St Hilda's Hospital Manor House, H'pool Sept 09

St Hilda’s Hospital, Hartlepool was situated on the Headland. It was founded over 700 years ago. Records of a Friary go back to 1258. Franciscan monks treated the sick in both the Friary and their own homes. The Friary was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1546. The Manor House, which is still standing, also known as the Friary, was built in 1605. During the early years of the Poor Laws, in the early 1800s, the Friary was used as a workhouse and also cared for sudden illnesses in the town. St Hildas Hospital (now long gone apart from the Manor House).
The Hospital was expanded so and so untill its closure in 1984. This section is all that remains. Unfortunatly, i dont have the power to slide through bricks, neither does my new (to me) 20D! I'm sure i read somewhere that its a consecrated site and that there is ancient laws that protect it. It makes me wonder why the hospital was demolished around this section. More info and pictures can be seen here.http://portcities.hartlepool.gov.uk/server.php?show=ConNarrative.113&chapterId=288


All that remains...


I believe in the days of the hospital, this was the front.




The Front, in the days of the Friary.


As you can see from this photo, the priory was sandwiched in the middle of all the other buildings.
Photo from the Port Cities website.

Thanks,

Jack

It is certainly strange that its all gone except that section.

Interesting report!

That really is a weird one, but I like it a lot. No inside shots?

Black Shuck said:

That really is a weird one, but I like it a lot. No inside shots?

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All bricked up tight

Krypton said:

All bricked up tight

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Kango-Hammer job then
I doubt there will be much in there anyway. If there is it will be odd bits of rotten chairs etc.

Passed this before a few times and wondered what it was thanks for the info.

I heard there was a tunnel into this

There is a whole series of tunnels under the Headland but no way into them anywhere. The only known entrance is supposedly bricked up in the cellar of the cosmopolitan but it's believed that there is a whole network of them under the Headland.

yeah, I'd heard that too.

Has anyone had a poke in the sewers down that way,there will be a way to those tunnels somewhere....

There is various culverts more towards the beach around steetly but i think those are two far around. Yes i need to have a look in the cellar of the Cos. Maybe something in St Hildas Church. Pilot Pier? That funny looking door at the paddling pool...

the landlady of the Cosmo said its bricked up,I'm sure if you ask her nicely she'll let you have a look down.

I'd be suprised if theres not a simple way in....just need to find it!

I'd say the culverts round near Steetley are certainly too far around the coast to be linked into the network under the Headland. Also, the door near the paddling pool is a pretty recent thing as well which is used to keep equpiment inside of it. However, it has been built into what was originally a small tunnel but I don't know how far in that actually went or still goes.

On the fish sands there is a closed up arch right beside the one that is still in use. You can see it on this picture:



There is still a wooden beam set into the wall from this and there used to be a room which was behind that archway although no obvious tunnels from behind that point.

I still think that the best bet of finding an entrance to this thing would be inside St Hildas Church itself.

Poolie_Girl said:

I'd say the culverts round near Steetley are certainly too far around the coast to be linked into the network under the Headland. Also, the door near the paddling pool is a pretty recent thing as well which is used to keep equpiment inside of it. However, it has been built into what was originally a small tunnel but I don't know how far in that actually went or still goes.

On the fish sands there is a closed up arch right beside the one that is still in use. You can see it on this picture:

There is still a wooden beam set into the wall from this and there used to be a room which was behind that archway although no obvious tunnels from behind that point.

I still think that the best bet of finding an entrance to this thing would be inside St Hildas Church itself.

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Oh how i love the Croft!!! What about the cos?