Whitley Hospital

1988 photo of Whitley Hospital It has been mentioned several times on the "Polio" thread

I remember it well. My grandmother was in there for a week or so in the early 80s. She died in 1984, aged 97.

Midland Red, looks a bit different to 1936.

Is it just called Whitley Hospital now. It was called Whitley Isolation Hosp. when my son was born - 1968.

It was Whitley Isolation Hospital, built in 1934 It closed in 1988

Dreamtime, I was in there 35/6 time, they came to fumigate my room, but mum wasn't in so they fumigated my sister's room.

Thanks you lads. Fortunately my son was only in for two days - age two weeks. A bit scary but a false alarm. You tend to go into panic mode as soon as they mentioned the Isolation Hosp.

Dreamtime, in the thirties it was mainly kids. I can't remember what the disease was that most kids caught in the thirties, and they came and fumigated your room, but I can still remember they gave me a sandwich and half a plum and made me eat it, when we had two plum trees at home absolutely loaded and I was sick of them.

Hi all I had an aunt "Ella Townsend" sadly no longer alive, who was a specialist isolation nurse who served at Whitley right up until it closed. She was nursing way past her normal retirement age, such was the shortage of these skills.

Hi All. Hope everyone is well. After a very unsettled life I am finally back on line. My son has been building me a bungalow but I have spent the last 10 months finishing it, at least I am in. Could not resist this topic as it left such a memory in a young brain. 1953, I was 5. Reclining on the settee covered in a blanket and playing with my clockwork train set one night, a knock came on the front door. Two men in white came in and dragged off into the back of a van [Ambulance], my destination being Whitley Hospital. That was a shock to my system, never to recover. I was placed in an isolation room with a pot under the bed, that pot came in handy later. There was a bed, a window and a door with a round piece of glass in it. I was dumped in that room, no smiles, no explanation and told to stay in bed until the morning. I was five, I cried bitterly all night. I cannot remember every day but I remember the food, mashed potato and a mountain of boiled white cabbage, the cabbage going straight into that pot under my bed. When the nurse came back for the plate she remarked how well I had eaten, until she found the pot. After that the nurse stood over me while I ate every meal. As a child I would eat almost all food as I liked greens, the exception being white cabbage. Every day, yuk. At night time me mum and dad came but could only wave at me through the glass porthole in the door, which was only large enough for one head at a time, so I cried again because they did not take me home when they left. Isolation lasted 1 week, the nurse said one day, "A treat today, your mum and dad are coming and you can watch for them". My bed was pushed out onto a large balcony overlooking the entrance [I think]. The balcony ran the entire length of the wards. I was there all day in the bitter cold, down the other end of the balcony all the beds and children were together, whooping it up at a party but I was not allowed because I was still in isolation. I was in Whitley for two weeks, the most miserable time of my life. I have been in hospital quite a few times since but that hospital seemed to have the most unsmiling, uncaring, inhumane staff you could hope for - OR, as I get older, maybe wiser, was their uncaring attitude because of not getting to close to children who might not leave that hospital. I like to think so. After my stint in prison, me mum & dad took me home, they had thrown my beloved train set away but a brand new electric train was wizzing around the track on the dining table, All was forgiven. Oh, forgot, I was in for suspected mumps, false alarm!!!!!

I was admitted to Whitley Isolation Hospital as a very young child. My abiding memory is of my parents and relatives staring through the 'porthole' that scrutiny describes. I cannot remember anything else apart from it was thought I had meningitis, but it turned out to be mumps!

Welcome back scrutiny, how nice to be receiving your posts again. You have a lot of time to make up for.

Yes, welcome back, scrutiny - so glad you're back with us Great story, by the way

Couldn't agree more, welcome back, your story made me smile (at least about the cabbage!)