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Picture courtesy of Morton and Eden

QSA (0) (Nursing Sister T. A. Cobbold)

Nursing Sister Theodosia Agnes Cobbold [nee Sinclair] (1870-1933) was born in 1870 on the Isle of Wight, the granddaughter of Lord Chief Justice Denman. Studying nursing at the Radcliff Infirmary, Oxford, she joined the Christian’s Army Nursing Service (Reserve) and served in the Boer War as a Nursing Sister at the Imperial Yeomanry Hospital, Pretoria. She married Captain Charles Augustus Cobbold (heir to a brewing company), who served in the Great War with the 2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment but was killed in action at Loos on 13 October 1915. Serving again as a nurse in WWI, she appears to have received a mention in despatches for her work at the Portman Hospital for Officers, London, in late August 1918 (as recorded in the ‘Nursing Times’ of 24 August, 1918). She soon after remarried, to Mr Henry Martley Vandeleur, of South Nutfield, Surrey.

Hi, some info on Susan Harland (medal on p.10)

Susan Harland, born 1864, Holme on the Wolds, Beverley Yorkshire. Her father Thomas was a landowner farmer (473 acres in 1871 increasing to 700 acres by the 1881 census) employing labourers, boys and domestic house servants.
By the 1891 census Susan’s occupation was nursing and she was living in quarters with other colleagues within the district of Bartholomew the Less. Miss Harland is mentioned in The Nursing Record (Nov 5, 1891) as “having gained the (St Bartholomew’s Hospital) much-coveted gold medal for being the most distinguished Nurse at the final examination after three years of training”. Miss Harland joined the League of St Bartholomew’s Nurses in October 1899.

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Boer War – The Portland Hospital was named after the Duke of Portland who was the principle subscriber. Apart from the St John Orderlies most the medical staff had links to St Bartholomew’s Hospital. The four original Nursing Sisters who left for Cape Town on Dec 13, 1899 were Rachel Annie Cox-Davies, Alice Maud Davies, Edith Pretty & Frances Russell. The status of the nurses is explained in the Report: ...“and these ladies were subsequently, by special permission of H.R.H. the Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, President of the Army Nursing Reserve, enrolled in that body, and agreed to accept service on the conditions laid down in the regulations for these nurses”.
The nurses pay remained the responsibility of the Portland Hospital – prior to departure nurses expenses totalled £66 3d and it was agreed that an additional gratuity of £20 should be given to each nurse. The Treasurer records the total salary for the nurses was £80 12s 6d.

For the first three months the hospital was stationed at Rondebosch nr. Cape Town during which time the casualties were mostly derived from battle wounds. By the end of March the work decreased so an order was received to move the hospital to Bloemfontein on April 6th.

The Nursing Record & Hospital World (Sept 15, 1900 p.211) article The Portland Hospital - ‘An Interview with Dr Howard H Tooth’ he makes this note of a Sister Harland: “When we moved up to Bloemfontein (re opened Apr 17, 1900) we increased our beds to 160,… We had our first two New Zealand Sisters Godfrey & Carston… they were put in charge of the enteric wards. And acted alternately as Night Sisters. This went on for a month… Sisters Godfrey & Carston went on to Pretoria, and Sister Harland came up, and took charge of the enteric tents, where there was still work; indeed, we had two marquees of 18 beds each for this disease to the end, when Sister Harland went up to Pretoria, where she still is.”

Cold frosty nights in May killed many of the flies so that by the middle of June there was a rapid decline in the enteric fever epidemic. By the beginning of July there were very few fresh cases, therefore a decision was made to close the Portland Hospital July 21.

Recorded in the London Times Dec 19, 1900 it is known when Sister S. Harland returned from South Africa (thanks to this forum for the transcribed information):
The “Orotava” arrived in Southampton Water last night. She left Cape Town on Nov 28.
For duty on voyage:
NZ Contingent – Nurses M. E. Carsten & E. T.(E. F?) Godfrey
Civil Nursing Sisters – S. Harland, F. M. Rennie & F. A. Suttaby.

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The book ‘A Civilian War Hospital’ is a full account of the work of the Portland Hospital:
page 298 appendix A: Sister Harland was responsible for Enteric Ward No 18, with Orderlies Ptes. Borer and Matthew.

Pte. Henry James Borer sadly died on June 12, 1900 from enteric. Sister Pretty had also been seriously ill with the fever – both had declined the opportunity to be inoculated which had been given to all staff. Sister Pretty returned home convalescent on the “Canada” (August 1st to18th) along with Sisters Davies & Russell accompanied by Dr Howard Tooth, Mr Cuthbert Wallace, Mr Joseph Calverley of the Portland Hospital (& also the majority of Orderlies). Sister Cox-Davies remained nursing in South Africa for a time.
I cannot find Edith Pretty on a medal roll, maybe I’ve missed her. The other three original sisters are named on the roll of 3 General Hospital, Kroonstad [NA WO 100/229 pages 19 & 21] where Alice Maud Davies & Frances Russell visited or worked for what must have been just a few days before returning to England. The medal award presentation is mentioned in The Nursing Record & Hospital World Nov. 9, 1901 p.377. Sister Cox-Davies is also named on the 19 General Hospital Pretoria roll, [p.166] - her medal was presented by the King.

p.41 “The work done by the Portland Hospital during its stay from December to July may be very briefly summarised. It admitted 1009 officers and men, and of these, 37 died, 159 returned to duty, 303 were discharged to convalescent camps or hospitals, 98 went to England, and 412 were transferred to other hospitals at the base.”

A Civilian War Hospital
archive.org/details/b22650520
See Plate IX for a plan of the Portland Hospital, Bloemfontein.

The Report of the Portland Hospital
wellcomecollection.org/works/r884bgu4/items
See plate to face p.80, Enteric Fever Tents (Ward 18), Bloemfontein.
Appendix S – a list of all casualties treated at the Portland Hospital.

Enteric Fever in the Army in South Africa, with Remarks on Inoculation by Howard H Tooth
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2463564/

The Nursing Record / The British Journal of Nursing, 1888-1956
rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk

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I haven’t been able find a match for Susan Harland in the 1901, 1911 or 1921 census, also not sure if all the details are correct in this newspaper report:
West Sussex Gazette Oct 18, 1951: “Miss Susan Harland of The Far Horizon, Half Moon Hill, who died at her home last week was for many years a nurse in India and Burma, afterwards becoming Matron of St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London. …”

Susan Harland died at Haslemere, Surrey on the 8th October 1951 (London Gazette).

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A possible service history of Sister S. Harland:
Embarked for South Africa some time before April 1900.
1 General Hospital, Wynberg [NA WO 100/229 p.2] to April?
‘Sister Harland came up’ to join the Portland Hospital, Bloemfontein. Present mid May to late July.
‘Went up to Pretoria where she is still’ August to Nov? On roll for 19 General Hospital Pretoria, with the notes ‘(ansr)’ & ‘left the unit’. [NA WO 100/229 p.213]
Departed Cape Town on Nov 28, 1900 S.S. Orotava. Nursing duty whilst onboard, disembarked Southampton Dec 19, 1900.

I would welcome additions/corrections...

Regards ZeZe

Hi ZeZe, an interesting write-up with useful links.

Although Susan Harland is not apparent on the 1901, 1911 & 1921 Censuses she can be found on the September 1939 Register living in Haslemere, Surrey:



This gives her exact DoB as 1st August 1864 and confirms she became a hospital matron. However, it was not at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London as the relevant matrons there were:

1887-1910 Isla Stewart
1910-1927 Annie Sophia Jane McIntosh
1927-1949 Helen Dey

Have searched past newspapers but not been able to determine where she was matron.

Regards, David.

Hi David,

Thanks for the info that Susan Harland held the post of Matron but not at St Barts. I did scan through the St Bartholomew's Hospital Journal to see if I could find names of matrons but women were hardly ever mentioned. Encase it’s of interest there are several articles about the Portland Hospital by Mr Bowlby in Vols VII & VIII.
www.qmul.ac.uk/fmd/about/our-history/st-...ws-hospital-journal/

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The Report has a fine Portland Hospital group photo which is reproduced here along with two other photos (from The Wellcome Collection).
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Port..._Hospital_(Boer_War)



I have tried to match the faces of the Portland Hospital Staff group photo with those of the nurses ‘seated before a tent’ (I imagine it was taken prior to Sister Pretty catching enteric fever). Cox-Davies may be the nurse on the right as viewed – the RCN has a poor quality newspaper photo for her in later life.
www.rcn.org.uk/centenary/Projects/Presidents-exhibition

Which begs the question - who is the fifth nurse on the left as viewed ?

Regards ZeZe

Update – Sister Pretty is the nurse wearing glasses

Photo of Sister Pretty departing:
wellcomecollection.org/works/vramq9up

Picture courtesy of Aubrey's

QSA (0) (Nursing Sister N. V. Blythe, A.N.S.R.);
KSA (0) (Nursing Sister N. V. Blythe):
Reserve medal 'Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service Reserve'

Nursing Sister Nora Valentine Blyth served at number 10 General Hospital at Norval's Pont.

The brilliant Guy's physician, John Wichenford Washbourn, was consulted by Maidstone Council as one of the early experts in this field. He traced the coli bacteria to the local water-source - which was switched off, ending the outbreak. He went with his energetic colleague, (Sir) Alfred Fripp, to South Africa in 1900 to help him (and Lt-Col. Arthur Sloggett, R.A.M.C.) run the Imperial Yeomanry Hospital, Deelfontein. He was so useful as one of the first physicians to be sent to a war-zone that Guy's were persuaded to let him stay sixteen months instead of six. He was then made Consulting Physician to His Majesties Forces. Unfortunately, the effort led to his death in 1902, aged 39 - just before he was to give the prestigious Croonian Lecture of that year..