UK electoral and medical records added to Ancestry

Ancestry has been busy with a few useful additions:

UK, Absent Voter Lists, 1918-1925, 1939
https://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61320
Source: Absent Voter Lists taken from various Electoral Register collections.

The 1916 Representation of the People Act ruled that members of the armed forces should be listed in separate registers under the constituencies in which they normally lived. The Absent Voter Lists enabled servicemen and women to vote by proxy or by postal application, when away from home on active service. They record the civilian address of the absent voter, but more importantly they give service numbers and regimental details. Absent voter lists can be a valuable resource if you are trying to trace details of a First World War soldier. They often record the individual’s regiment, number and rank at the time, as well as his home address.

Suffolk, England, Extracted Church of England Parish Records, 1538-1850
https://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61545
Source: 'Electronic databases created from various publications of parish and probate records.'

Berkshire, England, Electoral Registers, 1840-1965
https://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61258
Source: Berkshire Electoral Registers, Berkshire Record Office, Reading, Berkshire, England.

England, Dreadnought Seamen's Hospital Admissions and Discharges, 1826-1930
https://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=61093
Source: Dreadnought Seamen's Hospital Admission Registers, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England.

In the early years of the nineteenth century, Zachary MacAulay and William Wilberforce established a fund for the relief of distressed seamen. The committee appointed to manage the fund met for the first time on 8 March 1821 and from this meeting was formed the Seamen's Hospital Society. The purpose of the new society was the establishment of a hospital solely for seamen. The 48 gun Grampus was loaned by the Admiralty for conversion as a hospital ship and she was moored at Greenwich in October 1821. Within the next ten years it became clear that the accommodation in the Grampus could not meet the demand and in 1831 the Admiralty agreed to replace her with a larger hulk, the Dreadnought, previously used by the Royal Navy as a hospital ship at Milford Haven.

In 1833 the hospital was incorporated by Act of Parliament as 'The Seamen's Hospital Society'. In 1832 the high incidence of cholera prompted the Central Board of Health to convert the Dover as an isolation hospital and she joined the Dreadnought at Greenwich. The Society took over the maintenance of this ship in 1835, also taking responsibility for other ships as time went on to combat outbreaks of disease. The Dreadnought in turn proved inadequate to cope with the numbers, principally merchant seamen, requiring medical treatment and in 1857 she was replaced by the 120 gun Caledonia, renamed Dreadnought by special permission of the Admiralty.

The Dreadnought hulk remained in use at Greenwich until 1872 as isolation accommodation. The Society continued to expand, opening branch hospitals and other establishments including, in 1877, the Dreadnought School for Nurses. With the advent of the National Health Service in 1948 the hospital and its branches were handed over to the Minister for Health, the Dreadnought Hospital itself surviving as a hospital for seamen, administered by the Seamen's Hospital Management Committee until 1974.

Further details via the links.

Chris

My next 5 week long Scotland 1750-1850: Beyond the OPRs course commences Nov 6th 2017 - details at https://www.pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=302. For my genealogy guide books, visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html, whilst details of my research service are at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. Further content is also published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishGENES.