Hospitals in the United Kingdom

[Sparky53]

Apparently My Great Aunt Gladys Agnes Spark, VAD

Was a VAD Nurse at Durris Auxiliary Hospital, Kincardine Scotland during 1918 and 1919

Jane

[KONDOA]

SEAFORD MILTARY HOSPITAL

Must be somewhere in North Yorks area, seen on gravestone and mistaken for Seafood.

Roop

[eagleeye]

Highfields Hopsital, Liverpool

My Grandfather was wounded at Gallipoli and in hospital at Highfields Liverpool in October 1915

Rod

[rmtruby]

My great uncle spent some time at the Fulbourne Institute, just outside Cambridge. I'm assuming that he was receiving some medical treatment there. This was in the summer of 1915, before he had been posted abroad, so it is possible that he was there due to an injury sustained during training. I've tried to find out exactly what this place was and why he was there.

Thanks

Ray

[NedRutland]

Fulbourn (no final E) did have a VAD hospital at the Infant School so the Institute may be an annexe of that

http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Cambridgeshi...ADHospital.html

There was also a Mental Hospital or Asylum at Fulbourn from 1858

http://human-nature.com/free-associations/index.html

Looking for Fulbourn, I came upon this nice article on VAD (and VD) hospitals around Cambridge

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/archives/2...6/memories.html

Ned

[BeppoSapone]

I have just been looking at the "Australian Red Cross Wounded and Missing Enquiry Bureau files" which are online at the AWM site. These are described as "Digitised images of approximately 32,000 individual case files of Australian personnel reported as wounded or missing during the First World War."

The individual files contain statements from the last people to have seen the missing/dead man. These witesses were often in a hospital when they made their statements.

For example: in the case of 602 Private Frank Curtis of the 2nd Battalion a statement was made by a Private John Davidson, whose address in July 1916 is given as: "HM Queen Mary's Royal Naval Hospital, Southend-On-Sea"

Private Curtis is on Lone Pine Memorial.

Anyone with a vast amount of spare time could trawl these files and extract the names and locations of British hospitals

[robbie]

Hi Beppo,

Potentially extremely useful information. Are names listed alphabetically? and are men who survived their woundings listed in here, too? If so, I'd like to look for RJH listed below.

Robbie

[BeppoSapone]

Hi Beppo,

Potentially extremely useful information. Are names listed alphabetically? and are men who survived their woundings listed in here, too? If so, I'd like to look for RJH listed below.

Robbie

Robbie

I just had a quick look, but the only Haigh seems to be a Sydney Haigh of 51st Bn. Of course, there will be variants in spelling etc. Try searching the database yourself.

Here is the link:

http://www.awm.gov.au/database/1drl428.asp

Good luck!

[robbie]

Yes you're correct, thanks Beppo.

Robbie

[Andrew P]

I just had a quick look, but the only Haigh seems to be a Sydney Haigh of 51st Bn. Of course, there will be variants in spelling etc. Try searching the database yourself.

Sydney Haigh is actually one of the 3000 Fremantle soldiers I'm researching. He was a 34 year old Farmer from 34 Suffolk St Fremantle. His next of kin was his brother W Haigh.

I wonder if it's any relation to your Haigh Robbie?

While I'm in this topic, I haven't seen any mention of a military hospital in Fulham (though I might have missed it through the 9 pages of this thread).

I have a copy of a letter written by a soldier after he was evacuated sick from Gallipoli. He wrote it from Fulham military Hospital, which he said was a former workhouse. Does anyone have more info on this place?

Cheers

Andrew

[robbie]

Hi Andrew,

My grandad (below) did have a younger brother called Sidney Haigh, however, none of the family originated in WA as far as I know. Thanks anyway.

Robbie

[Tonym]

On the logical assumption that W W I Hospital Supply Depots were responsible in providing the necessary equipment etc. to the hospitals in their area does anybody have any information regarding who controlled these Supply Depots and who is the most likely to be able to identify the locations of the various depots? I have not been able to find anybody who can answer those questions, including The British Red Cross Archives. PLEASE!!!

Tonym

[stiletto_33853]

Two more pulled from a soldiers service records, one has been mentioned before but no address the second is a new one.

2nd General Hospital, Dyke Road, Brighton

French Convalesent Auxiliary Hospital, Kemptown.

Andy

[frev]

A few more hospitals I've come across for my Aussie soldiers - apologies if someone's already listed them:

One I listed in my last post - 3rd Southern General Hosp, Oxford

also has listings of:

3rd Southern Gen Hosp, Durham Buildings, Oxford &

3rd Southern Gen Hosp, Radcliffe Buildings, Oxford

1st Southern General Hospital (Monyhull Section), Birmingham

5th Southern General Hospital, Portsmouth

3rd London General Hospital, Wandsworth

4th London General Hospital, Denmark Hill

Bristol General Hospital

General Military Hospital, Colchester

Grove Military Hospital, Tooting

Ford Military Hospital, Plymouth

Bethnal Green Military Hospital

Bagthorpe Military Hospital, Nottingham

Princess Christian Hospital, Weymouth

Napsbury Hospital, St Albans

Cheers, Frev

[Guest]

I don't think that I've seen mentioned (apologies if they have been) four small hospitals in NE Scotland.

Turriff VAD Hospital

Fyvie VAD Hospital

Kinbroon Auxiliary Hospital

Forgue VAD Hospital

Of the four the hospital at Forgue in Aberdeenshire is the most obscure since "in spite of careful inquiry" no information on it made the 1924 War Book of Turriff. Of the others:

The Turriff Hospital was located in the United Free Church (now St Andrew's) Hall. There is a plaque commemorating it in the hall. It was opened on 30th January 1915 by Mrs Ainslie of Delgaty and the first 10 patients arrived that day.

The Fyvie Hospital was located in the Club Rooms in the village and at Fyvie Castle, home of Lord Leith (now a National Trust property).

The Kinbroon Auxiliary Hospital (also known as Rothienorman) was at Kinbroon House near Rothienorman, home of Mrs Abercromby of Kinbroon.

James

[Moonraker]

My list of hospitals in Wiltshire:

Tower House, Salisbury, opened Oct 11, 1914; next day, 6 soldiers from Codford Camp (then just tents) arrived with rheumatism and broken bones.

Grove Buildings, Mere

Figheldean House (overflow for Canadians, January 1915)

Cholderton (for servicewomen?)

Wilton House

Maiden Bradley (village hall, Duchess of Somerset's)

The Salisbury Journal of September 4, 1915 lists VAD hospitals at

Ramsbury vicarage

Tisbury vicarage

Dorset House, Trowbridge

Wingfield House, Trowbridge

Manor House, Potterne

Travancore House, Pewsey

Longleat

Charlton Park, Malmesbury

Town Hall, Corsham

Draycott House, Sutton Benger

Dispensing baths, Swindon

Red Cross, Salisbury

Infirmary, Salisbury

Melksham

Beltwood Dallery, Devizes

A Red Cross Report of the Joint War Committee lists "auxiliary home hospitals by county" and includes many of the above, plus

Chippenham

Bradford-on-Avon

Heywood House, Westbury

Avon View, Trowbridge

Beckford Lodge, Warminster

Rushmore, Tollard Royal

Bulford Manor (which had briefly been a Canadian hospital early in the war)

Bowood, near Calne

The Pavilion, Calne

Corsham

Wesley Hall,Marlborough

Heronslade, Warminster

Manor House, Potterne

Otrher hospitals:

Bemerton Lodge, near Salisbury (for officers with mental health problems)

Everleigh House or Manor (RAF hospital at war's end)

Just over the border in Hampshire was Rothsway House, Weyhill, which treated Australians.

The Daily Telegraph of March 18, 2000, had a large article about Hillcrest, a former WW1 hospital building from an unspecified Salisbury Plain camp, which had been moved to near Popham (about 6 miles south west of Basingstoke) and was for sale. Rumour had it that bids of £300,000 had been made. (It stands in a large field.)

Ablington House, Figheldean (Canadains early in the war)

All but the smallest army camps in Wiltshire had their own hospital, including

No 3 New Zealand General Hospital, Codford

Chisledon (1,360 beds; isolation huts created April 1916 because of measles outbreak; 1,100-bed "Bad Boys Camp" - VD cases)

Devizes, Tidworth, Bulford barracks

Fargo (near Larkhill - 1,200 beds)

Park House Camp (Australians)

Fovant/Hurdcott

Sutton Veny

Obviously the numbers of beds varied through the war, and the nationalities changed as British troops in Wiltshire gave way to ANZACs.

Edited 29 April , 2023 by Moonraker

[Tonym]

Can anybody offer any information on Edinburgh War Hospital . Have just done a sweep through the previous pages but, if its there, I missed it. I have a reference to a VAD Nurse who served there

[chrisharley9]

Have just seen a reference to 3 Base Hospital at Sheffield, no other details

All The Best

Chris

[tanks3]

My local home town Horncastle in Lincolnshire had a VAD hospital during 1914-1918. It was the local drill hall used while the territorials were away.

Whilst on the subject of hospitals, I have placed a request for any info/photos of Upton War Hospital in the photos section - any info grayefully received

Thanks

Alwyn

[Guest]

The recent reference to Bristol Mental Hospital being a Great War army hospital reinforced my impression that a number of mental hospitals seem to have been taken over for the use of Great War casualties.  What happened to the unfortunate patients of the hospitals - where they just turned out on to the streets?  I suspect that the needs of mental patients would have been seen as a relatively low priority compared to today.

I'm looking at the use of Cardiff City Mental Hospital in its role as the Welsh Metropolitan War Hospital and in answer to questions about what happened to the existing patients an array of things is the answer (at least in Cardiff).

1. Some were transferred to other, less accessible asylums;

2. A few stayes put to run the farm and the laundry;

3. Some were transferred to workhouses;

4. It appears that quite a number were discharged into the community as recovered from their conditions. Length of stay for people admitted in 1914 - 1915 was, on average, half that for people admitted in 1908 - 09.

If you check out Peter Barham's book "Forgotten Lunatics of the Great War" at least some people were discharged from lunatic asylums and enlisted.

[Guest Simon Bull]

The recent reference to Bristol Mental Hospital being a Great War army hospital reinforced my impression that a number of mental hospitals seem to have been taken over for the use of Great War casualties.  What happened to the unfortunate patients of the hospitals - where they just turned out on to the streets?  I suspect that the needs of mental patients would have been seen as a relatively low priority compared to today.

I'm looking at the use of Cardiff City Mental Hospital in its role as the Welsh Metropolitan War Hospital and in answer to questions about what happened to the existing patients an array of things is the answer (at least in Cardiff).

1. Some were transferred to other, less accessible asylums;

2. A few stayes put to run the farm and the laundry;

3. Some were transferred to workhouses;

4. It appears that quite a number were discharged into the community as recovered from their conditions. Length of stay for people admitted in 1914 - 1915 was, on average, half that for people admitted in 1908 - 09.

If you check out Peter Barham's book "Forgotten Lunatics of the Great War" at least some people were discharged from lunatic asylums and enlisted.

I suppose that for some who were discharged into the community this may have been something of a blessing in disguise.

Modern Mental Health legislation with the emphasis on the right of the patient to be discharged if not ill (or if not sufficiently ill for detention to be warranted) was brought in not only because of increasing awareness of broader issues about the liberty of the subject and human right but also because it was realised that there were many people who had been put into mental hospitals and then forgotten about. Lots of them were better but did not get discharged.

[Guest]

Further to my last posting I've uncovered a bit more information. In terms of people who were in mental hospitals one issue appears to be which asylum you were in. If you were in an asylum that never became part of the military system, i.e. remained purely as an asylum for the duration of the war, chances are you would find yourself suddenly inundated by transfers in from other asylums that were taken over by the military. One result of this appears to be considerable overcrowding. Carmarthen Asylum, for example, became overcrowded as a result of transfers from Cardiff. The late John Crammer wrote a paper entiled "Extraordinary deaths of asylum inpatients during the 1914-18 war." in a journal called Medical History (1992 vol 36 pp 430-41). In this he demonstrated that in Buckinghamshire Asylum the bread ration was reduced, inspections became less rigorous and the death rate rose considerably.

Ian

[Brian Buck]

My father's records show that in August/September 1916 he had influenza and was in Dublin Castle Red Cross Hospital and Temple Hill Auxilliary Hospital (Blackrock, Dublin). In February/March 1917 he was in Napsbury Hospital, St. Albans with 'I.C.T Rt. Hand' (does anyone know what this means?).

My uncle (4 Suffolk) was wounded at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle and was taken to Ashton-under-Lyne Hospital where he died. His son believed that he was taken there because it was thought he was from 1 Manchester, part of the same Jullundur Brigade.

[chrisharley9]

seen a reference to Red Cross war Hospital, Balham

All The Best

Chris

[truthergw]

A little bit of "folklore" from Dundee. Just after the 2nd War, I was told that, up to the time of the 1st War, a time gun was fired at midday in Dundee. I was told that the practice was stopped as it had a very bad effect on men, all wounded, some shellshocked, in hospital across the street. This was Dundee Royal Infirmary. If the story is true, it shows a greater concern for the men than usually shown by the authorities.