Cane Hill Hospital

Founding and renaming The hospital has its origins as the third Surrey County Pauper Lunatic Asylum, designed by Charles Henry Howell, which was built in two stages between 1882 and 1888. The design which involved a 'radiating pavilion' layout was original, Upon opening Cane Hill Asylum had capacity for 1,124 patients (644 women and 480 men) making it the largest of its kind in the UK. Following the Mental Treatment Act 1930 the hospital was renamed to Cane Hill Mental Hospital. The outbreak of World War II saw the hospital join the Emergency Hospital Service, reserving six wards for military casualties and bringing the total number of patients to 2,500. In 1956 Members of Parliament, Norman Dodds and Donald Johnston successfully campaigned for the discharge of patient, Harriet Thornton, aged 53. A Pathé News newsreel documented her discharge on 25 October 1956, after years as a patient. Dodds would later reference the hospital in Commons debates against what he described as "slapdash mental laws" in light of the case. By the late 1980s the number of patients had greatly declined, largely due to the recommendations of the Mental Health Act 1983 with its emphasis on care in the community. Cane Hill suffered numerous arson attacks between 2000 and 2002 resulting in the destruction of the Main Hall, Blocks C and V and heavy damage to other derelict buildings. Often the fires required multiple fire brigades to extinguish. Forty-three fire engines from 11 fire brigades responded to an attack in September 2001, and 100 fire fighters responded to a later attack in April 2002. The repeated incidents of arson prompted an increase in security on the site and construction of a barbed wire fence. On 13 November 2010 a fire took hold in the administration block and went on to destroy all but the front facade of the building. The fire also destroyed the iconic clock tower. At about midnight, firefighters saw the clocktower crash to the ground in the blaze. The fire had been started in the basement of the building, draughting its way up through the ground and first floors before finally destroying the roof. ==Hospital cemetery==

The hospital had a cemetery on Portnalls Road for patients which was last used for burials in September 1950 and was deconsecrated and cleared at the hospital site's redevelopment in 1981 when remains of nearly 6,000 people were exhumed and cremated at Croydon Cemetery in Mitcham Road. Among the remains were those of British First World War servicemen, who were known to have had separate areas in the cemetery where they had been originally buried with military honours. are commemorated on a memorial the CWGC erected in Croydon Cemetery, where their ashes had been scattered at 'Location 1000' in the grounds, in 2015. == Notable Patients ==

, mother of Charlie Chaplin, was a returning patient of Cane Hill Cane Hill Hospital accommodated several notable patients in its history: • Hannah Chaplin, Charlie Chaplin's mother, was admitted to the hospital on multiple occasions suffering the effects of syphilis and the negative effects of her husband's death, Charles Chaplin Sr. • Terry Burns, David Bowie's half brother was admitted to the hospital after multiple suicide attempts. He escaped the hospital grounds in 1985 and took his own life at the nearby Coulsdon South railway station. • John George Boorman, David Walliams' paternal great grandfather was admitted to the hospital on 21 October 1919, suffering shell shock from his experiences in the First World War. Boorman remained a patient for 43 years and died at the hospital on 28 September 1962. His story was later documented on the BBC television show, Who Do You Think You Are, October 2020. • David Burchell, Michael Caine's half brother was admitted to the hospital age 17 following an epileptic seizure. He remained a patient until the late 1980s. ==Legacy==

A drawing of the Cane Hill Hospital administration block is featured on the front cover of the US release of David Bowie's 1970 album The Man Who Sold the World. Metal band Cane Hill based their name on the Cane Hill Hospital. ==Notes and references==