Visitor Information
F.A.Q.
Why Build A Herb Garret In The Roof Of A Church?
The parish of St Thomas's Church was restricted to the Hospital and grounds so there was a close relationship between the Church and Hospital. Storage space was normally in basements, attics and garrets. Basements were inappropriate for Herbs because of dampness and rodents. The large oak beams in the Garret act as a buffer and moderate fluctuations in humidity. Experience shows it is a good place to dry herbs.
Why Build An Operating Theatre In The Roof Of A Church?
When the number of students attending operations became too much for the ward to cope with a special operating theatre had to be built. The women's surgical ward adjoined the Church Garret and as this had long been used by the Hospital it became the obvious place to build an Operating Theatre - close to and on the same level as the ward yet separate enough to dampen the sounds from surgery before anaesthesia!
Did The Patients Come Up The Spiral Staircase?
No, there was a hoist in the stairwell to the Women's Surgical ward in Frederick Block (now the Post Office). As the Theatre was roughly on the same level as the Ward in was relatively easy to get patients from the ward to the Theatre and back again. There is a possibility that the Garret itself was used as a recovery ward after 1822 when windows appeared to have been inserted in the Garret for the first time.