This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/0V.2ADE/2235.2.2.1.1.1.1.1.1 Message Board Post: Linda, I thought the same as you about Mr. Smith's response. Yet, it is your information that prompts my response. My husband had an aunt that spent most of her adult life in the State Hospital that was at the time located in Benton, Saline County. She was committed in 1923-1924 following the death of her toddler daughter. She had two young sons. My husband remembers visits to his Aunt Mary when he was a young boy - going with his mother who was Mary's sister. Naturally, I had to think the dear man of which you spoke might have been one of those young sons of Mary's. After learning the family's story, I, too felt that in today's time Mary might have been helped. I did find and send for a copy of Mary's committment papers. It stated that she became a danger to herself and others. Saline County is one of those fortunate counties that has not suffered loss of data from natural disasters, although it has had losses from deterioration. Many of these court cases were located in the late 1990s in the basement of the courthouse in Benton and set to be destroyed when an employee discovered what was in the boxes. They were subsequently rescued, cataloged, etc. So the Saline County archives website has indexes to what they rescued. Rather than cause distress to anyone still living and reveal Mary's surname, if you think the man's mother's name was Mary, I will happily accept an email to provide what information I have. kmpiper@gmail.com