Friends of North Walsham War Memorial Hospital

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Booklet’s window on hospital of the 1930s

14th April 2020 by Richard Batson

We love a bit of history at the Friends – particularly about our much-loved hospital.

And with hospitals in general currently in the nation’s hearts and minds during the coronavirus pandemic,it is a fitting time to remind us of health care from an earlier age, back in the 1930s.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

News footage is currently showing footage of hi-tech ventilators in intensive care units, and staff wearing protective gear.

But things were different – simpler but just as caring – back in 1937 as an official booklet from the time shows.

It was just 13 years after the hospital opened, built through a public appeal after the First World War to honour the local men who gave their lives.

Inside the plain fabric cover of the 1937 there are wonderful facts, figures and phrases that capture the hospital – including sentiment about why it was built in the first place.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
What could be more fitting…

“What could be more fitting than that the physical sacrifices and sufferings, so nobly endured, should be remember for all time through a hospital dedicated to the healing of diseases and the relief of human distress?” it proclaims.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
East side of the hospital 

The introduction recalls that 1919 meeting which voted unanimously to build the hospital for a cost of £4000.

It is not just in modern times when hospitals are built, then immediately found to be too small. It happened in the first year (1924-25) at North Walsham too where the “accommodation proved inadequate” and two extra beds were put in each of the public wards.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
Men’s general ward

In 1932 a Premises Improvement Fund was started and in 1935-36 the two main wards were extended, while a new emergency ward and children’s ward of three cots were added.

In 1937-38 there were 400 patients admitted, 300 operations and 128 x-rays carried out. The average stay was 13 1/3 days at a weekly cost of £2 13s 8d per bed.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
X-ray room

The booklet says the hospital’s location has “the additional advantage of the bracing airs of the East Coast” just a short distance away.

There are pictures of the wards and operating theatres of the time with their cast iron beds and basic facilities. But letters from grateful patients talk of them appreciating “happy and cheerful” stays.

 

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
Private ward
North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
Operating theatre

There is a list of officers and staff, including chairman Dr CD H W Page and matron Miss R J Sampson.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
Hospital officers

And some fabulous adverts show the traders of the time including Rackstraws “high class grocer and provision merchant”, Oliver and Griston surgical and medical suppliers, W F Leeder (printers, bookbinders and paper bag merchants), and Fayers “the hygienic bakers”.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet

We hope you enjoy looking back at the hospital’s earlier days. The Friends are continuing to provide support for the hospital with regular goody parcels for hard working staff during this unprecedented time, and will be tackling projects such as some new outside wall art and an overnight room for patients’ relatives once the Covid-19 crisis is over.  

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet
North Walsham War Memorial Hospital 1937 booklet cover

*This copy of the booklet is held at the Norfolk libraries service archive in Norwich. The publisher and copyright owner of the book is untraced but it appears to be by the hospital officials of the time, so we hope it is ok to publish a snapshot of it here, as a reminder of the hospital’s fascinating past and strong community support.

Filed Under: history Tagged With: North Walsham Hospital Friends

Laying the foundations for hospital’s proud history

5th September 2019 by Richard Batson

An historic moment for North Walsham War Memorial Hospital happened 100 years ago this month.

A foundation stone was laid which marked the start of a hospital which has brought treatment, care, and comfort to generations of patients – and a bevy of babies into the world.

North Walsham Hospital Friends foundation stone
Friends secretary Angie Batson recreates Lady Suffield’s laying of the hospital foundation stone 100 years ago. Picture: Richard Batson

The hospital’s Friends group has recreated the moment to remind people how vital public support was at the beginning of its proud history – and still is today.

Friends secretary Angie Batson taking the role of Lady Suffield who performed the ceremony on September 17 1919. Mrs Batson wore an Edwardian-style outfit supplied by The Community and Theatre Wardrobe at Sheringham.  

Recreating the laying of the foundation stone.

Friends chairman Keith Jarvis said: “We didn’t want this important centenary occasion to go un-noticed, so we thought we would make it happen again.

“The hospital was built using funds and land gifted by local people, after a public meeting earlier in 1919 voted unanimously to provide a hospital in memory of the men who gave their lives in the First World War.

“Although today’s rebuilt hospital is run by the NHS, it still has a big place in the hearts of local people because of the care it provides. And the Friends continue to rely on public support for funding the ‘extras’ the NHS cannot provide. So the bond between the hospital and the community is still strong today – which is something we want to celebrate. “

 

Work on the hospital did not start until 1923 while the funding was completed. It was opened in August 1924 by Princess Marie Louise. Over the years it has carried out minor operations, and provided post-operative and rehabilitation care – as well as a maternity unit.

It was demolished in 2011 to be replaced by a new unit the following year. The original site is now a wildflower meadow.

Over the past decade the Friends have provided “extras” worth around £400,000, ranging from a new training suite, and refit of the day room, to presents and carol singing to cheer up patients at Christmas.

FLASHBACK TO 1919

Edwardian VIPs wore their Sunday best for the foundation stone laying, a cutting from the Eastern Daily Press on September 18 1919 reported.

Ladies are seen sporting their best hats and long skirts, gentlemen a mixture of bowlers, trilbies and big caps.

Lady Suffield at the 1919 ceremony. Picture EDP news cutting

 

Lady Suffield did the honours with a silver trowel, and said simply: “I declare this stone to be well and truly laid, and I trust that the hospital which is to be erected on this site will have a very prosperous and successful future.”

Guests included war memorial committee chairman John Dixon, and high sheriff Mr F H Barclay.

A string of speakers stressed that the hospital aimed to complement rather than rival the Norfolk and Norwich, and the crowd was told that it would cost £4678. Prayers were said and schoolchildren sang a hymn. The day finished with a tennis tournament which raised £5 for hospital funds.

Filed Under: Events, history Tagged With: North Walsham Hospital Friends

Friends work, and hospital history, on show at archive event

15th August 2019 by Richard Batson

The history of North Walsham War Memorial Hospital, and the work of its current day Friends, were showcased at a major community archive event in the town.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Friends archive exhibition
The Hospital Friends stand at the community archive exhibition

The Friends manned a stand at the three day exhibition at the Atrium.

It showed pictures of the old hospital, its First World War predecessor run by Red Cross volunteers, along with information about the Friends’ work.

Friends members enjoyed chatting to visitors, who were interested in the hospital’s modern day role, and how the Friends support it – channelling public funds into “extras” to enhance the lives of patients, visitors and staff.

Thanks to the North Walsham and District Community Archive for inviting us to take part.  

Filed Under: Events, history Tagged With: North Walsham Hospital Friends

Day room revamp opens door to nostalgia and woodland

15th November 2018 by Richard Batson

Visitors to North Walsham hospital’s day room can take a trip back in time or into a leafy woodland glade thanks to the efforts of its Friends and public generosity.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp. Friends and ward sister Kerry Howarth by the new woodland wall mural. Picture; Richard BatsonA £20,000-plus revamp of the room at War Memorial Hospital has just been completed.

It features a full wall forest mural and a selection of archive photos showing the historic hospital and the town centre.

It was paid for using donations made to the hospitals League of Friends, who provide “extras” that are beyond the health service budget. Friends members got a glimpse of the room’s facelift after their annual general meeting.

Chairman Keith Jarvis said: “We hope the room will provide a homely, relaxing place for patients and their families to spend time together.

“The woodland wall is very tranquil, and the old pictures should provide a conversation piece and a reflection of the proud nursing heritage we have here in North Walsham.”

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp. Hospital Friends look at the display of archive pictures. Picture: Richard BatsonThe archive pictures – a selection of which are below – were provided by the North Walsham and District Community Archive.

 

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp. Save Our Baby Beds campaign 1985. Picture; North Walsham and District Community Archive.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp
North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp. Archive pic of a ward in the original hospital. Picture: North Walsham and District Community Archive.

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp

North Walsham War Memorial Hospital Day Room revamp. Archive pic of 1984 tree planting by the Friends, led by chairman Brian Elliott. Picture: North Walsham and District Community ArchiveThe project also includes a new television, blinds, flooring and furniture. It is also planned to renew furniture and provide raised flower beds in the garden patio area outside the day room, for people to enjoy in good weather.

A formal opening of the new-look day room will be is planned in the coming months.

During the previous year the Friends received £2354 in donations and £2280 in lieu of flowers at funerals, the annual meeting heard.

The group spent around £11,000 on buildings and equipment ranging from soundproofing a training room to a microwave oven and fan. The Friends also organise Christmas carol singing and gifts.

Chairman Keith Jarvis, secretary Angela Batson and treasurer Carol Willgress were re-elected at the 69th annual meeting.

Mr Jarvis reported that the Friends had also helped provide replica flags to remember the town’s two First World War Red Cross hospitals which nursed injured troops.  They were also pleased to be town mayor Barry Hester’s nominated civic charity this year.

For other archive pictures – and updates on the Friends work – also see our Facebook page.  

Filed Under: Committee, Events, Fundraising, history Tagged With: Keith Jarvis, North Walsham Hospital Friends

Snapshots of North Walsham’s Great War Hospitals – and the people who worked in them

25th June 2018 by Richard Batson

The Friends’ recent involvement with replica flags for North Walsham’s Red Cross Hospitals from the First World War has prompted a lot of interest.

Many people did not know about the vital wartime role played by those temporary hospitals – and has sent some folk delving back into history to find out what those

They include Friends supporter Mary Seward whose ancestry research has given us a few brief snapshots into the people who worked there.

FACTS

There were 3000 Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) hospitals – temporary units set up in locations varying from town halls and schools to private houses.

North Walsham had two on the Mundesley Road at Wellingtonia (still a residence) and Lower House (now redeveloped as Greenway Close).

 

Soldiers and staff outside the Red Cross hospital in Mundesley Road. Credit North Walsham Community Archive.

 

The government paid £1 4 shillings and sixpence a week, or £63 a year, to cover hospital treatment, food and other costs.

The auxiliary hospitals were manned by a mix of volunteers and paid staff headed by a commandant  (a kind of chief executive), a matron directing nursing staff, quartermaster dealing with provision and local VAD members trained in first aid and home nursing.

Recovering – patients and staff at the Red Cross hospital in Mundesley Road. Credit North Walsham Community Archive.

 

Local members of the medical profession did a large amount of voluntary work in these hospitals. In 1917 the War Office decided that some payment should be given to doctors providing help.

Local women from the neighbourhood volunteered part-time, although it was often necessary to supplement voluntary work with some paid roles, such as cooks.

Auxiliary hospitals also drew on members who were too old or young for work in a military hospital. Many were unable to leave home for six months due to family commitments, but were willing to sign a three-month hospital contract.

They also attracted members who found work in a military hospital too strenuous and others who ‘preferred to be head cook in a small auxiliary hospital to assistant cook in a large military hospital’.

Famous volunteers included superstar singer Clara Butt and author Agatha Christie – who has other links with North Walsham, staying at what is now the Beechwood Hotel. Agatha helped at the VAD Hospital in Torquay.

Among those listed as working at North Walsham were:

Edith Wilkinson Carter – Acting commandant at Wellingtonia in January 1915. A note says it had 15 beds and handled 475 patients before it closed on January 21 1919. She was awarded the Royal Red Cross in 1918, which was presented by the King. Edith was born in May 1865, and died aged 90 in 1996. Husband Cecil was a doctor.

Christiane Maud Davies – a cook at the hospital in 1915-16 as a Red Cross Volunteer. Born March 1883 in Wakefield and died 1963 in North Walsham. Her sister Madeline was also in general service at the hospital.

Constance Empson – born in North Walsham in 1872, the daughter of local solicitor William Empson. Records show she clocked up 2360 hours of service. She was a member of the well- known Walker family who co-ran Ebridge Mill with the Cubitts. Constance died in December 1928 aged 57. Her granddaughter Celia Scott recently made a donation to the hospital friends in recognition of her connections – and the family still has the treasured heirloom of an engraved topaz brooch thanking her for her hospital work.

Constance Empson (Walker) who worked at the North Walsham VAD hospital. Pic supplied by family.

Ellen May Howes – who worked in a “general surgical, eyes and mess” and earned £20 a year for her labours. Born 1891 and died 1983. She lived in Dublin, France and The Rookery at North Walsham.

Mary Wiles – a head teacher an elementary school who did general nursing duties between April and September 1917. She lived in Lime Tree Road.

Mildred Emmeline Wool – a Lancashire lass, who was a nurse at the hospital from 1918-19 and died in the town’s cottage hospital in July 1950.

Other Red Cross volunteers lived in town but worked elsewhere. They included:

Florence Wilkinson – who lived at The Oaks and is listed as quartermaster at the Palace in Peterborough, and Institute in Lyghe in Kent. Her duties included “nursing, secretarial and quartermaster” tasks including meeting ambulance trains at Peterborough station.

  • If you have any stories and photographs about family members who worked at the Red Cross hospitals – or the War Memorial “Cottage” unit – please contact the Friends as we would love to have them for our archive, to share with others interested in the town’s nursing heritage.
  • But remember the Friends main role is all about the present and future – funding improvements for the benefit of patients, families and staff to make their stay at our wonderful hospital as comfortable as possible.
  • To support our work see the contacts pages on our website.

 

 

Filed Under: Fundraising, history Tagged With: First World War, North Walsham Hospital, North Walsham Hospital Friends, Red Cross

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Chairman

Keith Jarvis
15 Primrose Close
Trunch NR28 0QH

Tel: 07788 889853

Secretary

Angela Batson
30 Beechlands Park
Southrepps NR11 8NT

Tel: 07775 557381

Treasurer

Carol Willgress
28 Beechlands Park
Southrepps NR11 8NT

Tel: 01263 833733

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© 2021 · Friends of North Walsham War Memorial Hospital, Yarmouth Road, North Walsham, Norfolk NR28 9AP. Tel: 01692 408000
Registered charity number 298857
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