Exploring the site of a Victorian Smallpox Sanatorium, Ashton in Makerfield

[@carlleedham6256]

Thank you Mr H for the Sunday afternoon bimble. I do enjoy a good ferret round. I live in the grounds of Whittington Hall hospital which was a former mental hospital, I sometimes wonder what stories it could tell over the years.

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi Carl, you're welcome and glad to hear that you enjoyed the video. 👍 Probably like this former hospital site the best stories are to be told with what is buried just beneath the surface and you have to wonder at what has been left behind just waiting to be rediscovered again.

[@Snowy1of1]

Love your vids Mr H. Living in Hindley, I love seeing your explores and hearing about the times before us. I live near Amberswood in Hindley, in which stood a similar building to this one, by looks of the old maps it was bigger than the one you were at. Around the area and in the woods you can find old bricks, coal from the pits and old rails from when the mineral train ran through the area. I love the old maps and what they show was once there. I used to live in an old cottage, (1800s) that in the cellar they would make things, really not sure exactly what, however area was renowned for having a cottage woollen industry. The original work surface was there built into the foundations and was heavily worn, you could see where someone would stand or sit and perform the tasks. No daylight was got in there so all done by lamp light. In all thier were just 9 cottages on the tiny street that to this day has no vehicle access, just grass out front. Many have been renovated and the old cellars changed, however that one was original. Keep up the bimbles and great vids.

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi Paul, and glad to hear that you enjoyed the video. 👍 According to my Dad the hospital at Amberswood was used to treat TB and was hidden away down a very long driveway located where Seaman Way begins on Manchester Road today. Sadly nothing can be seen of the hospital today as both the hospital site and the surrounding area are now buried beneath the Amberswood Landfill Site. 🙁 Upon your recommendation I went for a bit of a bimble this morning around the Amberswood area and through the woods up towards the landfill site and I did manage to find some old bricks and other material such as bits of stone ballast from the railways that ran through the area once. I was mainly hoping to find for a future video the location of the train crash that happened in late July of 1900 close to what is now Amberswood Lake when a trainload of holidaymakers returning home to Yorkshire from Blackpool derailed in the area and plunged down an embankment killing two people including the driver and injuring 20 other passengers. But unfortunately the opencast mining that took place in the area in the 1980's has totally obliterated many of the former railway embankments including the one where this accident happened, although the course of the railway can still be clearly seen on Google Earth. Fascinating stuff regarding the 1800's cottage that you used to live in if only those walls could talk I'll bet they could tell a tale or two! Anyway many thanks for taking the time to commet, enjoy the rest of your evening and all the best.

[@Snowy1of1]

@@MrHsHotPot Thankyou for your reply. Absolutely the old Hospital used to be down there, shows how much man can remove over time, but as you said in this video, man cannot remove his presence fully, so relics are often found. I have a few paper maps of the area, one of them goes back to 1908. (Lancashire sheet XCIV 9, Ince Division. Produced by Alan Godfrey Maps) The difference in buildings is amazing, even down to the very narrow paths that were around that hospital at Amberswood. The railway lines, mineral railway, even shows the original tramway that Wigan once had! I was reading up sometime ago and came across a map that showed all the houses, the numbers and underneath it showed who lived in which house and what jobs they did, amazing to know the past details of who lived where and when and what they did. Behind where I live now used to be Riding mine Colliery, again like Amberwood was, it was an open cast mine. Love standing at Hindley Tesco and knowing it used to be the old Gas Works and resovoir for Worthington Mills. Thanks for having a nosey around Amberswood, had I known you where around having a bimble, I'd have come down with the OH and doggies. Stay safe Mr H and family, looking forward to the next upload!

[@procta2343]

good stuff! i really wonder how much history of that era is right under our noses, that we just walk past with out even knowing, when we go out on walks like this.

[@RHR-221b]

👍 🌠

[@benhornby8028]

Lived in ashton for 30 years and never knew this so thanks! Also ashton is a town in wigan so of course it went into greater Manchester, like wigan did

[@Jkk55]

I enjoyed that Mr H thank you, my grandad's brother lived in one of these places he had TB, he left when it shut down I think, it was at Streindsdale I remember going up there with my parents as a child to see him.

[@gwinniboots]

Respect for the brick knowledge. 👏

[@cragman]

Very interesting. Thanks Mr H

[@MrHsHotPot]

You're welcome Brian, and glad to hear that you found the video interesting. Enjoy the rest of your evening/ day and all the best. 👍

[@yellowcloud9161]

Totally interesting, I have Ashton maps on my wall from 1906 and never noticed that until now, nice one

[@MrStephen54]

We played all around there as kids..born just up the road in Edge Green...wasn't overgrown with trees back in those days..55years ago..ish....but the footprint of the building and some rubble were still evident..

[@cfm2969]

Well i tell you what mr h, i could see this from my bedroom at my mums house were you could here the music and just looks like overgrown bushes, but never ever would i have thought this, mrs Ashcroft in the house you shown on golborne road will probably not know either, i must have a walk over, great video cheers

[@johnmilner4667]

Enjoyed that video Mr h. There will be a lot of these sites scattered around the country. All with there own stories to tell

[@garethparr9482]

Hi Roy hope all is well. Had no idea about this place thanx for bringing it to our attention.

[@gwinniboots]

Very interesting, Mr H. I was a bit worried in case you fell into the deep pit. People wouldn’t survive smallpox easily in those days, as most working class folk were malnourished and tired.

[@RHR-221b]

Thank you once again, Mr H. Timestamp 14' 35": I do wonder where the unfortunate people were buried. Rest In Peace. Stay free. Rab 🍻 😎 🌠 💚

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi Rab, funnily enough I was also wondering exactly the same thing. But the practice back then was unless someone had the means to pay for their funeral or had made provision for one by paying a small amount each week into one of the many friendly societies or 'burial clubs that were popular at the time was for patients who died in hospital to be buried in a common grave with the church or local community paying for the actual burial whilst the grave itself remained the property of the church or cemetery. Sadly no markers were allowed on common graves so many of these patients will have ended up being buried in an unmarked grave in one of the various churchyards in Ashton or in the municipal cemetery in nearby Wigan.

[@RHR-221b]

@@MrHsHotPot Thanks very much for your extensive reply, Mr H,. It is much appreciated. R

[@paulodare8309]

We had an isolation hospital about a mile out of town in Skegness,also in a wooded area. I remember it being demolished and some very nice detached houses being built there. Funny how they found these little hidden places .

[@loadzofhobbies4219]

Enjoyed this. The Victorian period is without a doubt the most interesting history to me. It's close enough to still observe in so many places and as such relate to it. I grew up exploring Victorian asylums/hospitals and old brickworks and there quarries. Still have a passion for the whole era. Even bought an 1856 cottage, with an interesting history. It had many now gone outbuildings but I still find clues when digging about. Keep up the interesting films. Perhaps after this the farmer will let you metal detect there

[@MarkStoneEntertainmentInLife]

wow. they could put some signs or posters around it to show what it looked like and info. awesome video Mr h

[@allanmason7544]

i find your videos really interesting mr h keep them coming

[@lynnewalker5525]

Great to see another video Mr.H, hope everyone's ok, best wishes from lynne and Graham in Leeds x

[@itsmewayne428]

Very informative .....great editing skills too✔

[@PaulaXism]

20 odd years ago when I went down there for a poke about the landowner had pigs on that bit.. that explains the metal sheeting.. they had them arch things they use for pigs .. they were friendly enough and you could still make out the footprint of the building.

[@gwinniboots]

I agree, Nature doesn’t take long to recover and fill a place with greenery.

[@800beemer]

Another Gem Mr H

[@garycanning7015]

Very interesting video Mr H.Smallpox is estimated to have killed up to 300 million people in the 20th century and around 500 million people in the last 100 years of its existence. Earlier deaths included six monarchs. As recently as 1967, 15 million cases occurred a year.

[@gwinniboots]

Terrible death toll.

[@MrHsHotPot]

Although Smallpox has been responsible for many deaths in the Victorian era Gary, there was also TB, Cholera and Scarlet fever to name just a few to worry about catching all of which would ultimately see a patient being taken away from their families to a Sanatorium or Isolation Hospital such as this one which would be dedicated to treating a particular disease with little more than bedrest and fresh air. Given that many of these facilities were poorly funded (even by today's standards) and lacked basic equipment such as disinfecting equipment it's a wonder that anyone survived a stay in one of these places. Even though today's NHS is woefully underfunded I'd still rather take my chances today than back then.

[@garycanning7015]

@@MrHsHotPot I couldn't agree with you more Mr H.

[@theowdgit9790]

Doh!! Went to wrong hospital lol (Brynn rd south). On lidar mapping looks like you were in the footings of it not sure if t'ole was the ablutions building or as you say mortuary building. There is a simmilar one on castle hill(sandy lane) Hindley now private bungalows ther's also a photo on wigan world album of it. Brill vid none the less Mr H. 👍👍👍

[@MrHsHotPot]

It did cross my mind thebestgamer i game, that the brick chamber that I found had been some kind of septic or holding tank for sewage which would have then been emptied and taken away by the 'Nightsoil Men' as sewers wouldn't have existed in rural areas such as Ashton in 1893. But if you look closely at the bricks that it has been built from they are just ordinary clay common bricks which are very porous and would be unsuitable for building a chamber designed to continuously hold sewage so it probably had some other as yet unknown use back in the day. Unbelivably the farmers fields around this site were also being spread with basically untreated sewage removed by the Nightsoil Men from dwellings in nearby Ashton with the house that I mention in the distance at 11:15 still bearing the rather unflattering name of 'Sewage Farm' to this day which would have also added to the poor conditions found at this hospital when it was inspected in 1893.

[@shooz5251]

Very interesting.

[@mattwuk]

There's a place in Astley now a housing development that was also a sanatorium back in the day. It was a hospital up to the 90s. We used to call it 'The Sanny' as kids in the 80s. The original hall called Dam House is still there and now has a tea room. You can freely walk around the pond and woods inside and it is still surrounded by the original decorative brick walls. Might be worth a visit with the camera, you should be able to get a decent video out of it.

[@lesleyjackson2750]

Was this the same sight/ building as haydock lodge mental hospital?

[@gwinniboots]

It would be fascinating to explore with a metal detector. 👍🤔

[@tracya4087]

i think it could be a cesspit , there is one at the site of blundells sidings signal box , and one nearby to where you were at the site of the signalbox and sidings to edge green colliery

[@tracya4087]

best wishes from pem

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi Tracy A, it did cross my mind that the brick chamber that I found had been some kind of cesspit or holding tank for sewage (which is another reason I didn't try to examine it too closely) but the reason I think that it may have had some other use back in the day is that it has been built from ordinary clay common bricks which are porous and would be unsuitable for building a chamber designed to continuously hold sewage. However it could also be that as these type of hospitals were never designed to be built as a permanant fixture and would only have a short life span then sub standard materials were used in their construction. Whatever the chamber once was it may also hold some hidden treasures that were thrown in there during the hospital's demolition to fill it in now that it was no longer needed. Many thanks also for the info regarding the two signal box cesspits as I'll be sure to check them out at some point when I'm on another bimble again in the area. 👍

[@tracya4087]

@@MrHsHotPot hiya , yes you should /so much is hidden in plain sight , the signal box bricks have white glazing . there is much to see if you know where to look and what your looking for . best wishes from round t bloody corner

[@tracya4087]

weird int it , blundells sidings signal box . its at at side of clapgate lane

[@billy4072]

Took a bit of finding, ..as Osborne rd ? on vic map.. just a rd number now 🙄. That enclosure of land looks prime for building , and then it'll be gone forever .

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi Bill y, the hospital used to be located off of 'Golborne Road' (B5207) in Ashton in Makerfield and as you say the area is a prime location for redevelopment (i.e. building houses on) which has already happened on the surrounding fields but hopefully won't happen for a while just yet. I'm amazed TBH that the site wasn't returned back to farmland after the hospital was demolished and it has just been left for nature to reclaim. My guess is the building was probably repurposed by whoever owned the farmland at the time that the hospital closed and the lease on the land expired then it was eventually removed when being a prefabricated building built from flimsy materials such as corrugated metal sheets it started to fall into disrepair.

[@almaxx9680]

Probably an old septic tank 👍

[@MrHsHotPot]

Hi AL MAXX, despite initially thinking that the brick chamber could have had some other purpose due to the quality of the bricks it has been built from I'm inclined to agree with you and others who have commented to say this was probably a septic tank or cesspit of some description.

[@boudicaastorm4540]

I appreciate the map overlays, that's very cool.

[@leeh9985]

More than likely a victorian cistern tank