitting inside my Sister car after they dropped my Aunt off there and me feeling my Aunt shouldn't be there being worried for her and I was just a child. It was such an important event I distinctly remember what that placed look like on the outside.

She did get discharged from that place however this is still source of discussion to this day because once her husband died we notice how social my Aunt was something her husband used to say she was not capable of.

I would like to see her medical records to see what they did to her.
Why if she was admitted for TB was she then given hysterectomy.

I dont feel she consented for that.
I am not looking to blame the hospital just would like to see her medical history as part my efforts to piece her life together.

I am tired family pointing there finger always saying she was schizophrenic when everything I found so far is a women who was isolated by her husband then traumatized by a hospital.

If my Aunt had Schizophrenia like they said then why going to be with her as a child was my favorite thing to do.
She spend time teaching me sew looking out the window at people pass, fixing our hair and feeding me and was always appropriately interactive, sweet and kind.. The only time I would feel uncomfortable was when her husband was around.

She passed away two years ago and still my family say she suffered from this but as a nurse I see no evidence. So would like to get those records from Pilgrim hospital.
Just to Clarify that event just feel like she doesn't deserve that reputation if it was not true.

Thanks for providing this page because it has given me hope as the family historian that I can one day retrieve her medical records and clarify her history.

I know I would want someone to do that for me.

Lynda Nutt McIntyre

11/29/2021 10:58:07 am

"I had an Aunt who was the sweetest soul you can meet. She was married to a man that in my mind kept my aunt like a recluse because she was very pretty and felt he didnt like to spend lot of money or go out and he kind of kept her isolated from friends and family."

It is entirely possible that your aunt was being emotionally and psychologically abused. At the very least it sounds like her husband was a controlling, possibly narcissistic man. Putting someone into a psychiatric/mental hospital was not uncommon in those days, although it was less prevalent than in preceding decades. All he would have had to is have a doctor certify that she was "hysterical," saying crazy things, not connected to reality. Poof - she disappears and has horrible things done to her, again in the name of "control."

This is in great part why most residential psychiatric facilities were closed down in the 80s - with the idea that smaller, community-based facilities would be built and used, in much more human-friendly environment.

Guess the government needed the money for other things. (It certainly wasn't for roads, bridges or tunnels...)

I just found out my great-aunt Elizabeth died at Central Islip in 1955. Her son was told she had run away from home. Unfortunately he, too, is gone, and will never know what happened, and probably neither will I.

Rose Douglas

9/19/2021 04:28:43 pm

My father was there around 1969. I would like to obtain his records as well. I do know that around that time abuse was reported to then Senator Rosenblatt, who conducted an investigation finding the medical staff were using skilled patients as free labor for various things. I can’t imagine the evil that took place there even at the turn of the century.

Brenda L L Magee

12/2/2021 05:05:34 pm

My greatgrandfather was either an employee or a patient at CI Hospital. His 1942 World War II Draft Registration Card cites "Central Islip Hs, LI" as his address. He was married to my greatgrandmother and in 1942 had five grown children. His absence left my greatgrandmother the only option of living with her children, a few months or years at a time, depending on circumstances. I was led to believe, from my grandmother's recolections, that her father was physically abusive and an alcoholic. I would like to know if he was a patient or an employee at the hospital. If my investigation could uncover a definite story behind the man, it would be very welcome.

Johanna Marino Guillen

12/28/2021 11:03:22 am

On Ancestry, I found a 1930 census record for my Aunt Frances Marino who was a patient there, but have been unable to find any other information about here. All I know is that is immigrated to the USA, arriving in NY with her family when she was 11 years old (year of birth 1897). I do not know how long she was there and I never got to meet her. She was not talked about much back then. I am trying to put together more about her life. Although mental health was a taboo subject back then, no one deserves to be erased from a family.

Pie

12/15/2019 04:54:03 pm

There is a big connection between the hospital and the MKUltra Program in the 50s. Records might be locked for privacy of the individuals - as far as I know only the person can request their own files - but there is a historical of bad practices happened inside this institution that should be unveiled to everyone. I think medical records should be private but when we talk about state institutions experimenting during the dark years they definitely should be released for research and critical purposes.

Alexandra Kulick link

12/18/2019 06:01:51 am

Hi Pie! I wasn't familiar with the connection to the MKUltra Program. It bothers me that my g.grandmother was placed there, and never heard from again. But, I still haven't gained permission to access any information from the state archives, so I guess that mystery will remained locked up in Albany!

Hanna Denmark

2/1/2020 06:31:04 pm

did you ever hear back from them? My great-grandmother was there for years, and I'm trying to find out if she died there.

Alexandra link

2/22/2020 04:58:37 am

Hi Hannah,

Unfortunately, I did not hear back from them. It seems like they wont grant record access for genealogical purposes. If you're looking for a death certificate, it's possible that the Suffolk County, NY clerk's office would have that record! I hope you're able to find out what happened to her!

Hanna Dee

4/14/2022 05:35:07 pm

Since the 1950 Census was made public, I can see that she was still listed as a patient there, 40 years after she was admitted. I would love to know why, and if she was buried there. I'm applying for her heart certificate from Suffolk County, hoping that would help my case.

Mary Ann Gordon Branch link

10/8/2020 04:04:33 pm

Hi am Mary Ann I have been looking for my mother for years the last time I seen her was at I believe it was a Brentwood Hospital for people with Tuberculosis and she died there I never seen her again I was 3 years old in 1961 I been looking for her in Ancestry find past myheritage and family search nothing that stands out I have spent money on NY State not nothing what happened to her where is she buried or cremated I need the records I have made phone calls about her some of them people are down right nasty over the phone when I need information about my mother they had there mother and the Hell with mine that should not be like that.her name is Alma Gordon believe to have 24 or 25 years old at time of death believe to be born 1936 in Georgia USA what County i don't know i was born in Paterson nj passaic county in 1958 we moved to Center moriches NY on my Birth certificate it states i have 2 siblings they don't know that they have baby sister and that's me i was raised in foster care until i was 16 i haven't had a easy life it was hard even now at times my wish is someone would please,please,help me find my mother Alma Gordon sign Mary Ann Gordon-Branch Thank you!!

Mary Ann Gordon Branch

11/12/2022 12:56:27 pm

Hi am Mary Ann Gordon Branch I have been on this site before looking for information about my mother I finally found her at Pilgrim State Hospital in Islip Suffolk County NY her name was Elma Gordon Soley but actually she was born Elma Sophia Muckle she was married to George Hugh Gordon he died in 1955 but he is not my father I was born in 1958 Elma died in 1959 at Pilgrim State Hospital she was from the west Indians old part of Jamaica Island I researched her life and what a life she had at that it she born 1895 no she was born 1993 she had me late in life at 64 years in age my real father raised me from a baby am happy I found her at last but at the same time am sooo sad I wish I had a picture or pictures of her so her grand children and I could see what she look like!!😪😪😪😪sign Mary Ann Gordon Branch

Robin

2/22/2020 01:21:59 am

Hi Alexandra,
Your grandfather's story is sad and somewhat similar to my grandfather's in that his mother was sent to a Psychiatric Center in New York as well. My mother was told that her grandmother was in a movie theater and a chandelier fell on her head and she went crazy and was sent to a psychiatrist hospital. My mother never met her grandmother nor as far as she knew were they allowed to visit; my grandmother would take my mother to the Brooklyn post office every month and mail a box of candy to that psychiatric center. My grandfather would never talk about his mother, most likely the chandelier story was a cover up because mental health illness was taboo in those days.
My mother didn't know the name of the hospital but I found my great grandmother's name in the 1940 census and it said she was in Islip so I thought she was at CI. But thanks to Ali I looked her up in Ancestry and she was actually at Pilgrim State Hospital! She died there in 1951. G-d knows what they did to patients there; when I was in my 20's I saw Jack Nicholson get a lobotomy in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and always feared that happened to my Great Grandmother. The one positive takeaway was that she had six children that were all very successful.
Thanks for posting, I've never come across anyone with such a similar background!

Alexandra link

4/14/2020 12:22:23 pm

Hi Robin,
That's heartbreaking! It must have been so special for your great grandmother to receive candy and know she was loved and thought of. I believe Central Islip turned into/and is now still, Pilgrim State Hospital. I haven't been able to make any headway on getting records, and I don't think I'll be able to break through the Mental Hygiene Law, but I will request my g. grandmother's death certificate, which is hopefully available through the Suffolk County Clerk's Office. You might be able to do the same, knowing her death year!

Good luck!
Alexandra

Andrea Pernikoff

3/1/2020 12:12:05 pm

I'm so glad I found this! My great grandfather was housed there as well. He was later transferred to another hospital in upstate NY. Our family didn't know where he ended up until my son, doing some research, discovered he was there. Family theories included committing suicide due to the depression, leaving for another woman, being killed during a strike, etc. It was a big surprise finding out the truth and no one knew anything (or at least didn't want to discuss it). Am planning to request at least his death record from the Town of Dover.

Yonah Paley

6/25/2020 12:19:36 pm

Can confirm this (am the son of the poster above)!

My 2x GG was admitted to that hospital sometime in the late 1910s. If you manage to get through to any of those records, please update us! I really want to access that archive as well.

Michael S Makaron

5/9/2020 12:49:02 am

Hi, I've been looking for my GGrandmother's information for quite some time...She was institutionalized at Central Islip Hospital in 1924 and apparently died there in 1950..I was thinking about this tonite 12:44 a.m. and just questioning why was she there for 24 years...and my Grandfather(her son) never ever brought up the subject of his Mother....so I was googling to see if patient records were available and came across your site..glad I did. It's unfortunate that anyone that could have answered these questions I have about her are all dead. I've been doing geneaology/family research for about 40 years and my grandfather's family has been my biggest road block. I wish you luck and would like to hear if you get any information from NY State.

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 02:39:09 pm

Hi Michael,

These road blocks are certainly frustrating, any with all mystery and heart ache that must have happened behind those walls, it's hard to give up and stop looking for answers!

I'll certainly update if we find a breakthrough and added a "subscribe button" specifically for this topic!

Graceanne Bowe

5/21/2020 09:53:47 am

My understanding is that they will release records if the request is sent by a doctor. My g-grandfather was in and out of CI, from at least 1918 to 1925, when he committed suicide there.

Tom link

6/10/2020 03:41:11 pm

Looking for info about murders, strange deaths, paranormal...at central islip psych hosp. Thsenterprises@aol.com

Lauri Lynne Burns Lauri Lynne Burns link

8/24/2022 10:40:38 am

I was locked in CI at age 13. It broke me.

Diane

9/23/2020 01:52:12 pm

I wanted to pass along that I too am searching for my grandmother who died in Pilgrim State Hospital in 1965. I found her through the census records which are available FREE from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
https://www.familysearch.org

Their is also a website for Catholic burials if the family member was buried by the hospital. Catholic Cemeteries, The Diocese of Rockville Centre, New York.
https://www.drvc.org/catholic-cemeteries/

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 02:08:02 pm

Thanks for sharing your finds, Diane! I'm going to go check out the Catholic Burials website to see if they have any info on my GG!

Tanya link

11/13/2020 11:21:53 pm

I am wondering if there was a cemetery on the grounds of each hospital?

Samantha

11/25/2020 07:12:59 am

Yes, there was a cemetery on the grounds of the Central Islip state hospital grounds. A small part of it is still preserved by Tuoro Law School.

kenneth d terry

12/31/2020 06:15:49 am

I worked at both CI and Pilgram. Both had cemetery's on the grounds.

Brian

11/18/2020 06:49:58 pm

I too belong belong to this group. I have been researching my family history for 40 years the most difficult problem of a grand aunt whose history has been erased by the family. I recently tracked her to the Kings Park Psychiatric Hospital which was noted as the informant on her death certificate. A discussion with a member pointed me to the Health Information Management Unit of Pilgrim Psychiatric Center and the infamous New York Mental Hygiene Law§33.13 I was told most people give up at this point but if there were regular requests they may realize that the law could be amended. This is the letter I wrote. I hope all of you make the effort. Perhaps we can make them see the light. This is the letter I wrote ,,,,

To whom it may concern:

I am seeking access to biographical records of my great aunt Sarah Janowitz nee Amelkin, a patient of the Kings Park Hospital. She was a patient from approximately March 1912 until her death July 15, 1912. The informant of information on her death certificate # 5137 is noted as Kings Park Hospital. The hospital itself made public record the names of the patients parents, the period and disease for which she was treated and succumbed.

I understand that under New York Mental Hygiene Law§33.13 Clinical records; confidentiality., clinical mental health information is maintained patient privacy. It would seem that intake, release and biographical information and the intake photograph of a patient who had died 108 years ago and released to a great nephew in order to maintain her life history would in no way circumvent the intent of the law in question and appears to be compatible with the Strategic Plan for Documenting Mental Health in New York State. In fact the Long Island Psychiatric Museum publically displays photographs of patients. The specific information I am looking for is the date of birth, the name of the spouse and the last known residence prior to admission, visitors if recorded and a photograph of the patient.

If it is found that release of such basic biographical information after 100+ years encroaches upon the privacy of a medical patient perhaps this law should be amended.

Respectfully,

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 02:05:04 pm

Hi Brian,

Thank you for sharing your letter, we should all join you in writing them! It appears "Reclaim the Records" (https://www.reclaimtherecords.org/ )is working on some cases in New York, and might be another organization to write to to make our request heard.

I'll go ahead and add a "subscribe" button to this blog post so interested people can stay in touch and unite in numbers to see some breakthrough!

Yvonne (Buffman) Cheyney

11/18/2020 07:30:09 pm

Two years ago 2018, through DNA, I discovered that my father's sister named Rebecca (Buffman) Segal, who emigrated to Brookhaven, Long Island, in 1907 age 16 with an aunt and uncle, was at Islip from 1933 until she died 42 years later. I found her surviving son age now 92 now living in Riverhead, Long Island and had a family reunion (we are first cousins). He told me that when he was age 6, 1933, his mother was taken away from the home while he was screaming. He did visit her a few times. Her husband divorced her and remarried. I have visited her grave. She is buried next to one of her daughters. I have been devastated to find out this news of this poor woman. Her aunt and uncle had adopted her as they had no children (her mother died when she was 5). A sad life for a beautiful woman (I have a couple of photographs). I would be very interested to get a medical report and perhaps some pictures. Thanks so much for the lead. Yvonne (Buffman) Cheyney

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 01:59:34 pm

Hi Yvonne,

What a hear breaking story, but that's wonderful that you were able to connect with her surviving son all these years later!

Hopefully, we see some new information released as it appears there are legal groups petitioning for the release of documents. I'll update if there's any news!

REMMY

11/25/2020 12:42:00 am

We have a similar situation with two family members and two different NY asylums. Kings Park and Pilgrims State. I discovered this site—check it out. There are attorneys fighting for these NY records to be made available to us all.

https://www.reclaimtherecords.org/

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 01:55:26 pm

I believe Pilgrim State is still operational, have you had any success getting records from them? I hope reclaim the records is successful, there are certainly a lot of us online searching for answers!

Remmy

11/25/2020 12:53:48 am

These people are fighting to get records released (and NOT stuck behind a paywall). Browse the site. It’s fascinating.
https://www.reclaimtherecords.org/records-request/22/

Alexandra Kulick link

12/4/2020 01:52:28 pm

Remmy- that's fascinating! Hopefully there's progress soon!

Nancy

12/5/2020 04:53:46 pm

I am also seeking information. Is there a way to confirm whether someone was a patient at Pilgrim State? My GF passed in 1965 and my mother is now deceased as well. I have no way of confirming if he died there or at another LI hospital. I know where he is buried (not on LI). I am not sure how to obtain his death certificate bc I don’t know the city/town that he died in except that it was Queens, Nassau or Suffolk County. Any thoughts? I heard it is taking over 2 years to order a Cert from Albany. Thanks!

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:45:52 am

Hi Nancy!

Because of the time that's passed and the mental hygiene laws, it might be difficult to confirm if your GF was a patient at Pilgrim State. You might have some success using a website like Ancestry to do a broad search of a death record. I was able to find my G.Grandmother's death certificate number while doing a free trial, and then once you have that number, you can submit a request to the New York State Department of Health's Vital Records Section... though I do think there's a long waiting period, as you mentioned!

Best of luck finding out more!
Alexandra

Chester Green

12/7/2020 07:05:05 am

Hi, Central Islip also operated as a Tuberculosis Center at one time. My 2nd Great Grandfather died there in 1904. Do you know if those records are also sealed and if they are stored with the records of the the Psychiatric Center.

Thanks

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:49:16 am

Hi Chester!

That's an interesting question, and could be a way to find out more without dealing with the mental health hygiene laws...

You might find success, or at least an answer to where the TB records are stored, by contacting the NY State Archives and seeing what they advise!

http://www.archives.nysed.gov/directories/index.shtml

Best of luck!
Alexandra

Christine Pensabene

2/20/2021 11:40:58 am

My Great grandfather John Schiller was a patient there. He died in May 16th 1923. I NEED to know cause of death. His death is documented as a typo JOUN instead of John. Any help would be appreciated. I have the paperwork to order his death certificate.

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:34:01 am

Hi Christine!

It seems that you're on the right track to request a death certificate from the New York State Department of Health, Vital Records Division.( https://www.health.ny.gov/vital_records/ )

I've yet to hear from anyone who has had a breakthrough in accessing medical records from Central Islip, or Pilgrim, but if a doctor feels that they need the deceased relatives records to treat or diagnose something, the physician might have success in requesting those records.

I wish you the best of luck in finding out more on John!
Alexandra

Howard Weber

2/28/2021 01:05:49 pm

My wife had a great uncle (her grand fathers brother) who was in the Central Islip facility in the 1910s thru his passing in 1928. Suffolk County Clerk reports on its website that death records are kept at the town level.

Familysearch.org does have access to a record set called
New York, State Death Index, 1880-1956 . I did find what I think is her uncle who is reported to have died in Islip in that year. I have not written for the death certificate but this may help some of you. The record set was obtained through the help of Reclaim the Records

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:26:29 am

Hi Howard!

I tried to access my g.grandmother's death certificate from Suffolk County and they said they didn't keep records from that far back (meaning 1923 in my case). They directed me to fill out a record request from New York State Department of Health, Vital Records Section, which I intended to do... then covid hit and they closed- but now that things seem to be opening, I'm optimistic that once I submit the application, I should be able to receive a death certificate copy!

I'll check out what Reclaim the Records has as well- the work they're doing in making sure people have access to family information is always reassuring!

Thanks for the tips!
Alexandra

Jeanette Perez-Matta

3/18/2021 10:06:12 am

Hello everyone:
It has been heart wrenching to read all your personal stories. My grandmother was in Pilgrim State Hospital for about 3 to 4 years. I remember as a child visiting her on some Sundays after my Dad was able to afford a car. She died in 1970 while at Pilgrims. We were fortunate to bury her in Rose Hill Cemetery in New Jersey.
I do not have a death certificate but want to know what was the cause of death. Was it a fall? Heart failure? She was fairly young 64-68 yrs. Any one have luck getting records?

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:19:56 am

Hi Jeanette!

It seems as though the records are locked tightly up due to New York State's mental hygiene laws. You might have luck requesting her death certificate from Suffolk County, NY, or they can redirect you to who might have the death certificate!

https://appt.suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/countyclerk.aspx

Best of luck!
Alexandra

Avery

4/1/2021 10:37:11 am

My mother tried getting her great grandfather's records from Pilgrim in 2002. He was admitted in 1912 and died there in 1959. Someone from Pilgrim contacted her and said that, due to the age of his records, they were destroyed a few years prior. They were able to send her a small index card with his basic information on it and his diagnosis for being committed. This makes me wonder if they actually still have some of his records and just can't release them to us.

Alexandra N Kulick link

4/2/2021 04:15:16 am

Hi Avery!

You're the second person who's mentioned these index cards... so interesting! I can only guess that people who tried to get information years ago, possibly before New York passed some strict information laws, were able to access those. I head some index cards had lists of visitors who came to see the patient... but it also does beg the question of what records remain! For the time being, it seems that death certificates (when available) are likely the best source of what ultimately happened to the patient- but I do hope more information becomes accessible!

Avery

4/2/2021 05:05:42 am

His index card had visitor names on the back of it too! We were only given photo copies of the front and back of the card so it’s next to impossible to decipher names, except for two of them. Thankfully mom kept all of her communications with the people at the hospital, and a few emails said they couldn’t find the records, and they assumed they were destroyed. The records were moved to archives in 1999, so I think they should still be there.

4/21/2021 04:20:21 pm

I stumbled on your site when I googled Central Islip State Hospital. The NY State Dept of Health in Albany just sent the 1968 death certificate I requested back in October 2018! It is for an uncle who, it turns out, lived at CI and died there after being struck by a hit/run vehicle. Address of the accident was Carlton Ave in Central Islip which I believe is where the hospital was. In the 1940 census he was enumerated (twice) as a 15 year old inmate at Pilgrim State and I had assumed he died there. He must have transferred to CI sometime after 1940. Certificate says "Length of Stay" 24 years which would be 1944. I don't know when he went to Pilgrim State probably in the 1930s.

The most interesting part of the certificate was the field "other condition not related to cause of death" which said "psychosis and epidemic encephalitis". Apparently that form of encephalitis was epidemic in approximately 1918-1926 and many patients, especially children, who appeared to recover later developed neurological and psychotic disorders. That would explain alot about this mysterious uncle who no one talked about!

I'd love to get his medical records but I suspect that is at best unlikely! I am intrigued by posts here about those index cards. Perhaps I'll try for that.

doris bagley

5/2/2021 01:01:34 pm

I am the granddaughter of Adeline kaufman WHO BROUGHT HIM TO pILGRAM sTATE Hospital around 1906 or 1907 and he died there in 1908. My grandmother listed him as a clerk. I am lookingfor any information you can give me at this time. Either a copy of the death certifcate or any other knowledge you might have. I have no knowledge of his family, mother or father or 2 brothers. I believe he was born in Palestine around 1842 or 1843.

Yvonne Buffman Cheyney link

5/21/2021 01:43:00 am

After a lot of research, I found my long lost first cousin living in Riverhead, New York - very near to Islip, New York. His mother, Rebecca (Buffman) Segal was my father's sister who emigrated from London, England to Long Island, New York in 1907. Married my cousin's father in 1914. She had 4 children. In 1933, when my cousin was 6, he remembers his mother being taken away in a black car and he was crying. She was taken to Islip State Hospital and died there in 1975. I only discovered this family history in 2017. I was able to have a family reunion with my cousin and he showed me his mother's death certificate. His father apparently divorced my aunt 5 years and remarried. I am so sad to discover this history especially as I lived in NJ from 1966 to 1980. I would be interested in seeing records of why my aunt was kept in this facility for so long. I do have a record of the 1940 census of Islip State Hospital listing her. 10,000 patients were housed in that facility.

Greg Burns

5/21/2021 01:57:57 pm

I am looking for the records of my great grand uncle, Martin Farrell, who died at CIH in 1906. He was buried on-site and I have his death cert provided by the local municipality many years ago. There was a 4-digit number on the cert...not the number issued by the municipality rather the number assigned to his plot. A volunteer, who I contacted several years ago, found the stone with the exact number...how lucky I was. Going forward, I assembled all the records of his life, from Martin's birth in Ireland showing direct descent via my great grandmother, his sister. to my grandfather, my father and myself. I sent them to Albany for review. I never received anything and after many attempts at gaining status with no reply I gave up. GB

6/18/2021 02:53:29 pm

Hello, also looking for a relative that was at CI. My great great grandfather left England/uk to go to the states and secure a better life for his young family still here. He wrote letters home to his wife/children but never returned. The family here knew of a child he had fathered whilst in the states from his letters, but no-one knew what happened to him.
I’d managed to find locations at NY gloversville and Johnstown in late 1800s and early 1900s and later at almshouses/poorhouse in 1915. He was then at CI from 1920-1925. The last know recording I have found, is like others mention as an very very brief index on ancestory.

A list of others names are given in this list which looks like a microfilm of some sort and my GG is in there just with his name, the word “Islip” and a 5 digit number (I assume is either the certificate/grave plot?). As the family had first started researching this over 20 years ago, this information was not available previously. Older relatives who never knew what happened to him have since died. What makes it more difficult is we are in the UK and don’t really know where to go from here!

Thankyou for sharing this interesting post

Rory

6/27/2021 06:04:11 pm

I’m looking for any information pertaining to the stenographer “Ard Browning” circa 1920-1925-ish. Wrote a book and he was articled within. I would LOVE to locate a photo! Would pay you $250.....yes.

Rory Rea

Meghan

7/8/2021 12:01:25 am

I’m hitting so many roadblocks trying to find information on my grandmother’s uncle who was in Central Islip Hospital until his death in 1919. We believe he was schizophrenic, and found out that he was housed in this hospital because of his WWI draft card which listed him as “insane”. We also have his will and his father’s will which don’t specify his illness, but both do acknowledge it vaguely. I hope we can all find our answers soon. Any suggestions for finding and obtaining birth and death records would be greatly appreciated!

Jeff West

8/4/2021 01:44:18 pm

I grew up in C.I. and the hospital grounds (what we called them) were just across Lowell ave. It took maybe 5 minutes to get there and was altogether creepy as creepy can be, and absolutely fascinating at the same time. My Nana, Muriel R. , worked in the pharmacy dept. and was very active in the patient's lives. My older brother and I were often volunteered to hand out ice cream cups during their bingo games. I 'll never forget the lessons in morality, empathy, and a host of others that Nana, and the Patients, taught us. I remember being asked repeatedly at the age of 7 yrs if I had any cigarettes to spare lol.
I just wanted to let others know that not all of the stories are necessarily bad. There were many employees and their families that genuinely cared about what happened to the patients and what went on in their lives. I hope this note can help with some of the burden of not knowing what happened to relatives and loved ones.

Bruce Oran

8/27/2021 01:49:19 pm

I too have been trying to find out information about my great-aunt who was hospitalized at Central Islip around 1921 and died there in 1971. I was told that after 50 years since their death, the death certificate becomes available through the county health department. Also, I know Touro was trying to identify the graves in the Jewish Cemetery. Has anyone had any luck on these two fronts?

Bill Dalton

9/11/2021 02:33:04 pm

My great-uncle, James Coughter, disappeared suddenly in 1917. He was 27 years old at the time. Someone in the family (he had 12 older siblings) said they were told he had "run away to join the circus as a hired hand". He was never seen or heard from again. For almost a century, the disappearance of "Jamie" and the mystery story of his running away to join the circus, never to be seen again, remained a major folklore in my family. My mother, born Marion Coughter in 1907 and who lived to age 100, loved her uncle as a girl. She and other Coughter descendants would often repeat the story and wonder about the mystery of whatever became of the man after his disappearance. My mother said that her grandmother remained heartbroken over the mysterious "loss" of her youngest child, right up to her death in 1925. My mother too never knew what happened to Jamie when she died in 2007. After my mother's death in 2007, genealogy research by myself and another relative has recently uncovered the fact that Jamie was residing at Camp La Guardia in 1935, a homeless center in NY during the Great Depression, and subsequently listed as a resident at "Central Islip State Hospital (Insane)" in 1940. NY State Death Records state he died there twelve years later in 1952, at age 63. While the mystery of what became of my great-uncle James Coughter has now been partially solved, I would very much like to review records of why he was admitted to (placed in) this facility (sometime between 1935 and 1940) and what they say about his condition and treatment during the many years he was there. There seems no way to get at such records

John Mancini link

9/12/2021 11:09:08 am

My unknown until 2 years ago grandmother, Elizabeth Mancini, was committed to Islip in 1938 after a stay at Bellevue, wound up at the Rockland Asylum (per the census) by 1940, and then I found her at the Buffalo Asylum in 1944. And then nothing until her death certificate in 2002, no one even knew she existed. As with everyone else, all efforts at getting records from NY have failed. Any other suggestions welcome.

Lynette Sprague

9/28/2021 04:01:10 pm

I found a great Aunt Tillie who passed away at age 19 in Central Islip. The rest of her family lived in Manhattan. I suspect she died in the psychiatric hospital but I can't confirm. Are there any ways to find that info? It's my mom's aunt. Her other aunt Irma never spoke of how Tillue died but was quite upset about losing her sister at such a young age. I would love to figure things out for my mom. Any help is appreciated. Thank you much

Alexandra N Kulick link

9/29/2021 07:39:50 am

Hi Lynette!

Passing away at 19 is tragic! I'd imagine your best route to finding out a potential cause of death would be through her death certificate from the New York State Archives. We currently have a request pending with them, and have heard it can take 18 months, if they have it... but it's worth a shot...

http://www.archives.nysed.gov/research/birth-marriage-death-records#:~:text=The%20New%20York%20State%20Archives%20does%20not%20hold,Data%20on%20living%20persons%20is%20restricted%20by%20law.

Sarita Cooper

10/20/2021 09:24:56 pm

My mother was adopted and I have spent the last four years feverishly hunting down the identity of my biological grandparents. Nine months ago I finally found out who my grandmother was and now I'm working on my grandfather. I believe I found my great grandfather listed as a patient at Ipslip in the 1910 Census. I know he suffered from epilepsy. Does anyone know if this was a condition that might have sent a patient to the State Hospital?
Sarita

tom

10/21/2021 10:18:24 am

Dear Sir/Madam:

I am providing information which may assist you in your efforts to seek further information regarding your relative.

The Office of Mental Health is dedicated to maintaining privacy and confidentiality of patient information.

Federal regulations governing the privacy of individually identifying health information and PHI (Protected Health Information), as well as NYS Mental Health regulations have underscored this requirement. While it has always been our position that a person’s right to confidentiality does not change upon his or her death, federal and state regulations offer additional specific guidance about access to records of deceased patients. Our policy requires the following before we can provide any information from a deceased person’s clinical record:

1. First please know that birth records, death records, and marriage records are considered Vital Records in New York State and generally can be accessed by the public. If you are interested in exploring this option, you can obtain more information on how to obtain these records on the New York State Department of Health’s Vital Records website at www.health.ny.gov.

2. If you are a family member of the deceased patient and the patient allowed our facility to share information with you while he or she was living, and it is reasonable to assume that the patient did not intend to revoke his or her permission to continue to communicate with you prior to his or her death, we may provide you with basic information about the patient’s condition and circumstances of his or her death, if appropriate.

3. If you are a family member of the deceased patient and the information from the patient’s record is relevant to your own health care, we can release the information to your physician, provided the physician submits a written request to us on your behalf, once kinship has been established.

4. If you are the executor of the deceased patient’s estate, or if you otherwise have legal authority to act on behalf of the patient or his/her estate, (e.g., you have letters testamentary issued by a court), we can release information to you upon your written request which documents and attests to your legal authority to act on behalf of the deceased patient.

We can also release information to you if you obtain and provide us with the written consent from the executor or legal representative of the deceased patient.

5. In these cases, we are required to review the record prior to its release to ensure it does not infringe upon the privacy rights of any other individual who may be named in the record.

6. Please send all documentation to NYS Office of Mental Health, 44 Holland Avenue, Albany N.Y. 12229 Central Files. Please assure all copies are clear and legible.

NYS Office of Mental Health does not provide documentation or research for genealogy search purposes.

We hope you will find this information helpful.

tom

10/21/2021 11:03:08 am

State hospitals were originally set up to provide care for those who were suffering from a multitude of diagnosis from TB to Syphilis to any mental health, developmental or addiction disorder. They took the people who were held in the county Alma Houses, under atrocious conditions, and started to bring a level of care to the individual that the Alms Houses couldn't or didn't afford them. State Hospitals were "Farm Communities" for multiple reasons. First it was believed that healing could be better facilitated in the quiet relaxed environment of the country setting. Second, as Farm Communities, they were far from the resources of the city so they had to become self sufficient, AKA Farm. There were NO psyco social programs in the community for rehab at that time, there were NO medications like we have today. there were very few options for anyone suffering from a "mental disorder" other than a restful environment and directed care. It was during the time of Gov. Dewitt Clinton that a gentleman name Thomas Eddy was asked by the Governor to find a way for the state prisons and hospitals to be more efficient and conducive to rehabilitation and recovery. In Thomas Eddy's report to Gov. Clinton, (pardon the wording of the day) "It appears that the best way maniacs can maintain themselves is through regular employment." Meaning that activity is the best therapy. REMEMBER! Everyone who entered a state hospital had skills and talents. Even children who had grown up working on farms or next to their fathers and mothers learned what was at that time Activities of Daily Living or ADLs as we know them today. These farm communities had become so productive they were putting funds INTO the state coffers. The patients were receiving all their care free of charge and they were active members of those communities. There was a railroad between the Long Island State Hospitals that was RUN BY THE PATIENTS. The steam ship that transported patients to the Willard State Hospital was RUN BY THE PATIENTS. The Hospital grounds Fire Departments and so forth were run by the patients. Everyone was valued for their own talents and skills and what they did was what we today call "Occupational Therapy". It was through progress? and overcrowding that things went down hill. Many of the treatments that we use successfully today were developed in NYS Hospitals. When we look back on treatments and procedures of yesteryear through todays eyes, we see atrocities, BUT in the day, they were cutting edge, state of the art developments. Much like the vaccinations we discuss today, the long term effects cant be know without experience but as the experiences are documented, they may change or be improved.
If we judge yesterdays events by todays standards, we will ALWAYS find fault. Unfortunately too, when it came to hospitalizing individuals, it was far too easy in those times to have someone put away simply by rumor or lies. Women were often hospitalized by their husbands due to the effects of their periods or menopause or even to enable them to carry on with other women. it gave them social permission if you will because "Poor him, his wife is unwell and in the institution and he must have his needs met. After all he IS a man..." It was also permissible by law and religion to be granted a divorce if your spouse was institutionalized.
So when we speak of the atrocities of the mental health care, there is blame enough to go around. We DO have to look at it with open eyes and minds. Yes there were dark times, but they were not all dark. The mental health systems have helped more than it is often given credit for. AND YES I too have a diagnosis that has been helped by the very system I have been speaking of. ;)

JOHN FRANCIS MANCINI link

12/2/2021 01:03:55 pm

So many of the comments on this site ring true re the search for my grandparents. They were Italian immigrants in the early 1920s. My father never mentioned his parents, and the assumption was that they had both died in the 1930s. Except -- spoiler alert -- it turns out they didn't. They disappeared for a combined total of 122 years into the NY Mental Health system, unknown to anyone. I won't go further, because I just published a book about this whole search and the solution to the mystery of my grandparents' disappearance -- it's called IMMIGRANT SECRETS on Amazon -- happy to chat with others about the search for the story. Here's the link to the book and hope that's OK - https://www.amazon.com/Immigrant-Secrets-Search-My-Grandparents-ebook/dp/B09JB1745Z/

As many of the comments in the thread indicate, New York State is singularly unhelpful in providing access to health records, particularly mental health records. Most inquiries there will lead to a dead end. Why these records are even kept is a mystery, since the only people who would have any interest in them are denied access. These are such sad stories, made doubly tragic by the unnecessary secrecy imposed by the state of New York. The surface justification is privacy - for people long dead, no less - but my guess it is perhaps really driven by concern about back-end litigation claims.

One route that I discovered that was key to unravelling the story in the book was to focus on LEGAL rather than medical records -- the commitment hearings. My grandparents were committed in Manhattan for the rest of their lives after 5 days in Bellevue, and I managed to find those court records (well, sort of for my grandmother -- it's a long story in the book). Anyway, legal records are often less restrictive than medical records, and can contain a lot of information. I don't know if links are OK in this comment stream, but if so, I've posted the original commitment documents I uncovered HERE - https://www.searchformygrandparents.com/pages. I thought they might give people some clues on avenues to pursue.

Good luck.

Alexandra link

8/24/2022 11:18:38 am

Hi John!

What you've uncovered looks amazing! Congratulations on the book!

If you'd like to share a bit about the book and your experience in an interview form- zoom or written, I'd be happy to pass it along to others searching for records- drop me a message through the contact form!

Best,
Alexandra

Sarita Cooper

12/3/2021 07:56:23 pm

My mother was adopted in Manhattan in NY in 1940. After 4 years of hard searching I was able to identify who her biological mother was. Now I am working hard to find her father. Through DNA analysis I know who her great grandfather was and I'm pretty sure I found him in the Central Islip State Hospital in the 1910 census. I also found him in the NY Death Index in 1911 in Islip. So here's my question for you all: It is known that he was reported to have died of epilepsy. Do you think that epilepsy is something that might be an affliction someone would be sent to Islip for? I guess it's also possible that it could have been a family euphemism for metal illness? Anyway, I would sure love to have access to records of who is in the cemetery (as I 'm sure all of you would as well).

Alexandra Kulick link

8/24/2022 11:10:16 am

Hi Sarita!

It does seem that epilepsy was treated as a mental illness at Central Islip. Whether or not it was actual epilepsy or a euphemism would be interesting to find out...

Val

1/12/2022 06:51:38 pm

Hello,
I am also a past patient’s relative searching for any info on my grandfather. I only recently found out the real “hidden truth” behind my grandfathers death on December 3,1960. It was a long time ago but I’d like to know my family’s past. I recovered a disturbing newspaper article from December 9,1960 that did mention he had “escaped” from Pilgrim State Hospital in September 1959 but with no further information. Nothing on his escape or search for him and I cannot find any records for diagnosis that landed him there. I know it’s a long shot but any help in this search would be appreciated.

Alexandra link

8/24/2022 11:11:25 am

Hi Val!

What a fascinating escape story... I wish I knew more! But do share anything else you find out!

Good luck!
Alexandra

Timothy Warren

2/12/2022 11:32:18 am

Like most everyone here, I had relatives in CI. One of my father's uncles was committed (via the Bellevue route someone mentions earlier) and lived there 36 years. His name was Edward Woodle. His diagnosis was "Psychosis due to convulsive disorder <epilepsy>") when he was 31 and was there the remainder of his life.

His bother, my paternal grandfather Harry Jerome Woodle was committed in 1942 and died 17 days later. I could find no records regarding the commitment.

I gleaned the court info re: Edward from Ancestry.com. The other info was from NY State Death Certificates. I ordered those by mail and received the copies within a few weeks.

2 years ago, I had my doctor write a letter to NY State Office of Mental Health requesting records for medical reasons (my father had epilepsy)...crickets.

I am going to try again and follow the steps mentioned in this blog. Upon examining my grandfather's records I finally deciphered that he was buried by the Hebrew Free Burial Society whom I intend to contact for info.

Alexandra link

8/24/2022 11:16:07 am

Hi Timothy!

That's amazing that you were able to gain commitment hearing info from ancestry, I'll have to check that route again as info seems to continuously be added.

We requested my great-grandmother's death certificate from the state- providing the ID number and they DENIED our request because of the Mental Health Hygiene laws (though happily took the money). The laws seem to apply at their choosing, as some have received death certificates and others haven't!

Thanks for sharing what you've found- it provides a spark for others to keep looking!

Yvonne Buffman Cheyney

9/5/2022 03:15:04 am

My aunt (my father's sister) emigrated to New York at age 17 around 1907 from London, England. She was living in Suffolk County near Islip and met her husband and married in 1914 to a Mr. Segal. She was supposedly happy. Had 4 children. In 1933 her husband had her put away at the Central Islip Hospital. She lived there for the rest of her life until she died in 1975. I live in California. I was able to contact her son, age 90, who remembered his mother being driven away when he was 6. His father divorced his wife Rebecca Buffman Segal and remarried. It is thought that he put her away for perhaps post-partum problems. He knew all her family were in England and no one would miss her. I found this out from letters dated 1928 that came into my possession in the late 70's. I had a wonderful association with my cousin Mickey and had a family reunion. I have been very sad about the fact that my Aunt Rebecca was put away. I had lived in NJ when she was in Islip, but knew nothing of her whereabouts. I would dearly like to read her file. I think it is terrible that records cannot be released for 100 years.

Patricia Facompre

9/27/2022 11:22:23 am

My great Aunt was in that place until her death in 1982. My mom said that she would come home on a weekend here and there. My mom said that she would run around the house and eat what ever she could. That included lard and soap. My Grandma told me that her sister was normal until about the age of three when she fell down the basement stairs. I was never allowed to meet her because ot the way she was. She was probably cleaned up and brought to the front door. My grand parents would never know of the horrors that their child lived in. She was probably starved or fed slop. Likely tied to a chair or bed and most likely even naked. Have any of you watch Geraldo Rivera's documentaries on Willowbrook state school and Letchworth village?? I

Accessing Central Islip State Hospital Records

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