[or-roots] Commitment for mental illnesses

[Robyn Greenlund]

I found our county (Coos) still retains their commitment records for individuals to the state hospital in the basement of the courthouse. There is a listing of these on the Oregon State Archives website [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/county/cpcoos/insane.html]. Other counties should have the same collections. Here is what is reported about the Coos county collection. In examining the records, many include updates to the files including the date of death of the inmate. It is my intention to index these case files for those individuals which do not have restricted access and to make this information available online.


1893-[ongoing]
Series documents the examination, commitment, and release of mentally ill persons to and from the state's mental institutions. Series contains statements of complaint and commitment recorded by the county clerk or recorder and includes petitions to have an individual committed; physicians certification that an individual is insane; delivery warrants authorizing a county official (usually the sheriff) to take the individual to the state hospital; patient discharges; paroles or transfers; indexes; and correspondence. Information includes patient and family names, date committed, reason, physical description, and a brief family history. This series may also be known as the Insane Record, Mental Illness Record, and Mentally Ill and Feeble Minded Record. By 1968, in most counties, the commitment of the mentally ill or deficient had become the responsibility of the circuit court. Access to these records may be restricted for 75 years by Oregon Revised Statute
 192.496.

Coos County joined the Oregon Judicial Information Network (OJIN) in 1987.

Coos County Courthouse, Clerk's Downstairs Archives:

Mental [Commitment Case Files], no. 1-1083, 1893-1945 (2.65 cu.ft.).

Coos County Courthouse, Criminal Court Office:
[Mentals-Commitment Case Files], 1965-1982 (11 reels of microfilm);
Record of Mentally Ill and Mentally Deficient, 1957-2001 (1 volume). 

Coos County Courthouse, Old Jail Storage:
Circuit Court M [Mental Commitment Records], no. 1083-ca.3475, 1945-1987 (27 cu.ft.);
Insane & Feeble-Minded and T.B. Patients and Deformed Children [Index], 1893-ca.1957 (1 volume).

Coos County North Bend Annex, Small Claims/Civil/Probate Court Office:
[Mental Commitment Case Files], no. ca.3476-4861, 1987-present (17 cu.ft.).

 Robyn

Interested in Oregon History? Check out my webpages at
coquillevalley.org or genealogytrails.com (Coos & Curry Counties)


      
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