# Harperbury Hospital -May - 2011



## Priority 7 (May 15, 2011)

*Harperbury Hospital - May 2011 (Pic Heavy)*

A little more than your normal history first:


The Mental Deficiency Act, gave local County Councils the power to compulsorily detain such certified patients, allowing their segregation from the community.
WW1 delayed any progress but by 1919, the Middlesex County Council began to examine various options. In 1920 its Mental Deficiency Committee decided to establish a colony for such patients.
1924 saw the council purchase the 420-acre Porters Park estate (Named after its first owner in 1340, Roger Le Porter). Rumour has it, Mr C. Raphael, the wealthy owner, sold the land to the Council to annoy the golf course that had refused him membership.
The estate was to be the site of both the Middlesex Colony for Mental Defectives and Shenley Hospital. London Colney aerodrome had occupied part of the land during WW1 - Albert Ball (1896-1917) andEdward Mannock (1887-1918) both star aviators of the Royal Flying Corps were based there. Three of the aerodrome's aircraft hangars were incorporated into the new Colony.
The Hangars Certified Institution opened in October 1928 and its first patients, eight high-grade male adults, were admitted, they were care for by untrained male attendants. The cleared out the hangars, were converted into wards and formed the foundation of the new Colony. Within a mater months there were over 80 male patients from the County living and working theree. Additional buildings were added in 1929 and the patients were also dug and established the gardens.
The first of the new buildings opened in February 1931, by December, in excess of 300 male patients were in living there. There was a further addition of an administration centre, on the north-south axis, containing offices, clinic rooms and a dispensary. Behind this were kitchens, storerooms, workshops and a laundry. These buildings were flanked by 2- or 3-storey villas for male patients to the east and for female patients to the west. The De Salis Recreational Hall (named after the Chairman of the Council's Mental Deficiency Committee) could seat 700 people and was equipped with a stage and a cinema projector. Building work continued in stages until 1936. The villas were built around three loop roads, which divided the site into male, female and children's sections. Each villa containing wards were designed for different grades of mental handicap, and each was arranged around recreational playing fields and gardens. 
The Institution was renamed the Middlesex Colony when it was officially opened in May 1936 by the then Minister of Health, Sir Kingsley Wood.
The Colony was expected almost self-sufficient, with patients capable of employment providing the labour. Rural life was deemed therapeutic and farming was the major occupation of the male patients..
By the outbreak of WW2, the Colony had 1194 patients.
In 1948 the Colony became part of the NHS under the control of the Verulam Group Hospital Management Committee.
In 1950 the Middlesex Colony was renamed Harperbury Hospital.The Hospital continues to grow in beds. By 1964 overcrowding in the wards had become a severe problem. The accommodation intended for 1354 patients contained some 1587, and it was said that a cyclist could easily ride over the rows of closely packed beds. It was reported on one occasion that a nurse had to crawl across the beds to reach a patient at the far end who was having an epileptic fit.
The farm closed in 1973 as it had become uneconomic and the former bakery became a Handicraft Centre.
Harperbury Hospital finally closed in 2001, the last of the large institutions in the area.

Visited as a backup to the primary explore with Messr's Nelly and Skeleton Key thanks lads for a top day. If anyone want to put their life in Nelly and SK's you couldnt ask for a better pair although watch Nelly he is a little too handy with the tripod....twice to my camera and once to the family jewels in the space of 30 minutes.
A word of warning and Mods please feel free to remove this part if you are unhappy with it, I spotted two gents in a car with what appeared to me to be guns, I suspect air rifles but I decided a closer look was probably avoided...


On with the photos - 











































The padded cell -



















































We stumbled across the pool and SK couldn't wait to get in, just peeled off and left his clothes on the floor....






He had a bath afterwards though but something tells me he didn't feel as safe in the bath...





















Thanks for looking I hope you enjoy


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## skeleton key (May 15, 2011)

Harperbury Hospital

(Thank god for backups)
Had an early start with priority 7 and Nelly to a location we have been looking at for a while.
Things were looking rosy till my sixth sense failed me and walked straight into sec lol
Wasn’t quite awake.
Switched from tiered eyes stealth mode as that had failed and to diplomatic sweet talker and for thought for a moment we were going to get a result? 
But failed lol.
The sec said the land had been purchased by Tesco and if he had a call from them he’d be more than willing to let us in.
I explained Id spoken to the girl at the checkout and she said it would be fine!
His English wasnt to clever and Saw his eyes roll and chose that moment to make a tactical withdrawal

Lesson one, don’t set out half a kip
Lesson two, always have back ups

The foundation of the Eugenics Society in 1909, followed soon after by the Mental Deficiency Act of 1913, expressed the belief of many that the segregation of the mentally handicapped was essential. Increase in the the birth of the defectives would thereby be prevented and society would receive the protection which it requested against the likely dangerous consequences of having the mentally handicapped living in their midst.

Middlesex County Council in 1928 purchased the Porters Park Estate, so named after Roger Le Porter, the first owner.
The land acquired became the site for both Shenley and Middlesex Colony, the latter designed to house 2000, patients.
On October 25th, 1928, eight male patients, mainly high grade feeble minded adults were admitted to what was known as the Hangars Certified Institution.
The name being adopted on account of the three hangars which were survivors of the aerodrome on that site in World War1 as they formed the nucleus of the foundation.
In 1929 the name was changed to that of Middlesex Colony since the authority was at that time the County Council of Middlesex


The Middlesex Colony, begun in 1929, was opened on 20th May, 1936, by the Rt. Hon. Sir Kingsley Wood, M.P. Minister of Health. 
The Colony is intended for mental defectives who are socially inadaptable in the community, or who are neglected or without visible means of support. 
Male defectives who are capable of being employed are provided with suitable agricultural occupations on the land, or at various industrial occupations in the Colony's workshops. 
Female defectives are suitably employed in the laundry, general kitchen or workrooms. 
Children who are capable of it are given various simple occupations. 
The patients live in separate "homes" of the villa or pavilion type. 
The Administrative Centre, consisting of the main administrative offices, dental and surgical clinics, dispensary, central kitchen, reception hall, workshops, laundry. has been built on an axial line running north and south, the Colony buildings for male and female being placed east and west around and overlooking playing fields. 
An isolated site on the south side is allocated for the children's section. 
The nurses' home is situated immediately to the west of the main administrative offices, adjacent to the main entrance from Harper Lane. 
Wild Farm, and 18th century house, is the residence of the medical superintendent: there are also residences for the Deputy Medical Superintendent and senior officers, and a staff village situated east on the road frontage forms part of the scheme. 
The Recreation Hall is equipped for talking pictures and has a stage; it will seat 700. There are tennis courts and sports grounds. 
The buildings are surrounded by farm lands”.​Medical Superintendent, H. E. Beasley M.B

Kelly's Directory 1937​
Whats left today is in two sectors both in very poor condition to put it mildly.
The rest being a live site





































































































Thanks for looking in 
SK / Neil


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## nelly (May 15, 2011)

*Harperbury Hospital - Shenley - May 2011*

Harperbury Hospital opened as Hangars Certified Institution in 1925 and was known as Middlesex Colony until 1949. 
The original hospital has now closed, although some facilities remain on the site. The following comes from the 1937 Kelly's Directory:

_"The Middlesex Colony, begun in 1929, was opened on 20th May, 1936, by the Rt. Hon. Sir Kingsley Wood, M.P. Minister of Health. 
The Colony is intended for mental defectives who are socially inadaptable in the community, or who are neglected or without visible means of support. 
Male defectives who are capable of being employed are provided with suitable agricultural occupations on the land, or at various industrial occupations in the Colony's workshops. 
Female defectives are suitably employed in the laundry, general kitchen or workrooms. 
Children who are capable of it are given various simple occupations. The patients live in separate "homes" of the villa or pavilion type. 
The Administrative Centre, consisting of the main administrative offices, dental and surgical clinics, dispensary, central kitchen, reception hall, workshops, laundries, &c. has been built on an axial line running north and south, 
the Colony buildings for male and female being placed east and west around and overlooking playing fields. 
An isolated site on the south side is allocated for the children's section. 
The nurses' home is situated immediately to the west of the main administrative offices, adjacent to the main entrance from Harper Lane."_































































































































The Secure Unit























































Thanks for looking

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## ImmortalShadow (May 15, 2011)

Thought I'd recognised these photos from somewhere...then I saw them on your facebook and on the other well-known urbex forum 

The disposable bag photo, the chair/toilet seat, the room with the "window" at the end half-open, the one with the curved mirror and the swing are my favourites 

Looks like a great site


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## hamishsfriend (May 15, 2011)

Thanks, good info and pictures. Reminds me a lot of Hales Hospital here in Norfolk, for some reason.


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## King Al (May 16, 2011)

Cool report P7, some unique pics there!


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## nelly (May 16, 2011)

Sweet photos mate, glad they let you out of that padded cell


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## nelly (May 16, 2011)

Nice stuff matey, twas a great day


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## Snips86x (May 16, 2011)

Love the images and the write up was brill. Shame this place is so trashed. Thanks Priority!


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## Snips86x (May 16, 2011)

Superb images. Its allways nice to see images from someone else's perspective as things are easily missing and everyone has their own prefered method of taking images and their own artistic style. Fantastic!


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## Priority 7 (May 16, 2011)

King Al said:


> Cool report P7, some unique pics there!



I had realised this place has been done alot and indeed Nelly and SK were with me so I wanted to try and capture different things. Glad it seems to have worked as certain other forums weren't so impressed, but then that would also explain why this is my first point of post sucha friendly bunch.


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## Priority 7 (May 16, 2011)

top shots buddy, some stuff there I don't recollect seeing....no mention of the fire extinguisher I see


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## Priority 7 (May 16, 2011)

Pic 8 mate thats the one loved the day typical Nelly, SK and P7 explore banter, incidents yet no run in with Sec just a drive by lol


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## Em_Ux (May 16, 2011)

This place looks amazing!

Great shots!


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## Em_Ux (May 16, 2011)

Great shots SK!

Looks a good explore


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## dobbo79 (May 16, 2011)

oooooooooooooooo 
peely paint heaven....
great pics guys


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## dobbo79 (May 16, 2011)

wow this place looks awesome...pics 6&8 are my faves...
I have an "unhealthy addiction" to Peely paint...kind of like the addiction to painting your hands with PVA glue as a child, letting it dry then spending three hours peeling it off!!! (i need to get out more  )

Great Pics


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## Snips86x (May 16, 2011)

These are amazing. Pics are so crisp. Great Work Nelly!


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## scribble (May 16, 2011)

dobbo79 said:


> wow this place looks awesome...pics 6&8 are my faves...
> I have an "unhealthy addiction" to Peely paint...kind of like the addiction to painting your hands with PVA glue as a child, letting it dry then spending three hours peeling it off!!! (i need to get out more  )
> 
> Great Pics



That's the only perk to being a primary school teacher - pva-piggling!


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## klempner69 (May 16, 2011)

Very nicely captured indeedy..methinks I may have to pay this a visit.


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## klempner69 (May 16, 2011)

Loving it SK..is it here Tesco want to develope?


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## klempner69 (May 17, 2011)

Very good shots there.Well done to you


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## Priority 7 (May 17, 2011)

Thanks Klempner I appreciate the praise. On a side note I have been trying to work out when Lyons stopped making Treacle Toffee and struggled as it intrigues me but I have come up empty anybody out there got any idea?


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## King Al (May 18, 2011)

Great report SK! The padded cell is bloody cool


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## kevsy21 (May 18, 2011)

Good pics,it amazes me when places are so run down and gutted why they bother with security.


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## waley_bean (May 19, 2011)

Nice pics. The old discarded bear is very sad.


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## tommo (May 19, 2011)

nice one SK, the padded cell looks a little worse for wear now but still looks a good explore........grab the car stu


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## klempner69 (May 19, 2011)

tommo said:


> nice one SK, the padded cell looks a little worse for wear now but still looks a good explore........grab the car stu



Soon buddy,but there maybe something more to see after


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## tommo (May 19, 2011)

dont mind anything buddy will just be good to get out for the day and we need to find another pub garden to sit out in


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## Munchh (May 19, 2011)

Love it SK. Win


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