Hi,
Thanks for your website. I am writing a book about my experiences living with clinical depression and I remember my mum being both an outpatient and an inpatient at High Royds. I googled High Royds to see if it was all one word and found your website. I remember visiting her in the hospital and your photos made the memories really vivid. Although I am now living in France my experiences in the Bradford area remain very important to me so I really appreciate the work you have put in. Thanks again.
Steve
————————-
Hello
I just wanted to say how much I enjoy looking at your High Royds site. I was a ‘sylum attendant’ there from approx 1972 to 76 and trained as a RMN. I worked on most of the wards but my most treasured memories are with working with Sister Judge on one of the old geriatric wards – I think it was Aysgarth but my memory is not what it used to be.
I also remember working nights and watching one of the psychiatrists roller skating along the corridor. I saw a post mortem performed there as part of my training and I also remember helping when patients had ECT. Lots of memories!
Anyway, just wanted to say what a great site you have and I’ll continue to visit it regularly.
Regards James
—————————-
A friend told me about this, as you will see from the name have found it absolutely fascinating and somewhat nostalgic.
John Carty
—————————-
I’m very proud of the fact that I worked at High Royds. I miss it like hell, but I’ll be saying that about where I work now in a short time. You have to enjoy what you have while you have it, because it’ll be gone much sooner than you think. I want to thank you for a brilliant site, Mark, keep up the excellent work – nice to see the ‘family home’ is in such careful hands.”
Patrick.
—————————
Thank you for a great website which brought back many memories on the cricket pitch with the cinder track around, and the ballroom which my father and Ernest French and their patients used to decorate a month before Christmas ready for the Christmas parties.
Keith Turner
-------------------
I lived in the area for a long time and even worked at the Hare & Hounds in the 1970's where some of the patients were
allowed to drink, but only in the tap room. It was heart wrenching to see what they had become after being institutionalised
for their whole lives. I have some recent pics (about 3 yrs old) of High Royds as it is now.
Christine.
--------------------------
Hi Mark,
Me my wife Anne and brother Rod visited Buckle Lane graveyard at Menston in July and left some flowers for our great granddad, see
photo me on left. The friends of the Buckle Lane memorial garden are doing a great job looking after the place. We got talking with a
bloke working on the chapel, he was told his mother had died though he found out later she had been alive in High Royds until he was
21 and he never knew, so sad. Anyhow we stayedovernight in Ilkley and had a great time. Pity we couldn't catch up, next time perhaps.
Once again many thanks for your help without which we could not of made the visit and solved an old family mystery. Were back in Oz
now If you are ever in our part of the world give us a call.
Kind regards
Ken Parker
Albany Western Australia
