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Archive Collections at HHC: Health & Wellbeing

Guide to material held at Hull History Centre arranged by research theme, record creator and document type, with copies of published source guides.

“We are healthy only to the extent that our ideas are humane”

Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions 

Health and Wellbeing

Research Themes Supported

Hull History Centre holds large numbers of collections on subjects related to health and wellbeing. Such collections can aid research into many areas including:

  • Hospitals and Asylums
  • Mental Health
  • Children’s Homes
  • Early Years of the NHS
  • Socialism and Welfare
  • Boards of Guardians and the Poor Law
  • Civil Rights Campaigning
  • Immigrants’ Welfare
  • Slum Clearance
  • Seafarers’ Welfare and Safety
  • Health Boards
  • Infectious Diseases (Cholera and Spanish Flu)
  • Charitable Societies

Typical Record Formats

Health and wellbeing records commonly include hospital and asylum admission and discharge registers, health department reports, campaign publicity, photographs, committee minutes, correspondence.


Key collections

The following collections have significant research potential in the area of health and wellbeing:

  • De la Pole Hospital (C DPP)
  • Minutes of Hull City Council and Committees (C TCM)
  • Medical Aid Committee for Vietnam (U DJM
  • Socialist Health Association (U DSM)

Further collections

The following PDF contains a list of HHC collections that may be useful to researchers interested in various aspects of health and wellbeing.

Additional supporting material

The following material may also be useful when researching this area:

  • Local newspapers, available on microfilm or via the British Newspaper Archive Online – campaigns and election platforms relating to health and welfare are usually reported on in newspapers, as is the construction of new buildings such as hospitals.
  • Local Studies and historical maps – these can help trace the development of buildings such as workhouses, hospitals and orphanages.