To find records for an individual who was a patient at a Minnesota State Hospital it is helpful to have the following information:
You can search for a patient using only their name, but your search will be much easier if you have more information before you start.
Patient name: The name you should search for is their name at the time of admission. For women you should search under their maiden name as well as a married name if you do not know the date of admission. Also, have a few variations of spelling for the name. Many of the records are handwritten and names may be misspelled or mis-transcribed.
Patient birth date: This is helpful to differentiate between patients with common names.
Patient date and place of death: This will let you know if the patient died in the state hospital.
Hospital admission date: Not all hospitals have alphabetic indexes; some of the records are only arranged by admission date. If you do not know the exact date, an approximation will be helpful. You may bea able to use census records to help you find out when someone was in the state hospital.
A good first place to search is the State of Minnesota Human Services Department Aggregated Patient Index Cards. These cards cover patients admitted between 1910 and 1990 and come in two series; patients who were discharged from the hospital, and patients who died in the hospital.
Aggregated Patient Index Cards, 1920s-1990s
Aggregated Deceased Patient Index Cards, 1910s-1980s
Information on the cards may include name, Department of Public Welfare number or Medical Record number, birth date, county of commitment, county of residence, date admitted, hospital, hospital case number, social security number, and date of death.
If a patient was admitted to a state hospital before 1910 or 1920 they will not have a Department of Humans Services Patient Card. You will need to start your search with a hospital-specific index.
Patient records contain private medical information and are generally restricted for 75 years from the date of the last entry in the record or file. If the record you are requesting will be restricted under this guideline, you should apply for permission to access the records.
Use the Access to Restricted Records for Individuals form to apply for access to restricted state hospital records. Please contact library staff at reference@mnhs.org for more information on this step.
Once you receive a copy of the Access to Restricted Records for Individuals form, you will need to submit the appropriate supporting documentation, as listed on the form. This documentation may include:
Applications may be submitted by email attachment or regular mail. Once we receive your application, it will be reviewed by our permissions staff and you will be informed--usually via email--if your application is granted or denied.
Our record holdings vary by state hospital. The hospitals did not keep the same records and had different retention and destruction schedules, so our holdings are not consistent.
In general we may have:
Patient Records- Information on an individual patient:
MNHS holds the records that were transferred to us by the state hospitals or the Minnesota Departments of Health or Human Services. We do not have complete records from all Minnesota state hospitals. Many records were destroyed due to destruction schedules designed to ensure patient privacy. Some were lost to other hazards. Our records vary greatly from hospital to hospital. We tend to have more detailed information for earlier periods and have very little patient information past 1950.
The dates listed on the overview tab represent the best patient data available for each hospital. Outside of these dates there is either very minimal information or no records exist. The Minnesota Department of Health does not have any historical state hospital records. State hospitals that are still in operation will hold their own modern records. Dates will vary by hospital.
If you are doing general (non-indvidual specific) research into Minnesota state hospitals here are some search tips:
Search the library catalog using the name of the state hospital (ex: Fergus Falls State Hospital) and select the "State Government Records" option on the dropdown menu.
Some of the records you may find will include: architectural drawings, farm records, superintendent's subject files and correspondence, inventories, photographs, subject files, financial records, and annual reports.
You can also search for the administrative agencies that provided oversight to the state hospitals, including the State Board of Control. For more information on administrative agencies, click here.
Gale Family Library
Minnesota Historical Society Library
Located on the Second Floor of the Minnesota History Center
345 West Kellogg Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55102
Library Hours:
Thursday to Saturday: 10am to 4pm
Sunday to Wednesday: Closed
More Information on Visiting the Library
Contact Us:
651-259-3300
