Wednesday 25 September 2013

I told you I was ill!

One of my early blog posts concerned the absence from her employment of our 3xgreat grandmother, Caroline Kuhn. At the time, I wondered what she might have been doing that caused her to miss her work.

While the exact cause of her absence is still unknown, there is evidence that suggests that she was genuinely unwell.

The Journal of Accounts for Treatment of Patients1 at the Brisbane Hospital records that Caroline was hospitalised from 11 November to 28 November 1859. She was charged at the rate of one shilling and sixpence per day; at a time long before health insurance was widely available.

The facing page of the ledger was used by hospital officials to note when and how each patient's debt was settled. It appears to show that Caroline did not ever pay the £1-4-0 she owed. No doubt, Mr Bell stopped her pay while she was ill which would make finding such a sum nearly impossible.

Nevertheless, Caroline must have made a full recovery because she lived until 1906 and played her part in the development of our family history.

1Queensland State Archives Item ID2888, Journal (cash)

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