Hi LB,
I'd almost completely forgotten that the War Memorial stone is still within the Hospital grounds!
Thanks for putting that up, i hadn't known it was there, having not been behind that hedge that surrounds Birchwood.
a bomb that hit part of Severalls Hospital (the Building with the first floor on brick piers was the part hit and then re-built).
The bombed part was never rebuilt, only modified and consisted of 75% of the female epileptic blocks, a section of corridor and the officers laundry behind. A new verandah/balcony was added later and a wall inserted where the ward would have continued eastward. You can tell the modifications to the side as the windows and brickwork above is slightly different to those on the frontage. It was later the Phoenix centre and OT, later incorporating a staff nursery. Theres more on it here:
http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=2357
If memory serves me right, didn't it have a roof lantern half way along the ridge too?
There was indeed, (for ventilation rather than lighting) and was marked inside by a circular void in the centre of the hall ceiling. It probably contributed a chimney like effect when the hall burnt down. Heres it from the outside:
[lb=http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/imagehosting/179047c55f0a07337.jpg]
[/lb]
[lb=http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/imagehosting/179047c55f07c850b.jpg]
[/lb]
P.s. -incidentially, there is another Villa still open (Maple Villa), now called the Willows, I think, which is identical to Fernholme Villa.
These villas (male and female acute hospitals originally) are not so much identical, but mirror images of each other and both since extended:
[lb=http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/imagehosting/179047c55f0c47a78.jpg]
[/lb]
[lb=http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/imagehosting/179047c55f0f2633f.jpg]
[/lb]
Another 'pair' of wards were the social club and tamarisk villa, both temporary buildings probabaly built as convalescent villas (as at warley, built at the same time). Both have now gone. This was the social club/ male villa.
[lb=http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/imagehosting/179047c55f0dd1558.jpg]
[/lb]
The naming of the wards is rather confusing in places, what you call 'Willows' or 'Maple villa' was in fact Maplehurst Villa which became Willow House and more recently Maple and Cedar Wards as the PICU + LSU units. Fernholme Villa later became The Oakwood Centre containing Mirbeck and Durmast wards (both species of Oak). Birchwood Villa had been South Villa and like it's twin Orchard Villa, both were named after their locations in the grounds. Farm Villa was used for male patients working on the grounds and became Larch Villa, although it was originally the attendants hostel until the 'gamma building' was utilised for that purpose. Much of this is based upon information from the old ''Save Severalls' website.
Interestingly the original villas except Myland Court retained the original designation as the first letter of their identities:
Maplehurst -
Male acute villa
Fernholme -
Female acute villa
Chestnut - (Feeble minded)
Childrens villa
Ivy -
Infirmary block (for TB/Dysentery etc)
Iris -
Isolation block
Surely this isnt co-incidental.
Hope this is of interest,
Pete
