Wednesday 20 June 2012

William James Ball - Statement of Death, 10 Jan 1922

William's struggle with his health, both physical and mental, ended on 10 January 1922, at 11:55am. Th details of his passing were recorded with succinct detail on the Statement of Death. It noted that William was 63 years old, male and a widower. His usual address was 2 St. George's Terrace, Reynoldston. The cause of death was Bright's Disease, of an unknown duration. The contributory cause of death was listed as "Mania". A post mortem ascertained the cause of death and no unusual circumstances, including injuries, surrounding his death were noted.

I often have thought about William and the long stretches that he spent at the asylum - how lonely and frightening it must have been. While visitors are not noted in his records, I hope that he was not forgotten by family and friends.

Many thanks go to the staff at the Glamorgan Archives in Cardiff for their permission to use William's photographs and their assistance with obtaining the records.

Cheers, K.

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