You printed a colourful photograph of a copper canister that contains ashes of a patient at the Oregon State Hospital, a facility for the mentally ill (6 September, p 51). It is one of hundreds of tins from as far back to the late 19th century, consisting of those who died in the hospital but whose remains were unclaimed.
The existence of this cache has been something of an embarrassment to state authorities for many years, despite ongoing efforts to locate family members interested in reclaiming the remains. Given that many date back a century or more, few of them can reasonably be expected to be claimed.
The number of the hospital's residents has declined precipitously during recent decades, with the advent of effective medications and community treatment programmes. Plans now are in train to demolish the century-old main building, which is no longer in use. A small portion ...
To continue reading this article, subscribe to receive access to all of newscientist.com, including 20 years of archive content.