Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue

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Reference
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Title
Fairfield Hospital
Date free text
1856 -1998
Production date
From: 1856 To: 1998
Admin/biog history
The Three Counties Asylum was built to replace Bedford Asylum and to provide accommodation for 600 patients from the counties of Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Huntingdonshire. The site on the boundaries of Stotfold and Arlesey was chosen in 1856. By the 19th March 1860 the Three Counties Asylum was ready and during April 308 patients were transferred from Bedford to Arlesey by railway. The new Asylum was formally opened on 18 June 1860. In 1927 the name was changed to The Three Counties Hospital, which in turn changed its name to Fairfield Hospital in the 1960s. The hospital continued until 1998 when it was closed and the site redeveloped for housing. The hospital was a major employer in the area particularly of domestic staff. As well as the hospital and recreational facilities there was also a farm.
Some records in this collection have restrictions on access.
A Place in the Country: Three Counties Asylum 1860-1998 is a book written by the community to mark the closure of the hospital. It is not a history as such.
Level of description
fonds