Old travel Blog photograph of Dr Gray's Hospital in Elgin, a former cathedral city and Royal Burgh in Moray, Scotland. The hospital was founded as a result of a bequest by Dr Alexander Gray, died 1807, who was born in Elgin but worked as a surgeon for the East India Company. His will was contested by his family, but eventually his bequest of £20,000 for the establishment of a hospital in the town of Elgin for the sick and poor of the county of Moray was proven in the Court of Chancery, and work on building the hospital at the western end of the town's High Street took place between 1815 and 1818. The hospital was designed by James Gillespie Graham, born 1815, featuring a large classical block with giant Doric columns that supported a portico and was topped with drum tower and dome. The hospital opened on 1 January 1819, providing 30 beds that could be used for any parishioner of Moray who could produce a note of recommendation from their local minister of the established church. Often those of the Episcopalian or Catholic faith were turned away, causing conflict with the Burgh council on a number of occasions. Some patients who required urgent assistance were sent home critically ill lacking the paperwork from the Kirk minister, ultimately causing their death. Of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
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