 The first superintendent was Dr William Charles Ellis, who in 1817 had been appointed superintendent to the newly purpose-built West Riding Pauper Lunatic Asylum at Wakefield.His wife, Mildred Ellis, held the post of matron at Hanwell (as she had at Wakefield) from the opening in 1831 until William Ellis' resignation in 1838.It was found essential for recovery that the patients should get out into full daylight for fresh air and exercise, so the ground floor wards had 'airing courts' which were shared by the other wards upstairs.