Whitecroft Hospital
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox hospital
| name =Whitecroft Hospital
| org/group =
| logo =
| image =Whitecroft Hospital.JPG
| caption =Whitecroft Hospital
| location =Gatcombe, Isle of Wight, England
| coordinates = {{coord|50.6723|-1.3023|display=inline,title}}
| healthcare = National Health Service
| type = Psychiatric
| speciality =
| emergency =
| affiliation=
| beds =
| founded = 3 July 1896
| closed = 1992
| website =
| map_type =Isle of Wight
| map_caption=Shown on the Isle of Wight
}}
Whitecroft Hospital was a mental health facility near to Gatcombe on the Isle of Wight, England. The clock tower is a Grade II listed building.{{National Heritage List for England|num=1034485|desc=Clock tower at Whitecroft Hospital|access-date=20 April 2019}}
History
The hospital, which was designed by Benjamin Jacobs using a compact arrow layout, opened as the Isle of Wight County Asylum in July 1896.{{cite web|url=https://www.countyasylums.co.uk/whitecroft-newport-isle-of-wight/|title=Whitecroft Hospital|publisher=County Asylums|accessdate=20 April 2019}} It became the Isle of Wight Mental Hospital in the 1920s and joined the National Health Service as Whitecroft Hospital in 1948.{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/hospitalrecords/details.asp?id=446&page=70|title=Whitecroft Hospital|publisher=National Archives|accessdate=20 April 2019}} After the introduction of Care in the Community in the early 1980s, the hospital went into a period of decline and closed in 1992. The site was subsequently redeveloped for residential use as "Gatcombe Manor".{{cite web|url=http://www.isle-of-wight-memorials.org.uk/others/whitecrofthospitalwm.htm|title=Whitecroft Hospital War Memorial|publisher=Isle of Wight Memorials|accessdate=21 April 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.mildrenconstruction.co.uk/sectors/residential-2/gatecombe-manor/|title=Gatcombe Manor|publisher=Mildren Construction|accessdate=21 April 2019}}
Reported Hauntings
Whitecroft Hospital, like many other locations on the Isle of Wight,{{Cite web|title=The Most Haunted Island in the World? {{!}} Red Funnel|url=https://www.redfunnel.co.uk/en/isle-of-wight-guide/blog/the-most-haunted-island-in-the-world/|access-date=2022-01-19|website=www.redfunnel.co.uk}} is said to be haunted by a number ghosts. This includes former doctors and nurses who are said to wander around the property as if the hospital is still open for business.{{Cite web|date=2021-11-30|title=Whitecroft Hospital: The Haunted Victorian Asylum You Can Call Home|url=https://www.curiousarchive.com/whitecroft-hospital/|access-date=2022-01-19|website=Curious Archive|language=en-GB}} The former hospital is considered one of the most haunted hospitals in the country.{{Cite web|title=The UK's Most Haunted Hospitals & Asylums|url=https://www.hauntedrooms.co.uk/haunted-hospitals-asylums|access-date=2022-01-19|website=Haunted Rooms®|language=en-GB}}
References
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Category:Hospital buildings completed in 1896
Category:Hospitals established in 1896
Category:1896 establishments in England
Category:1992 disestablishments in England
Category:Hospitals disestablished in 1992
Category:Defunct hospitals in England