Over the weekend of the 8/9 September five establishments will open their doors to the public, as part of the Civic Trust’s Heritage Open Days, giving members of the public a glimpse of days gone by.
Places with a history to tell are:-
The Royal Hospital Haslar - tour at 10am & 1.30pm
Architect Theodore Jacobson designed a hospital for sick and wounded seamen and in 1746 Haslar Hospital was constructed on 95 acres of farmland outside the Gosport ramparts. Clay dug out for the basements to be erected was shaped into bricks and then transported to the Isle of Wight for firing before being returned to the site. Jacobson designed the hospital as a square with open space in the centre, but the fourth side was never built, probably due to spiralling costs.
Fort Rowner - tour at 9.45am; 11.15am; 2pm; 3.30pm
Fort Rowner along with sister forts, Grange and Brockhurst, were designed by William Crossman. Built in 1859, it is an early example of the polygonal fort and served much of its life as an army barracks. It was used to prepare troops for the Boer War and in 1946 became part of HMS Siskin and in 1956 part of HMS Sultan.
Institute of Naval Medicine - tour at 10am and 12.30pm
The development of the Institute of Naval Medicine can be traced back to 1948 when the Royal Naval Medical School was established in Monckton House, a mid 19th century gentleman’s residence. Now a Grade 2 listed building it contains around 5,000 books, most of which came from the Library established at the Royal Naval Hospital at Haslar in 1827.
Holy Trinity Church - Open between 10am and 3pm
Holy Trinity was consecrated in September 1696 by the Bishop of Winchester, Peter Mews. Work was carried out on the west facade and the east end was also extended. In the late nineteenth century architect Sir Arthur Blomfield designed a detached brick bell tower, which was to become a landmark for generations of sea captains.
Priddy’s Hard Explosion! Museum
In 1769 the Board of Ordnance decided, for safety reasons, to relocate the gunpowder stores from Portsmouth to Priddy's Hard, and construction of a powder magazine commenced. Completed together with an office, cooperage and an adjoining camber basin, the first powder barrels were moved to Priddy's Hard from Portsmouth's Square Tower in 1777.
Now home to Explosion! Museum visitors can go behind the scenes of this former Armament depot to see and enjoy the historic C Magazine. The tour will also include Building 309, the Armoury, which contains a unique collection of Small Arms. Weapons on display will include the Kalashnikov 47 assault rifle (AK47) and the Vickers Machine Gun. Building 309 is also home to an impressive selection of larger weaponry including the Polaris Missile and the Mark 10 Mortar.
Admission is by ticket only and is FREE to all locations (does not include entry to Explosion! Museum). Tickets are available from the Tourist Information Centre, Gosport, except for the Priddy’s Hard Explosion! Tour, where tickets should be obtained direct from Explosion!
Members of the Gosport Society, a local heritage group will also be leading walks around historical sites during the Heritage weekend.
- Saturday & Sunday : Royal Clarence Yard 11am and 1pm
- Saturday: Alverstoke Village 4pm
- Sunday: Town Centre & Ferry Gardens 11am.
For more details of Heritage Open Days please contact the Gosport Tourist Information Centre, Bus Station Gosport. Tel: (023) 9252 2944.
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