The former Alford Hospital is one of many small isolation hospitals built across the United Kingdom in accordance with Public Health Legislation. The Public Health (Scotland) Act of 1897 made providing hospitals for infectious diseases a requirement of local authorities. The Local Government Board could authorise loans for construction and vetted plans.

Alford hospital was built in 1897-8 to designs by James Duncan & Son, architects of Turriff. Funds had been raised for a cottage hospital in Alford in the later 1870s but seemingly not enough to see the proposal through. The money collected was returned to the donors in 1881. [1.] Alford District Committee of Aberdeen County Council then proposed to build a hospital for infectious diseases in 1894 but initially struggled to acquire a suitable site. At that time plans had been drawn up by Jenkins & Marr for a ‘cottage hospital’ costing £540 exclusive of plumbing, but these plans were abandoned. Two years later, In 1896 Lord Forbes agreed to feu a site on the edge of Bridge of Alford to the Committee on certain conditions, including his approval of the plans and the arrangements for treating the hospital’s sewage.

Dr Watt, the Medical Officer of Health proposed that the design of the hospital should duplicate that at Turriff, completed that year and designed by James Duncan. A temporary building was considered – specifically Speirs patented special hospital the ‘weather bore’ constructed mostly of wood and felt – but rejected in favour of ‘stone and lime’. [2.] Dr Watt’s proposal to replicate the Turriff hospital was accepted, and the committee therefore turned to James Duncan for the plans (by then Duncan was in partnership with his son). It was decided to build just one ward pavilion in the first instance, leaving space for a second on the opposite side of the central administration block for a second, but that was never built.

In June 1896 the Banffshire Advertiser carried a description of the proposed hospital. The administration block was to comprise four rooms, two on the ground floor and two in the attic, plus bathroom, pantry, larder and scullery, this would serve partly as offices and partly as staff accommodation. The ward pavilion was to be divided into two wards with a room between for a nurse. Each ward was to accommodate three or four patients. The outhouse to the rear was to provide a washing-house and drying-room, ambulance shed, mortuary, disinfecting chambers and coal-house.[3.]

The plans were sanctioned by the Local Government Board in 1896-7 allowing the District Committee to take out a loan for the cost of building works, this was to be paid back over 30 years and entailed a minimal rise in the local rates. Tenders were accepted in March-April 1897 totalling £1,002 15s with Alexander Grant of Alford as mason; A. & W. Hendry of Wartle, carpenters; S. & W. Christie of Dyce, slaters; R. Moir of Inverurie, plasterer; T. Laing & Son of Inverurie plumbers; and Fraser, Hutton & Co. of Insch, painters.[4.]

The hospital was opened in June 1898. [5.] Unspecified additions were carried out by Walker and Duncan some time after 1898. After the 1929 Local Government Act many county councils were able to rationalise their public health duties, especially regarding provisions for infectious diseases. This led to the building of larger central isolation hospitals and sanatoria and the closure of some of the smaller hospitals. In 1930, the Public Health Committee for Buchan proposed cutting down the number of infectious diseases hospital in the county from twelve to just four. The hospital at Peterhead (Ugie Hospital) was to retain its full status, while the isolation hospitals at Braemar, Ballater, Turriff, Inverurie, Ellon, Alford and Summerfield (Stockethill, Aberdeen) should cease to receive infectious cases as soon as possible. [6.] The hospital was closed in 1932 after which it was leased to the local vet. It was still owned by the local authority in the 1940s but was finally sold. It was adapted to form two dwelling houses. [7.]

Sources

1. Weekly Free Press and Aberdeen Herald, 19 March 1881, p.6.
2. Aberdeen Press & Journal, 7 April 1896, p.3.
3. Banffshire Advertiser, 4 June 1896, p.7.
4. The Builder, 10 April 1897, p.349 (tender).
5. B, 20 Aug. 1898, p.168.
6. Buchan Observer and East Aberdeenshire Advertiser, 16 Dec. 1930, p.5.
7. Scottish Archive Network catalogue, NHS Grampian Archives.