The Tofts: A Private Psychiatric Hospital in the Reigns of Edward VII and George V

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this paper is to describe ‘The Tofts’, a private psychiatric hospital in the reigns of Edward VII and George V.

Conclusions: An addendum to the history of psychiatry, in Australia is the conduct or treatment for the mentally ill in private hospitals during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This paper describes one such small private hospital in Victoria, called The Tofts, and its founder, patients and treatment methods employed.