Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies
Record types
- Administrative
- 1893 - 1970
- General
- 1893 - 1970
- Finance
- 1932 - 1941
Finding aids
- Finding aids
- Brief guide (BG), Catalogue
- Location
- At Repository (AR)
- Details
- At Repository:CAT: HV1
Hospital
Bishops Stortford and District Hospital
Last updated .
Important information
Information about this hospital might be outdated.
Details
- Previous Names
- Bishops Stortford Cottage Hospital (1895 - 1901)
- Bishops Stortford Hospital (by 1914 - c.1948)
- Address
- Rye Street, Bishops Stortford, CM23 2NB
- Foundation Year
- 1895
- Status
- Closed (since 1985)
Administrative Authorities
- Regional Board (1948-1974)
- North East Metropolitan
- Management Committee (1948-1974)
- Hertford No. 1 Group
- Regional Authority (1974-1982)
- North East Thames
- Regional Authority (Post-1982)
- North East Thames
- District Authority (1974-1982)
- Harlow
- District Authority (Post-1982)
- West Essex () Essex and Herts ()
- Pre-1974 County
- Hertfordshire
- Post-1974 County
- Hertfordshire
- Post-1996 County
- Not applicable
Status
- Pre-1948
- Voluntary
- Post-1948
- NHS
Type
- Pre-1948
- General
- Post-1948
- Acute
Other information
In August 1892 a man suffered a serious accident in Bishops Stortford, and because there were no hospital facilities in Bishops Storford, he had to be taken to Cambridge, a distance of some twenty-six miles. The jouney proved to be too long and he died on the way. Mr Bartle Frere, one of the local landowners, was so appalled by this that he decided to establish a hospital in Bishops Stortford itself. He died in 1893, before he had time to put his plan into action, but his son and daughter carried on with the project. Bishops Stortford Cottage Hospital was opened on 26 January 1895 by the Bishop of St Albans and the first patient was admitted on 4 February. The hospital consisted of a two storey building, with a ward of four beds on each floor, an isolation ward with one bed, a small operating room, and living quarters for the matron and nurses. On 27 November 1897, a meeting was held which decided to change the name of the hospital from ?Bishops Stortford Cottage Hospital to Bishops Stortford Hospital, as it was felt that the latter would be more prestigious. In 1898 a new general ward was added to the ground floor and some more rooms on the first. In 1902 the staff increased from one matron and a probationer to a matron, a staff nurse, a nurse and one probationer. In 1912 a new wing was built bringing the total accommodation up to twelve beds and one cot. In 1920 the hospital was given X-ray equipment. The children's ward was built in 1925 and in 1927 the grounds were extended and the men's ward enlarged. A contributory scheme, by patients to the hospital, was established in 1927. On 15 May 1929, the new nurses home opened and in 1936 the hospital became an official school of nursing. On 5 July 1948 control of the hospital passed to the Minister of Health and the hospital became a part of the Hertfordshire and Essex General Hospital.