Hi Ray
I have a book called THE DARK CLOUD Stockport Life in the Great War by David Kelsall which has a section on wounded and the hospitals and a couple of interesting pages about the hospitals and the VAD. For anyone interested in that time in Stockport it is a great read. It's one of the booklet type books from Lancashire Family History Society and looks to be well researched (although as it doesn't give individual sources for the facts and figures you can't really check. But it looks like it might have come from old news reports of the time)
It mentions the wounded being treated at base hospitals well behind the front line and then the worst cases brought back by hospital ship for treatment in Britain.
It says that Stockport - with ultimately 12 hospitals played a major role in the care of the wounded. Patients arrived by hospital train to Stockport and also Manchester stations.
It gives a run-down of what was happening with some photos of some of the buildings - but here are the main bits of info.
Stockport VAD HQ was at Bucknau House on Wyatt Street in Heaton Norris. St John's Ambulance also helped in the running of the VADs and their HQ was at Rechabite Hall, Higher Hillgate, Stockport.
Stockport Infirmary reserved beds within a week of the start of the war and then within a few days received wounded who were cared for by regular nurses and also the VAD. By July 1916 there were 48 beds for the wounded. After the Battle of the Somme, they gave over a new extension wing with 100 beds to the injured...and for the remainder of the war there were between 30 and 50 being cared for at any one time.
But there were also other places converted to care for the wounded.
Within three days of declaration of war Pendlebury Hall, orphanage (Lancashire Hill) was converted into a hospital run by the Red Cross Society's VAD (50 women and 5 men). It had a max of 75 beds and cared for 1811 men during the war.
A second Red Cross hospital was opened in nov 1914 at the Wesleyan School in Heaton Mersey (with 25 -30 beds)
In May 1915 Stepping Hill Hospital had nine wards reserved for the wounded - it's first were vitims of the first gas attacks at 2nd Battle of Ypres.
At end March 1915 - four council schools were converted into Military hospitals... Hollywood Park, St George's, Vernon Park and Alexandra Park. (The children had to go part time to make room). 29th Sep 1915 - the schools received 300 wounded from the Battle of Loos. By Dec 1915 they provided enough beds for 750 patients
End September 1916 and wounded were arriving at North Reddish Council School.
By Sep 1918 Stockport had two shell shock hospitals - both in Brinnington. 300 victims distributed between these and Vernon park Hospital.
Towards the end of the war the Town Hall was being used to house the wounded. Also Cale Green School.
Other hospitals in the area supplied wounded soldier's rest huts... Highfield Hall in Bredbury, Brabyns Hall in Marple Bridge. Plus two in Reddish - in Gorton Road and Station Approach. (There is a pic and it looks rather like a bus shelter)
There appear to have been so many hospitals involved with so many soldiers that it would be hard to pin down the specific one in the photo unfortunately - but perhaps some of the info may give more clues. Do you have a date of when and where he was wounded? Do you have his service records from Kew? If you knew when he was wounded maybe some of the info above would at least give you a picture of where he may possibly have been cared for.
Hope that helps - if you post your chap's name or any details I can have another look for you and see if there is anything else ...
Milly
