Dear Shorty, so sorry to read your story.... I feel that I must tell you my family story as well. First, I have just researched and found that Highcroft was origanally founded in 1836 and was formally known as the Aston Union Infirmary, later it became known as Erdington House. My late grandfather was Leonard Horace Smith ( the Birmingham Boxer Len "Tiger" Smith in the late 1920's to in the 1940's) and he was married to Grandmother Lillian Harris in 1934 in Birmingham. They had a daughter (my mother Mary Elizabeth Smith born 12 April 1935. During the year 1937 Len was to leave for South Africa and took my Mother with him as well as a lady by the name of Mona Meddins Primrose Jones.
After some time, my Mother found out that Mona was not her biological mother, but not a word was said about her biological mother Lillian Smith. Mona and Len had a son Graham Jones Smith, born here in South Africa where they then lived in Cape Town area. In the early 1950's, my Mother insisted that she wanted to know who her Mother was and Mona, with Graham and my mother set off to the UK to look for Lillian (Len did not go with for some reason). Now Mona knew all Len's family - and she took Mom from the one to the other in search of information as to Lillian's whereabouts to no avail.
In 1972 both Mona and their son Graham died and as my Mother had herself married and had 6 children, Len decided to return to the UK and we never heard from him ever again, nor did we know or met any of the family in the UK - no contact whatsoever!
For many many years (before internet) my brother started searching for Len and found out that Len died in Erdington in 1977 - This was a great shock to my mother and I remember her saying that she suspected he may have died, but the confirmation of his death was a great shock.
So we had no contact person to find out about Lillian and the search continued for many years and with the internet's help, we made contact with many of Len's family (Len had 4 sisters) but not one of his family members "knew" what happened to Lillian - even some of Lillian's own family members was made contact with, but to no avail. I had the most wonderful people in the UK who tried to help me as my Mother will be 79 on ther next birthday in April, time became a factor and we (myself and my siblings also needed to know Lillian's story.
This week Len's daughter-in-law unravelled the whole thing that nobody could inform us of.... Lillian Smith (nee Harris) must have been taken to Erdington Highcroft hopital in 1937 when Len had to leave for SA. Nowhere could we find any Marriage Certificate for Len and Mona, nor can any Devorce Certificate for Len and Lillian be found.....
My Grandmother was robbed of her daughter and taken to Highcroft for fighting to retain her child.... they do call that "mad" and so will most of us get mad if someone took our babies from us.... so now Len and Mona could take my Mom with them and start a new life in SA without any problem. When Len went back to the UK after Mona and Graham's death in 1972, he lived opposite Highcroft Hospital (to see the wife he dumped in 1937?) and I hope he had lots of photos of my Mom and all us 6 children that made her the happiest Mommy and Grandmommy in the whole wide world - she must have been so proud of us!!! If only we had known, she would have had a wonderful life WITH us and she would have seen her first 3 Great-grandchildren before her death! This Monday it is going to be a very emotional day for me as, AT LAST my precious Mommy will find out about her precious Mommy and she will have the closure she needed since she was a small little girl! HOPE EVERYONE WHO READS THIS WILL BE THINKING OF ME ON MONDAY WHEN I GIVE MOM THE NEWS
Emmie Germishuys