When
I was six and living in Grimethorpe, I came home from school with a sore
throat and a boil on my arm. My mother and granny were a little concerned
so they called for Dr Cran to see me. He informed them that I had Scarlet
Fever and I would have to go into the fever hospital, which was situated
on Brierley Common.
I
remember the grey ambulance taking me to the hospital. I also remember
taking a sixpenny Mars bar with me
but I wasn’t allowed to keep it. My first meal while I was
there
was mashed potato with mincemeat. It tasted that horrible and I haven’t
liked that meal since. We also had to drink out of brown tin cups, which
wasn’t very nice.
While
in the hospital, my four years old sister Margaret was admitted with the
same symptoms that I had. My mother and sisters came to visit us but were
only allowed to see us through the window from the outside. They
couldn’t bring us any toys. I remember on one occasion, mother brought
Margaret a teddy bear, but with it being a fever hospital they had to take
it back home.
I remember them telling mother I could go
home on Christmas day but the snow was so high outside the hospital
grounds, I had to wait until Boxing day. This was a bonus though because I
received a visit from Father Christmas who brought me a little doll
dressed in blue and white knitted clothes. My sister Margaret stayed
longer than I as her infection took longer to clear.
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