Hi Norma, I suppose a stroke would fit the bill. As far as I have been able to establish, Charlotte's children had either moved to London or died by the time she died, so she was more or less alone. A sad way to go really. Thanks :-) on 1/10/09 5:03 AM, norie@peoplepc.com wrote: > Paralysis was probably stroke ~ They had the same diseases and medical > events we do, probably more as we cure and prevent so many now. They had > funny ways of describing them, you have to use your imagination. > > The cause of death for one of my GGpas was Bright's disease which is a > kidney disease, but with three cases of diabetes among my cousins I'm > convinced he had diabetes and congestive heartr failure and kidney failure. > > Another strange one from 1849 was strangulation of the insane, which > translates to heart attack, one of the major arteries being the insane. > > It is sad that old people with Alzheimers were deposited by their families > in lunatic insylums where they were chained to walls and other horrendous > things. Everybody laughed and called them crazy. > > And the Workhouse was where you went if you had no nest egg to live on in > your old age, so many women outliving their men, or being dropped for a > younger woman. We really don't know how lucky we are. > Norma > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "baldrick" <baldricktheturnip@inspiralmail.com> > To: <BERKSHIRE@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 1:00 PM > Subject: [BRK] Furniture, Paralysis & Wallingford Workhouse > >> Hi, >> >> On 3 Dec 1878 there was the following entry in the Wallingford Union >> Guardians Minutes:- >> >> "Credit Common Fund, debit Treasurer by cash from the undermentioned >> Paupers own account Relief, viz: >> Charlotte HARRIS, St. Mary the More, Sale of Household furniture £1" >> >> Charlotte's husband had died in 1870 and she was listed as living in Kine >> Croft in 1871. >> >> Charlotte died, aged 75, on 26 Dec 1878 in the Wallingford Union > Workhouse, >> which compared to some, was supposed to be not that bad. Her cause of > death >> was stated as "Paralysis". I have a vague idea of what was going on here > but >> am not sure and would appreciate input from anyone that knows more about >> Workhouses and medical matters. >> >> Bascially my impression is that she sold her furniture and gave up her > house >> in Kine Croft (which was an almshouse, and not her own) to pay her way in >> the workhouse where she could receive medical attention for some >> debilitating disease which sadly killed her a few months later. >> >> Is this likely to have been what happened? Can anyone explain what a cause >> of death of "Paralysis" means? >> >> Thanks >> >> >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > BERKSHIRE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > >