At the royal college of Physicians
and surgeons of Glasgow
and surgeons of Glasgow
Within the College's heritage collections is a photograph album compiled by Miss Annie J. Allan, a nurse working for the Scottish Women's Hospitals during WW1. The album shows life as a doctor, surgeon, nurse, soldier, and civilian near the frontline.
Annie was born in Airdrie in 1888 and trained at the Camelon Fever Hospital in Falkirk before moving to the Elder Cottage Hospital in Govan. Working alongside Annie was J.A.C. Macewen, the son of renowned Scottish surgeon William Macewen. Elder Cottage Hospital consisted of thirty beds in two wards named Florence Nightingale and Sophia Jex Blake. Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) represented the professionalisation and training of nurses and Sophia Jex Blake (1840-1912) was one of the first female doctors in the UK and had established in Edinburgh the first hospital in Scotland to be run by and for women. Perhaps it was the inspiration of these women that led nurse Annie Allan to join an all-women operation for her war service.
The majority of the photographs within the album show scenes of the Girton and Newnham Unit of the Scottish Women's Hospital. These photographs give a unique insight into different aspects of the unit, including working conditions, clinical treatment, interacting with patients, and boosting morale during a difficult time. They act as a historical account through a very personal lens. For example, one of the photographs shows Nurse Allan standing next to the grave of a colleague, Sister Burt, who had passed away while working at the unit. This photograph highlights the all-too-familiar death, grief and vulnerability caused by war.
The album itself was created from 1914 to 1939, spanning the time of Allan's career during the war and thereafter as Matron of Kirkcudbright Cottage Hospital. The album came into the possession of the College not through Miss Annie Allan, however, but through a Miss Marion McNeill. Miss McNeill was a nurse from the Isle of Jura who worked as a Staff Nurse and Sister at Stobhill Hospital, Glasgow. Annie Allan resigned from her position as Matron at Kirkcudbright in 1933 and was succeeded as Matron by Miss McNeill.
The album also includes photographs relating to Elder Cottage Hospital in Govan and Caldergrove Voluntary Hospital. More information on the album and the story of the Scottish Women's Hospitals can be found in the below episode of Body of Work Bites!