ABC of Chippenham: X-Ray

If anyone needs an X-Ray in Chippenham, then they go to our local hospital, St. Andrews aka Chippenham Community Hospital. Luckily NAH and I have only had to avail ourselves of this facility a couple of times between the two of us. If you click to enlarge the picture, you'll see the blue sign on the left is directing you to the X-Ray department.

Whilst I'm pleased I haven't had to go there that often, I'm also glad we have a small hospital in the town, where on the couple of occasions I've had to go to the minor injuries unit, my GP has been in attendance. When I've had to go to Bristol or Bath instead, I've hated the depersonalisation going to such a large facility brings, even though I know full well to have done so in Chippenham would be uneconomic.

However, in much earlier times no-one would have been glad to go to the pictured building as it was Chippenham's workhouse. Built in 1858-9, it would have been considered the place of last resort (and dread) for the poor and needy. If a man entered the workhouse, his family had to go with him. Life was harsh, the diet poor and all the able bodied were expected to work extremely hard for their watery porridge. Occupants were free to leave if conditions allowed e.g. work became available outside. However, many didn't and the sick and elderly often became confined to the infirmary until the end of their lives.

Families wouldn't be housed together: children were separated from their parents and the men from the women. Chippenham's building has two main wings, opposite each other (the above link has a map and plenty of extra photos showing the layout) and I imagine one housed the men and the other the women. The 1881 census shows there were 225 residents from a wide area in and around Chippenham.

I haven't been able to find out when the workhouse became our hospital, but as it would have been one the town's largest public buildings at the time and contained some medical facilities already, I wonder if there is some connection with the formation of the National Health Service (NHS) in the 1940s.

NB the links about Chippenham's workhouse are taken from a fascinating website which has lots of information about the general social history, politics, architecture and life of the workhouse.

This is for ABC Wednesday and forms the 24th of my themed posts about Chippenham.

Comments

  1. Roger Owen Green29 June 2011 at 10:41

    my first x-ray, other than my teeth, was in 1994, I believe, a tumble down a mountain.

    oh, your greeting ends w xxx; you're ahead of the game.

    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

    ReplyDelete
  2. petoskystone29 June 2011 at 12:31

    such a lovely building with so much despair in its' history!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Chubskulit Rose29 June 2011 at 19:55

    Such pretty structure!

    Please come and find out what the Letter X is at my page. Have a lovely day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lu29 June 2011 at 21:03

    Interesting - I didn't know that had been a workhouse.

    ReplyDelete
  5. JayLeigh29 June 2011 at 22:37

    The building looks so neat! It's so interesting to read about its history. I'm glad it's a hospital now.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wanda29 June 2011 at 23:09

    Beautiful Hospital...Very interesting read about the families that need to go there.

    This was a very informative "X" Post.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Meryl30 June 2011 at 04:21

    Pretty hospital!

    ReplyDelete
  8. VP30 June 2011 at 08:19

    Hi ABCers - I'm doing the rounds over at our Wednesday place :)

    Petoskystone - that's just it. It looks lovely doesn't it? But oh the heartache that was going on in there when it was first built :(

    Lu - I'd known for ages, but really had to dig deep to find anything online to support that knowledge as the books I have at home about Chippenham didn't make any reference to it at all. Thank goodness I found the workhouse website

    ReplyDelete
  9. Diana Studer30 June 2011 at 20:43

    We stayed in a former workhouse, converted to a modern hotel, in Wales. I remember windows VERY high up, and feeling, despite all mod cons, claustrophobic and in prison. Yours however has lovely large leaded glass windows. Not a 'typical' workhouse?

    ReplyDelete
  10. VP3 July 2011 at 09:21

    EE - I'd thought the layout was pretty typical, but maybe those windows are a bit 'friendlier' than usual. To my eyes it's a nice looking building, but I suspect that the older generations in Chippenham who remember its original purpose might think differently.

    ReplyDelete

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