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Loveday Street Hospital..the search for my sister

Another dead end. Jacqueline is not at Birmingham crematorium, Walsall Road,Perry Barr, Birmingham. The staff kindly checked their records. Had a nice call back. They agreed my sister must be recorded somewhere. The question is, where.

Shaun -C
 
Another week with the same answer “ NOT Here”. So many like me searching for a straight forward explanation, where are the final resting place of those who were cherished so much. Officialdom have so much to answer for, for the pain and distress they have caused.

Thanks to everyone for their help, have a pleasant Christmas.

Shaun-C
 
Is there anyone out there who has an insight on children born stillborn at Loveday Hospital regard to their placed at rest? I can not except that a child born, the birth registered, her weight recorded can simply disappear without trace. How can that be?

Is there anyone who knows of a member of family that has that insight that can help in the search many are engage in, seeking closure so they can pay their respects. This request is not not just me but for many others.

Thank you
Shaun-C
 
I don't know if this has any relevance or not, but my Mother told me that she very occasionally had to accompany a mother and/ or baby to Loveday street. She was an auxiliary nurse at Oakhurst Maternity home in Sutton Coldfield in the late 50s and early 60s. She said that she found this very distressing but never said why. Thinking back on this conversation I think it may have been because the baby was likely to be still born.
 
Good afternoon

Question: Were stillborn children baptised before burial. Reason: there are records of baptism within the Loveday hospital records held by the Birmingham library.

Thank you

Shaun-C
 
Janice

Thank you. I feel I am hitting my head against a brick wall. I do believe there is someone out there that will provide the answer I am searching for.

Shaun-C
 
I think the main problem is so many stillborn babies were just buried in with other people and no real record kept. Sad but that was the way back then.
 
What a terrible sad situation for parents of a stillborn child to be in.

A stillborn child would not have been baptised. That still applies today.

Sadly until thirty to forty years ago, many parents were never consulted over funeral arrangements for babies lost through stillbirth or as a neonatal loss, with individual hospitals having set procedures for how they dealt with the body. As such many parents were never told what happened to the body of their baby, or the location of any burial or
cremation. However in more recent years, parents more often than not take over the planning of their baby’s
funeral, so will be aware of all arrangements, and the location of their child. As such, it is more difficult to trace the
body of a baby, the further back in time you go [Mariposa Trust]

The Mariposa Trust website contains lots of helpful information for parents/relatives looking for guidance at https://www.sayinggoodbye.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Information-on-how-to-trace-a-baby.pdf
 
superdad3 said:
What a terrible sad situation for parents of a stillborn child to be in.

A stillborn child would not have been baptised. That still applies today.

Sadly until thirty to forty years ago, many parents were never consulted over funeral arrangements for babies lost through stillbirth or as a neonatal loss, with individual hospitals having set procedures for how they dealt with the body. As such many parents were never told what happened to the body of their baby, or the location of any burial or
cremation. However in more recent years, parents more often than not take over the planning of their baby’s
funeral, so will be aware of all arrangements, and the location of their child. As such, it is more difficult to trace the
body of a baby, the further back in time you go [Mariposa Trust]

The Mariposa Trust website contains lots of helpful information for parents/relatives looking for guidance at https://www.sayinggoodbye.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Information-on-how-to-trace-a-baby.pdf
Click to expand...
Thank you for the link and for your time in reading the post. It is a nightmare. Parents who were unwilling to talk because of their distress with the result some information is lost. I have my sister's name, her time and date of birth, the hospital where the birth took place, even Jacqueline weight. How can a child simply disappear when her record of burial / cremation should be recorded? It is my firm belief her rest place is near to the former Loveday Hospital. There is no evidence children from Loveday were buried / cremated further, a field. Has a mistake been made while transferring records over to digital. Officialdom doesn't have the time or staff to check. Looking for that one person who will hold the key to unlocking this puzzle. That person is out there somewhere, are you that person?

Thank you

Shaun-C
 
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I have good information that still-born children of Loveday hospital were buried in the cemeteries nearest to the hospital which I have always believed to be the case. I will be contacting Birmingham City Council to ask for a more robust search of their hard records.

Shaun-C
 
Shaun-C said:
I have good information that still-born children of Loveday hospital were buried in the cemeteries nearest to the hospital which I have always believed to be the case. I will be contacting Birmingham City Council to ask for a more robust search of their hard records.

Shaun-C
Click to expand...
good luck shaun..far as i can think the nearest would be key hill and warstone lane cems and witton cem

lyn
 
Lyn - Thanks

My sister is buried in one of those two. The information I have would be well known to officialdom. Burials took place near Loveday Hospital, no where else.

Shaun-C
 
Shaun-C said:
Lyn - Thanks

My sister is buried in one of those two. The information I have would be well known to officialdom. Burials took place near Loveday Hospital, no where else.

Shaun-C
Click to expand...
let us know how you get on shaun...i am still searching for a stillborn from 1935 loveday st hospital but as i think mentioned before the mother was told the baby was buried at key hill but so far we have found no actual record so most likely was buried unrecorded with someone else...

lyn
 
Lyn

Will do. I know others are on the same journey as me.

The answer we seek will not be found in the public digital burial records of Birmingham City Council. The answer will be found in the actual burial registers of the time. Stillborn children who have mysteriously disappeared, uncounted for, are almost certain in a shared grave of another deceased person. The child’s burial record should have been placed in the burial register though, if the law was followed. This is problematic for several reasons and it is why officialdom wishes those who come enquiring for information get tired of the process of looking and go away.

There are over 1000 stillborns on the City’s Council online database who have been placed in unmarked graves in various locations around where Loveday Hospital was located. These children are buried side by side with grave sites having various numbers of children. Importantly, children placed together are recorded on the Council digital database which is not the case for children sharing a grave with a deceased adult.

I would suggest, that the City Council cannot place the final resting place of a stillborn sharing a grave of another deceased person on their digital burial database, which is open to all to see, out of respect to the main grave. We should be clear here, children were not placed inside the other deceased coffin but laid to rest at the foot of the grave, however, what a rogue undertaker got up to is a matter of conjecture, however, this is still problematic if the location of the stillborn ever came to be known.

The city council’s online digital records of stillborns do NOT tell the full story. I believe that officialdom knows where the missing children are and has the details of their burial so they can be traced, however, what is lacking is a resolve to accept that an injustice has taken place and that historical registers should be examined when a family searching for their stillborn family member comes looking for information instead of the present process that guilds the family to the online burial database which does not reflect all the historical information the city council holds.

Time for a a horrible injustice to be cleaned up and for families to have the closure they seek.

Shaun-C
 
Why I consider churchyards not being a meaningful place to look?

Until recent times, the Church of England and Roman Catholic Church did not allow miscarried or stillborn babies to be buried in consecrated ground, as they had not been baptized; it was thought (explicitly by Catholics, more vaguely by Anglicans) that they went neither to Heaven nor Hell, but to Limbo, where they could never know God.

I think God would roll his eyes hearing that.

Shaun_C
 
Shaun-C said:
Looking for some advise.

Trying to trace my sister ( Jacqueline ) who was born at Loveday Hospital on the 25th October 1947. Sadly she was stillborn. I have her stillborn record, date and time of her birth and even her weight at birth. Contacted Birmingham Council who said there is no record of Jacqueline burial and her resting place must be in another council area. I have checked Dudley and Cradley Heath were my parents lived. No Joy. Also talked to a local Funeral Director near where the hospital was located and they can't help. Question, how likely was Jacqueline and other stillborn children to be buried away from the Hospital area? I getting conflicting stories. Do the digital records of Birmingham Council count for all still-born? I have hit a brick wall at present and looking for some suggestions.

Thank you for reading the post

Kind Regards

Shaun-C
Click to expand...
 
Good afternoon. What a nice crisp day it is.

Janska - Thank you.

Have contacted Birmingham City Council to ask they search their historical burial records of the time, October / November 1947, reference shared burial. With no staff at the cemeteries now, it is very difficult for a member of the public to make enquiries. Talking to others they had high praise for the staff at the cemeteries, yet they’ve been removed. The City Council digital records DO NOT hold all the historical records of the time for reasons I have tried to explain in a previous post, see above.

It is my considered opinion that my sister has been placed in the grave of an adult. It was a common practice to bury stillborn children in the gap at the foot of an adult grave. This is now problematic for obvious reasons and why I feel there is no interest in doing a thorough, check. Jacqueline is in one of those cemeteries close to the former Loveday Hospital. She is off the radar because she was placed in a shared adult grave like many others.

I also understand Loveday Hospital used the services of a local funeral home, commonly known as undertakers, to undertake the burial of stillborn children. Contacted those near the former hospital, and one was very happy to help but their records did not go back that far. Others, well, not even a reply.

Yes, Lodge Hill could hold the key. Once I have the reply from the City Council I will report back.

Thank you

Shaun-C
 
Shaun-C said:
Good afternoon. What a nice crisp day it is.

Janska - Thank you.

Have contacted Birmingham City Council to ask they search their historical burial records of the time, October / November 1947, reference shared burial. With no staff at the cemeteries now, it is very difficult for a member of the public to make enquiries. Talking to others they had high praise for the staff at the cemeteries, yet they’ve been removed. The City Council digital records DO NOT hold all the historical records of the time for reasons I have tried to explain in a previous post, see above.

It is my considered opinion that my sister has been placed in the grave of an adult. It was a common practice to bury stillborn children in the gap at the foot of an adult grave. This is now problematic for obvious reasons and why I feel there is no interest in doing a thorough, check. Jacqueline is in one of those cemeteries close to the former Loveday Hospital. She is off the radar because she was placed in a shared adult grave like many others.

I also understand Loveday Hospital used the services of a local funeral home, commonly known as undertakers, to undertake the burial of stillborn children. Contacted those near the former hospital, and one was very happy to help but their records did not go back that far. Others, well, not even a reply.

Yes, Lodge Hill could hold the key. Once I have the reply from the City Council I will report back.

Thank you

Shaun-C
Click to expand...
 
I gave birth to stillborn baby a few years after your sister.it took a while but my baby was buried at lodge hill.but born at Marston Green hospital.not near at all.

Good luck.
Janeshka.
 
janska said:
I gave birth to stillborn baby a few years after your sister.it took a while but my baby was buried at lodge hill.but born at Marston Green hospital.not near at all.

Good luck.
Janeshka.
Click to expand...

Hi Janska

Thank you for reading the thread and engaging. There is a burial ground at Marston maintained by the Parish Council for the residents of the parish. Lodge Hill about 20 mins by car from Marston. Marston burial ground may not have allowed the burials of stillborn children for reasons I have explained above.

The more I read on what went on surrounding stillborn children in those days the more horrified I get. It is beyond any understanding I have. It should never be described as an antiquated process, it was a cruel process.

Thank you.

Shaun-C
 
janska said:
I gave birth to stillborn baby a few years after your sister.it took a while but my baby was buried at lodge hill.but born at Marston Green hospital.not near at all.

Good luck.
Janeshka.
Click to expand...

Good evening Janeshka

May I ask how you set out and found your child? Was it through the City Council?

Kind regards

Shaun-C
 
Good afternoon.

Another week of despondency. Birmingham City Council refuses to look at the burial registers of the time, asserting their digital online database is correct. Where have we heard that before? Hmm. I will continue to have dialogue with them. I need to know how the City Council record a stillborn sharing an adult grave.

Contacted the church to see if there was any possibility that stillborn children were buried in any of the churchyards near the former Loveday Hospital. Waiting reply.

I can understand why others conducting similar searches feel stonewalled by officialdom. One is left with a feeling they wish you to go away. We must not. The search continues next week for my sister.

Shaun-C
 
Update 21 January 2024

Sadly it would seem Birmingham City Council have decided not to communicate with me any longer. Have always been polite. I now have to resort to freedom of information requests. What are they hiding?

No response from the Church. I will send another reminder. I refuse to accept that my sister can simply go missing.

Shaun-C
 
My freedom of information request. It is important to understand how shared graves are reflected on the City Council burial registers and their online burial data base. I do not accept that children can just simply disappear without trace especially when the law is clear on this matter, that stillborn children have their burials / cremations recorded. My sister is in one of the cemeteries near to the former Loveday Hospital and I need to find her.

"Dear Birmingham City Council,

Historical shared Burials.

Request
1) How are shared burials (stillborn child placed with an adult), recorded
and reflected in the burial records (actual and online records) of
Birmingham City Council.

2) How many historical shared burials ( Stillborn - adult ) took place in
Birmingham City Council Cemeteries.

I will update when I have a response.

Shaun-C
 
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