Century since first patients admitted to Erskine hospital

The Princess Louise Scottish Hospital for Limbless Sailors and Soldiers, as it was known then, saw 13 patients come through the doors on October 10, 1916.

The first patient was Corporal James Ritson of the 1/5th Royal Scots Fusiliers, a 29-year-old rigger from Troon in Ayrshire.

All of the men except Corporal Ritson and a Sergeant J Campbell, aged 28 from Glasgow, were privates.

They came to the newly opened hospital to be fitted with prosthetic limbs.

Of the first 13 patients admitted seven had suffered injuries to their arms which required amputation while six had severe leg injuries.

The second patient in the admissions book a Private J Cowie, aged 32, came from Peterhead, with the last admission on Erskine’s first day, Private D Pearson of the Kings Own Scottish Borders, aged 25, came from Dumfries.

One of the most striking things from the first page in Erskine’s admissions book was the young age of all the wounded soldiers.

The oldest, aged just 35, was Private J Hughes from Larkhall with the youngest being only 19-years-old – Private J Watt from Edinburgh.

Private Watt’s amputation is stated as left leg below the knee. He was discharged just over one month later on November 15, 1916.

All of the first patients were discharged by the Christmas of 1916 except for Private Chas Tayne, aged 21 from Glasgow, who lost part of his left arm in battle and was not discharged until January18 1917.

Between the opening in October 1916 and January 1917, 144 patients were admitted to Erskine, including Sergeant Adam McWilliam Lennie of the 1st Black

By 1924, 8,000 of the 41,000 disabled veterans in Britain had been treated at Erskine, with 6,400 supplied with artificial limbs.

Anyone interested in seeing the first admissions book can see the exhibition at the University of Glasgow’s Hunterian Museum – In War and Peace: The Erskine Story.

Entry is free with the exhibition running until January 8, 2017.