Hospital Arrangements

Men with recruiting poster outside Sandy Town Hall, c.1916 [Z50/142/478]

Tuesday 30th March 1915: The County Director for the Bedfordshire Voluntary Aid Detachments has written to Eastern Command explaining that a number of hospitals which were said in September 1914 to be available for casualties from overseas can no longer be used for that purpose. The list and the reasons for the withdrawal of these buildings from the list are as follows:

Cardington Parish Room: A present occupied as billets for the Irish Horse.

Eaton Socon Hospital: At present filled up with convalescents from Cambridge.

Grafton Rooms, Bedford: At present used as an Officers’ Mess for one of the Battalions stationed in this town.

Kent House, Bedford: Not available now.

Biggleswade Hospital: This hospital has done excellent work for six months; but work had to cease as the masons required the buildings for their dinners. The A.D.M.S. (Colonel Murray) states that another V.A.D. Hospital is not necessary.

Ampthill Hospital: This V.A.D. has formed a hospital for the troops stationed in Ampthill Park.

Dunstable Hospital: This hospital is full of sick from the neighbouring troops.

Wardown House, Luton: This hospital has troops from the neighbourhood.

Town Hall, Sandy: This building is occupied as billets by the National Reserve.

Corn Exchange, Leighton Buzzard: This building has been used as a hospital, but is now being used as a Government factory.

Source: WW1 Nursing Records [WW1/NU4]