# An Ellerman Funnel, Hospital ward and Petty Officer c1925.



## treeve (Nov 15, 2005)

As moderator on Picture Penzance, a local website with all manner of personal and historic photographs being posted, we were presented with this photograph by John Gendall from his collection and I have been attempting to discover more about this photograph; I am fairly sure that it is of a ward in Penzance, date around 1920-1930. During WWI, there was a Royal Naval Base in Penzance. Therefore I suspect that an appropriation was made of a hospital/building/ward for the purpose of attending to wounded. We know there was an Infirmary, which later became the West Cornwall Hospital, and that there was the Bolitho Convalescent Home, also the VAD Hospital in Morrab Road. I suspect that this is a view in the West wing of the Lariggan Bolitho Convalescent Hospital. My first thought on the patients is that they are mainly leg injuries, there is a child on a cot, clearly placed there for the purpose of the camera. There are visitors, the hospital staff are all present, the windows are well and truly open - Matron deciding that "good sea air does you good". The nurses are wearing an anchor on their pinafores. The walls are decorated with mistletoe and holly; there are lifebuoys, one which can be seen is HMS ....ST, which I thought originally to be QUEST, but now know that to be incorrect. It could perhaps be HMS Conquest, which suffered attack in Lowestoft in 1916. There are also two flags on that lifebuoy, the right one is a blue ensign. Other actual flags in the ward include the Jack and the White Ensign; The patient in the blue cap has been identified by someone as being a Petty Officer; Matron appears to be holding a dog. There is an officer in the corner, in uniform and cap. The patient next to him looks really unwell. But he is reaching to adjust his cap? The way the light enters the windows and falls in to the room encourages me to believe this is a first floor ward. Having written to the Royal Free Hospital Archives, for advice on nurses, and patient attire (I am intrigued at the starched caps they are wearing, including the child)the dates were confirmed. Please could anyone offer any suggestions or advice as to the men, and the enigmatic lifebuoy and its legend? I am also intrigued by the checquered flag? On the right, is clearly a funnel which is an Ellerman, set on a mock up of a bridge, with masts and ratlines to the beds. I am placing the whole picture and splitting it to show more detail.
Best Wishes, Raymond
http://picturepenzance.co.uk


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## benjidog (Oct 27, 2005)

Raymond,

I have no real knowledge but offer some thoughts:

1. Could it be an earlier photo showing casualties of during or immediately after WW1 rather than 1925? Could be some kind of morale booster to show how "our lads" are being looked after.

2. The idea of having a dog in a hospital intrigues me given all the hoohaa about how clean hospitals were when run by matrons. So that suggests to me a convalescent home rather than a hospital - you would expect such rules to be relaxed there.

Very intriguing and I hope you get more information.

If you want to send me scans of these in higher definition I will see what I can do to enhance them - though maybe you have done this yourself already. Let me know by PM if I can help.

Regards,

Brian


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## treeve (Nov 15, 2005)

Thanks Brian ... we are intending getting a higher def scan. The board over the patient on the extreme left - to my eyes - reads to include PENZANCE, CALDWELL and BOLITHO. Oliver Caldwell was the architect (James his brother was Mayor), and the hospital was financed by the Bolitho family. I may of course be seeing what I think should be there. I was told that the nurse uniform here should date after 1919 up until 1930 or so, and so my middle for diddle was 1925. There are so many clues here it is niggling me as to why it is so very hard to put it all together. Th eone thing that is concrete is the Ellerman funnel, whichever branch that might be. Best Wishes, Raymond


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## Santos (Mar 16, 2005)

I have read of a Sir John Ellerman Hospital which treated people in WW1 and after for burns etc, could it be this. The Sir John Ellerman Foundation I think, is still about today, but I could be wrong.

Chris.


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## treeve (Nov 15, 2005)

Thanks Chris. I need to look into any possiblity at the moment; the patients appear to all have leg injuries to my inexperienced eyes; and the fact that there is a child in the ward (albeit placed there especially for the photo) is odd to say the least. I am also wondering why the other references to RN. I will send the picture to the Foundation and see what they can add. All the best, Raymond


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## benjidog (Oct 27, 2005)

The John Ellerman Hospital was in Regents Park London according to this URL: http://rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk/data/VOLUME058-1917/page188-volume58-17thmarch1917.pdf. It only gets three hits on Google - the others appear to be about facial surgery - sounds like an early plastic surgery hospital set up to deal with injured servicemen from WW1. 

Whether this has anything to do with Raymond's photo is anyone's guess but there is a reference to a marriage at the hospital in the URL.

I guess there is no reason why someone in Cornwall could not have been at this hospital and taken the photo home after discharge so it may not be a local thing to Cornwall at all.

Regards,

Brian


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## treeve (Nov 15, 2005)

What a splendid piece of detective work, Brian. And the description of the decoration of the ward shows it was not unusual for such events. If it was in The John Ellerman Hospital then that would seriously explain the funnel. Thank you, Best Wishes, Raymond


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## welshblodwen (May 21, 2011)

Hi, I've only just joined the forum. In researching my family history I've found that a 2nd Lieut Leslie Phelps who married into my family (he married Elizabeth Maude Willis) died at Ellerman's Hospital Regents Park in London in 1918. As far as we can make out he sustained injuries in France and was brought to Ellerman's hospital because he was an officer. It's now St John's Lodge on the Inner Circle of Regents' Park and is owned by the Sultan of Brunei's brother. The gardens are open to the public. There's more info on the website 'lost hospitals of london'.

I'd be interested in any information you have on the hospital. Thanks!


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## Dickyboy (May 18, 2009)

The chap right at the back, in the middle, with the cap on (In the right hand Picture) Could he possibly be in a St Johns Ambulance uniform? Just a thought....


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