Barrow Gurney
2nd November 2013
Barrow Gurney
On Friday 2nd November 2013, we had the enormous privilege to be invited by BUS to join them in investigating the now abandoned site of Barrow Gurney Mental Hospital.
Barrow Hospital (sometimes referred to as Barrow Gurney Hospital) was a psychiatric hospital in Barrow Gurney, Somerset, United Kingdom.
In the mid-1920s, the existing City of Bristol Mental Hospital at Stapleton was suffering from serious overcrowding. In addition, the Victorian hospital buildings were now considered too old-fashioned, having been built 'like large barracks' connected by corridors which allowed easy access for staff but provided 'little relief to patients sensitive to their environment. Extensions added to the buildings helped to alleviate the problem to some extent, but it was still crystal clear that a second hospital would soon be needed. The Bristol Corporation's preferred site was on the nearby Oldbury Court Estate, but when sale negotiations broke down in 1928 the Corporation was forced to look elsewhere and instead purchased 260 acres of woodland called The Wild Country near Barrow Gurney for £20,000.
The new hospital was designed by Sir George Oatley of Bristol to the then-innovative colony plan based on detached 'villas' centred around a central cluster of service buildings. The plan called for 25 villas to house 1,200 patients, treatment centres for local authority and private patients, a chapel, recreation hall, laundry and central kitchens.
The buildings were austerely constructed of red brick with pan tiled mansard roofs and were situated so as to give a sense of community and privacy as well as to take advantage of the wooded surroundings which were retained and enhanced by tree-thinning and landscaping.
Construction began in 1934 and although the hospital was not officially opened until 3 May 1939, Barrow Hospital received its first patients in May 1938 with the complex still only half-built. It was intended that the rest of the planned buildings should be gradually added over the following years as funds allowed, but the outbreak of war in September 1939 halted all work on site and the architect's full vision was never realised
At the outbreak of the Second World War the hospital was commandeered by the Royal Navy and became the Royal Naval Auxiliary Hospital, Barrow Gurney. The hospital treated seamen who had been injured during conflicts or who were suffering from psychological distress, brought in through the nearby Port of Bristol. In 1940, the daily average number of patients under treatment was 356 and the medical and nursing staff numbered 215. The Naval Hospital was decommissioned and returned to civilian use in 1946.
In 1960 the hospital's population reached a peak of 453. At this time it was predicted that new community-based care initiatives would lead to a decline in patient numbers to 200 by 1975 but in the event this target was not met. However, there was a noticeable decline in numbers during the 1970s and some residential wards were replaced with out-patient and community support services.
In 2003 the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust announced its intention to close Barrow Hospital by 2008. By 2004 only three residential wards remained open. A report published by Mind in 2003 found that on the issue of the hospital's closure, opinion among patients was divided with groups of patients having strong feelings both for and against. In 2005 a national survey of hospital cleanliness named Barrow as the dirtiest in Britain after inspectors found cigarette burns on floors, graffiti on walls, urine stains around a toilet and stains from bodily fluids on the bottom of a hoist chair. The report, combined with the collapse of part of the ceiling onto the head of a patient the same year saw the closure plan brought forward and the last ward closed the following year.
After closure, the hospital buildings were largely neglected and began to decay. The site suffered extensively from looting, vandalism and graffiti and attracted urban explorers who documented its steady decay.] In 2008 planning permission was granted build 18 luxury homes and 405,000sq ft of office space on the southern part of the site. The following year saw the demolition of four villas, the former day hospital, mortuary, boiler house and a modern secure unit on the southern part of the site but the central and northern buildings were left standing. In 2009, redevelopment was called to a halt due to the discovery of nesting bats. A number of 'bathhouse’s' have been constructed in an attempt to entice them out of the remaining buildings, but this has yet to happen. In 2010, plans were amended to include a 220 bed care home 'village' on the northern part of the site, more housing and fewer offices. In March 2013, approximately half of the original hospital buildings were standing, albeit in a derelict state. The buildings left standing included Woodside (Nurses' Home), Molitor House, the Mother and Baby unit, East Villa, Alexandria Unit and the main reception. (History taken from Wikipedia)
After a brief chat with BUS and also Ghost Hunt Experience Bristol who were also present at this investigation, we decided to investigate the Mother and Baby Unit. This we were told is one of the paranormal hotspots on the site and we just couldn’t wait to get started. We tentatively looked around the ground floor of the building first and I cannot describe just how derelict the site has become. You can tell it is a demolition site. The walls and ceiling are all crumbling and I was very concerned about the integrity of the building we were in. We found some stairs at the far end of this building and Dave bravely went up the stairs first. I was surprised to see they were made of concrete which made me feel a bit safer. Just as we reached the top Andrew and I heard a loud noise that sounded a bit like a hiss. It definitely spooked me as I was at the back of the group. Unfortunately I had not started any of my recording equipment at this time so did not capture it though if I had, I am sure it would have been picked up as it was very loud. We returned downstairs and decided to try calling out to see if we could encourage any activity. I set up my camcorder and digi voice recorder and Andrew used his *K2 meter and *ghost box. Nikki and Caz had a ghost radar App on their smart phones and Dave was also recording. We started to call out and asked if any spirit people could communicate with us through either the ghost box, digi voice recorder or show themselves in light form. During this experiment we did get the names Edmond and Owen very clearly through the Ghost Box, We also got distinct answers to some of our questions such as “Did you work here?” Yes was the answer. “Are you sad to see the building as it is now?” Yes was the answer again. I also had a personal experience during this experiment which I did not capture on camera. While we were calling out, I saw something through the window which looked like fingers. I asked Dave to shine his torch in that direction and I was expecting to see a shrub like a buddleia which has long leaves out by the white wall however, there was nothing there at all. I was amazed and couldn’t believe what I had seen. Nikki and Caz got a simultaneous answer on their ghost Ap where one said Look and the other one said there. We all looked out of the window but didn’t see anything. We felt that the spirit was Male and may have worked in the building but whoever it was did not really want to communicate with us. We had just decided to move to a different location when another group joined us. We stayed for a bit and assisted in their glass divination and table tipping experiment and then decided to move to the large Woodlands building opposite.
We had to have a short break as a gang of youths had broken onto the site and we had to wait for the Key Holder to remove them. Once it was safe we once again tentatively entered the building. This building is massive. It is a warren of long corridors and endless rooms and the building is 3 stories high. After I got over the shock of the immenseness of the building, I actually started to feel quite comfortable here, unlike in the mother and baby unit. We explored the ground floor and like before decided to investigate further upstairs once we had reached a stairwell. I was relieved to find that these stairs were also made of concrete and not wood. We climbed to the 1st floor and crept along the first corridor. We were halfway along when Caz explained she felt that she was being herded along and we all agreed. I also noticed that we had stayed in a little huddle and no one had actually started to call out. We walked down through more corridors calling out to spirit people to see if we could get a response and even though on this level there was a bit of the corridor that felt a bit threatening, we did not get anything significant, well not until we went up to the top level. We climbed the steps again and it is here on the video I hear a sigh. I did not hear this at the time. We pick our way long the corridors until we reach a section that everyone seemed to stop what they were doing and seemed reluctant to move any further. There was a definite sense of foreboding here and all the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I asked if there were any spirit people here with us and Nikki adds she can feel they are there. On the video footage you can hear 2 sighs very clearly. There is also a sound like something has been thrown. We move along a little but the feeling seems to go so I walk back to where we were and the feeling is still there. We call out again and hear Thuds downstairs. I suggest it maybe another team in the building so we dismiss it but after we finish investigating the top floor we descend to the ground floor expecting to find another team but there is no one there. I have video footage of this on the Facebook page. We explore the ground floor a little more; however nothing else happens so we decide to move on.
We come across another building and start to investigate this however, there were a few teams in the building so we decide to walk further up the road to the next building. This one is called Last Villas. Now I thought the buildings we had been in were in poor shape but nothing compared to this one. The floor had quite a lot of it missing and we decided not to venture upstairs as it didn’t look safe. We didn’t get much from this building at all so we venture on back down the road to the previous building that had all the teams in it.
The other teams were just about to move on so we go into what looked like it may have been a communal room and start to call out to see if we could get any communication going. On the video footage I do capture a small noise when I ask out however, the wind seems to pick up from nowhere and it makes investigating very hard. We move down the corridor which does feel threatening and we do hear knocks and taps but again with the wind being so fierce all of a sudden, it makes it very hard to know if this is paranormal or just down to the high wind. We travel upstairs which is a little bit more sheltered and we call out. On the video footage I can hear a sigh and whisper and also a male audible which is indecipherable. This footage can be seen on the Facebook page.
After a brief break to warm up a little we head back to the mother and baby unit. However, there is another team already in there. We do notice another building that may have been reception which we hadn’t noticed before and it appears to be empty. We head over to this building but only investigate the ground floor. At the time I didn’t sense anything in there however, Nikki felt that a cupboard that was under the stairs may have had children either locked or hiding in there at one time. As she is saying this I capture 2 light anomalies on camera. These are the only anomalies I can say are definitely not dust, water or bugs from the entire investigation.
Going over the footage I was surprised to find I had captured quite a lot of EVP and responses through the ghost box. I also captured a shadow person down one of the corridors in the Woodlands building. At the time I suddenly felt threatened and decided to take a photo. The shadow person appears to be crouched and imitating me in holding something out in front of it like a camera. This could not be my shadow as the corridor was very long. If it were my shadow it would of stretched all the way down the wall which it does not. Also I was in the lead so it cannot be a shadow cast by any of the team. We were also alone at the time the picture was taken.
I would like to thank BUS for inviting us along to take part in this brilliant investigation and also Martin for allowing us permission to access the site.
J Wicheard. ©
*K2 Meter Measures Electromagnetic fields or EMF’s.
*Ghost Box A device that scans radio waves creating white noise.
