When was tiverton hospital built

It was used as a hospital for the elderly in the second half of the 20th century. Passmore, A. The principal building on the site originated as the Tiverton Union Workhouse, which was designed by the partnership of Sir George Gilbert Scott and William Moffatt in —8, and later altered when converted in use as a hospital.

The Twyford Building is a now-detached late 19th-century infirmary block that incorporates fabric from the workhouse. The Twyford Building has been the subject of two architectural studies. It was assessed as part of a Heritage Statement prepared by Heritage Vision in April , and was the subject of a comprehensive historic building survey carried out by Exeter Archaeology in March Passmore and Steinmetzer The present investigation augments the recording carried out in Very little previously unrecorded historic fabric was exposed as a result of the works.

Throughout the building lath and plaster was noted in wall partitions and ceilings. This observation confirm that all of the ground-floor rooms in the central range were heated.

In the western room of the central range the speech and language therapy room a slate slab apparently forming the hearth of the first-floor fireplace was exposed. This was offset from the projecting masonry of the chimney stack on both floors and it is possible that a further hearth slab has been removed. It seems likely therefore that both large first-floor rooms wards were heated.

Comments The building had been thoroughly surveyed and recorded in The few observations of newly-exposed historic masonry mainly relate to the presence of blocked fireplaces and provide evidence for heating of all the primary rooms in the central range that originally formed part of the Tiverton Union Workhouse.

Unknown , , Plan of Tiverton Cartographic. Minchinton, W. It was built as a workhouse in in the classical style, with plain blocks, small windows, and a central octagon with clock tower. Turton, S. Morrison, K. Main block is three storey with four storey central octagonal tower, the diagonal sides projecting slightly and having gable pediments. Octagonal lantern in centre. Entrance porch on south side is of wood with round-headed window and pediment.

Entrance block has one storey pavilions at sides and tall central arch with wrought iron gates. Lodge in similar style and material. Gaimster, M. Collings and A. Passmore undertook assessment and building survey which demonstrated that most of the fabric of the Tiverton Union Workhouse, designed by Sir G.

Scott and William Moffatt and built in —38, survives intact. Part of it was incorporated in an infirmary of — Evidence was found indicating the position of the preceding Tiverton Workhouse, designed by John Abbott and built in —, none of which stands citing Exeter Archaeology Report The Tiverton Union Workhouse was constructed by the partnership of Sir George Gilbert Scott and William Moffatt in , on the site of an earlier workhouse built in , but has experienced much alteration since then when in use as a hospital.

The layout of the workhouse is comparable to other early workhouses designed by Scott and Moffat, comprising a square plan with a tall central range and lower external ranges around four courtyards.

It was extended in the late 19th century and in was acquired by the newly formed National Health Service and became Belmont Hospital. The historic buildings were retained, later augmented by further buildings outside the present site. The interior was altered to form wards etc and the infirmary range was subsequently converted to provide other health services.

Most of the original fabric survives, although some buildings in the north range have been lost and the eastern part of the southern range was demolished in the s to make way for a car park. The surviving administration rooms in the south block which fronts the main entrance to the complex are constructed of finer ashlar sandstone with breccia for the detailing and this fine detail is also seen in the lodge to the west.

Most of the windows and external doors have been replaced. Archaeological evaluation showed that the workhouse was completely demolished. A number of pits and a large basement-type feature were found within the gardens of the workhouse. The finds, which included a small pair of scissors, date mainly to the period The pottery appears to comprise domestic personal items and the lack of imported and decorated items is perhaps in keeping with the use of the site as a workhouse.

See report for full details. Belmont Hospital. Workhouse, now in use as hospital with clinics. Rebuilt to the designs of Scott and Moffat, considerable later alterations including some demolition. Materials: local purple stone, some snecked, some rubble with red sandstone lintels to the windows; slate roofs; stacks with glazed cream brick shafts. Plan: the main block, on a west east axis, incorporates a central tower and has rear left and right wings comprising a house north-east wing and a single storey service wing north west.

A rear centre single-storey wing was the kitchen. On the south side, one of the single storey entrance pavilions survives, parallel to the main range and linked to it by a single storey front wing. The single storey front wing to the east survives but the pavilion has been demolished, as have the entrance gates. Rear of the main block is a separate range, said to have been the casual wing for temporary workhouse users.

The courtyard between the casual wing and main range includes a detached laundry and a later boiler house excluded from the listing.

A pedestrian gateway and small lodge at the entrance from Water Lane are separately listed. Exterior: 1 The Main Range. The range terminates in wider blocks at either end with small wings to the west and east. The windows are mostly 3-light metal casements but the rear of the tower retains a sash window.

Modest 4-panel door into tower with remains of timber pedimented pentice over - the list description refers to an entrance porch with a round-headed window and pediment - presumably the pedimented pentice is all that remains. To the rear, the single storey kitchen has a series of vents and a louvred lantern along the ridge.

The rear right north west wing incorporates what may have been the overseer's house, which faces west into the courtyard and has a roof hipped at the north end. The main workhouse followed Scott and Moffatt's typical design. It had a single-storey front block with a central entrance archway. Only the western entrance block survives.

To its rear was the main accommodation block at the centre of which was located the master's quarters, with accommodation for males to one side, and females at the other. Tiverton main block and kitchen from the north, Tiverton infirmary block from the north-west, The workhouse site later became Belmont Hospital which has now closed. At the time of writing, the site is awaiting redevelopment.

The Tiverton union operated a children's home at Shillingford in the parish of Bampton, then another at Ayshford. The following information on the homes was very kindly provided by staff at the Devon Record Office.

It is probable that the Shillingford home opened not long before June 30th, , as on that date, ten children from the home were admitted to the nearby Shillingford and Petton Primary School, and another eight were admitted in July of the same year.

Although no union minutes survive from this date, the admission register and log book for the school allow the early history of the home and the names of some of its occupants to be reconstructed. All the children except the youngest who were admitted in had previously attended Elmore School in Tiverton. This appears to have been the school which children living at the workhouse in Tiverton normally attended, before Shillingford Home was opened.

Thus, children of school age who lived in Tiverton workhouse in the early 20th century can be identified from the Elmore School admission registers. The guardian of the children admitted to Shillingford and Petton School was E. Knight, who presumably ran the Shillingford Home. Other children were admitted as they reached school age, and thus the names of all of the children at the Home who were of school age while it remained open can be identified in the admission register.

The school log book, kept by the headteacher, contains entries recording the admission of the ten children from the home on 30th June and the admission of seven girls and one boy on 21st July , but their names are not mentioned.

The inspector for religious instruction visited the school on 29th September and in his report he wrote that 'The attendance has been much increased by the presence of children from a "home" established in the village by the Guardians of the Tiverton Union.

It was a pleasure to see these children so thoroughly happy. In , the surviving minutes of the Tiverton Poor Law Union Guardians begin, and contain regular reports from the children's home, although it was never stated where the home was and the children living there were not mentioned by name. In and , the Guardians were occupied with buying Ayshford Home in Uffculme and making it ready for use as a new children's home. There was no minute to state that the children's home had moved, but at the meeting on 30th October , there was a minute stating that it was 'Resolved that not more than two inmates of the Workhouse who are relatives of children at the Ayshford Home, be allowed to visit their children in each month.

On 31st October , the school log book noted that 'Owing to the closure of the Shillingford Children's Home, 26 children will be leaving this school this afternoon to attend the Uffculme school. Note: many repositories impose a closure period of up to years for records identifying individuals. Before travelling a long distance, always check that the records you want to consult will be available.

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