EPW051266 ENGLAND (1936). Watford Peace Memorial Hospital, Watford, 1936

I'm inclined to suggest this image for inclusion as it features a well-respected landmark in the central Watford community and shows the Town Hall area just prior to the construction of the new municipal offices which were opened four years later. The famous roundabout is already in place, a location well known to this correspondent in the 1950s.

My extra notes for this image have been taken from Bob Nunn's excellent Book of Watford, First Edition 1987 and Second Edition 2003. (John Swain, WBGS 1954-61 and resident of Hayling Road, South Oxhey 1953-65). This medium-sized town is exceptionally fortunate to have such a wealth of readily available information on the growth and development of Watford since the beginning of the 19th century, not least in the various publications by the local paper, "The Watford Observer".

Watford's Peace Memorial Hospital was opened in 1925 as a direct response to the increased demands imposed by the ravages of World War I and the influenza epidemic of 1918/19. The foundation stone was laid in 1923 and the 112-bed hospital was fully operational two years later. Plans were implemented throughout the 1930s for further expansion: nurses' accommodation, ward extensions and a new ENT ward. Much of this ongoing construction work may be seen on the north side of main complex. In July 1928, the famous three bronze statues by Mary Bromet, as a fitting War Memorial to the fallen of the Great War 1914-18, were unveiled by the Earl of Clarendon.



The post World War II fortunes of the Peace were somewhat mixed, as the hospital was merged with Shrodells to create Watford General Hospital in 1965 and more functions were transferred to the larger unit on the south side of the town. The buildings were finally closed on Rickmansworth Road in 1985 and the site became vandalised, but an appeal launched in the following decade resulted in a temporary day care centre becoming a permanent feature as the Peace Hospice. The war memorial has since been relocated near the Main Library and the original neo-classical facade of the 1925 structure has been retained.



The writer passed this site many hundreds of times on his way to and from Watford Boys' Grammar School, from his home in South Oxhey and the No. 346 bus stops in St.Albans Road and on The Parade during the 1954-1961 period!