Stoke Military Hospital
Coordinates: 50°22′23″N 4°09′43″W / 50.373°N 4.162°W
| Stoke Damerel Military Hospital | |
|---|---|
|
South prospect of the former Devonport/Stoke Damerel Military Hospital, facing the creek | |
| Active | 1797–1945 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Medical Care |
| Role | Hospital |
Stoke Damerel (aka Devonport) Military Hospital in Plymouth, England, was completed in 1797. It was built for the British Army on the north side of Stonehouse Creek, to match the Royal Naval hospital on the south side. The workforce was made up of Napoleonic prisoners of war who were housed in prison ships on the Hamoaze. The Stonehouse Creek was later filled in during the 1960s to become Victoria Park, The Stonehouse Sharks Junior Rugby Team's grounds and The playing fields of Devonport High School for Boys.
The hospital was used by the army for 148 years, until the end of World War II in 1945. At this time Devonport High School for Boys returned from wartime evacuation and took over the buildings.
Before the hospital became Devonport High School for Boys part of it was Tamar High School. Both schools were approached by a central driveway from Paradise Road, with Devonport High to the left and Tamar High to the right. Tamar's motto was "The best is yet to be"; Tamar was a school strong in sport and admitted girls for the first time in 1973. Tamar closed after the 1988–89 academic year and was absorbed into Devonport High School, which also acquired the property. The admission of female sixth-formers from Tamar High to Devonport Boys' sixth form was the first time female students had been admitted to the previously male-only Devonport High.