Welcome to the Warneford Hospital. This walking trail will take you on a historic tour of the hospital grounds. The Warneford first opened its doors to patients in 1826, and the hospital has been in clinical use ever since. Since 1826, the original building has been extended several times, and an eclectic mix of buildings, serving a variety of purposes from research to occupational therapy, has grown up on the Warneford site. Many of the original features remain, however, including trees that were planted in the 1820s.
As you walk through the grounds, take a moment to consider the people who have lived and worked here over the two hundred years, who have no doubt walked the same pathways, or sought shelter under the same trees. Many of the buildings highlighted in this trail have seen several different uses over the years, and have been adapted, extended, gutted and refitted to meet the changing needs of staff and patients. Imagine the original purpose of these spaces and those who used them, from patients picking apples in the orchard and taking them over to the Apple House for storage, to the steam and bustle of the laundry, to the farmyard with its cows, pigs and chickens, to the peace and calm of the Chapel…
