James Lawson Gent was born in 1840, he was the son of Henry Medcalf Gent (b 1809) and grandson of Jonathan Gent (b 1785).
The first reference to James Gent as a patient at the Lancaster City Lunatic Asylum, Whittingham, Nr Preston we found in the 1881 census.
His records at Whittingham Hospital showed that he had initially been declared a ‘Pauper Lunatic’ on 1 Aug 1865 in Bolton and sent to Rainhill Asylum nr Prescot. On 6 May 1873 he was transferred to Whittingham Asylum, nr Preston, which had newly opened, where he stayed until he died on 22 June 1901.
An exact transcription of the ‘Order for the Reception of a Pauper Patient’ is below as well as a transcription of his ‘Notice of Admission’ to Whittingham Hospital. The supposed causes of his insanity (below) are well worth a look!
Admission to Rainhill Asylum in 1865
Order for the Reception of a Pauper Patient
We the undersigned Henry Powell clergyman and Alfred Henderson, Relieving Officer having called to our assistance a Surgeon and having personally examined James Gent a pauper and being satisfied that the said James Gent is a Lunatic and a proper person to be taken charge of and detained under care and treatment, hereby direct you to receive the said James Gent.
Signed Henry Powell, Officiating Clergyman of the Parish of Bolton
Alfred Henderson, Relieving Officer at the Parish of Bolton
1 Aug 1865
Statement
| Name | James Gent |
| Sex & Age | Male, 25 yrs, Single |
| Previous Occupation | Architect |
| Religion | Protestant |
| Previous Place of Abode | 155 Bradshawgate, Great Bolton |
| Whether first attack | Yes |
| Age on first attack | 25yrs |
| Previous Treatment | Not under treatment anywhere |
| Duration of existing attack | About 2 weeks |
| Supposed cause | Nervousness & over-study |
| Subject to epilepsy | No |
| Whether suicidal | Yes |
| Whether dangerous to others | Yes |
| Union to which lunatic is chargeable | Common Fund, Bolton Union |
| Name & abode of nearest relative | Alice Gent, his mother, 155 Bradshawgate, Great Bolton |
Medical Certificate
I the undersigned, Thomas Blacklidge Garstang, being a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, London and a member of the Apothecaries Company, London and being in actual Practice as a Surgeon, hereby certify that I, on the 1 Aug at 155 Bradshawgate, Great Bolton in the County of Lancaster, personally examined James Gent of 155 Bradshawgate, Great Bolton, Architect and that the said James Gent is a Lunatic and a proper person to be taken charge of and detained under Care & Treatment, and that I have formed this opinion upon the following grounds; viz:-
1. Facts indicating insanity observed by myself:
Wild, excited appearance and obstinate refusal to speak a word to me.
2. Other facts indicating insanity communicated to me by others:
His sister told me that on Sunday he went to church and conducted himself very extravagantly.
Signed J B Garstang
Abode: The Height, Bolton
1 Aug 1865
Notice of Admission, Whittingham Hospital nr Preston 1873
James Gent
| Date of Admission | 6 May 1873 |
| Admission No. | 122 |
| Date of continuation of reception order | Apr 22 1891 Apr 20 1892 Apr 19 1894Apr 20 1897 |
| Age | 33 |
| Previous Occupation | Architect |
| Previous Place of Abode | Rainhill Asylum |
| Union, County or Borough to which chargable | Bolton |
| By whose authority sent | H Earle & J Bibby |
| Form of mental disorder | Dementia |
| Supposed cause of insanity | Nervousness and overstudy |
| Bodily condition | Good |
| Duration of existing attacks | 8 yrs |
| Age of first attack | 25yrs |
| Date of removal, discharge or death | Died 22 June 1901 |
Whittingham Asylum
Whittingham Hospital opened officially on 1st April 1873 so James Gent would have been one of its first patients. Burdett wrote of Whittingham in his ‘Hospitals & Asylums of the World’ (Vol 2)
“This is beyond doubt one of the finest specimens of asylum architecture in England and its leading features show at once that it was designed by a Medical Superintendent”.
But it wasn’t just its outward appearance that was excellent, its rules and regulations were remarkable for their high standards regarding the care and treatment of patients.
The Asylum had its own reservoir, grounds, brewery, railway branch (1887), post office, telephone (1884), electric lamps (1892), chapel and cemetery. In 1885 its maintenance rates for pauper lunatics was 9s 4d/week, private patients had to pay 14s/week. The daily diet of patients and staff included one glass of ale, brewed in the asylum. Unfortunately, it was necessary to discipline staff members for drunkenness on duty and the brewery was discontinued in 1902.
As a male patient, James would probably have worked on one of the asylum farms.
