William Knapp - Letters from Haslar
Patient Admitted to Ward 30 Haslar March 1869
The following is an account of the admission of William Knapp a Coastguard. Stationed at St Alban’s Head, Worth Matravers, Dorset.
Letter pictured above reads as follows:
Haslar Hospital
18th February 1869
My Dearest Wife
I write these few lines to you in answer to your kind and welcome letter that I received from you. Now my dear I will tell you what came into my mind when I could not get a letter. I thought that you were so weak that you died in labour and that they would not write and tell me about it and I could not get it out of my mind until I got a letter from you and then my mind was put at rest thank God for it. My dearest wife I am thankful to hear that dear mother and my dear children are all quite well thanks be to God for it. Tell Will he must be a good boy and learn his books and do what mother tells him. My Mary she must be a good child and do what she is told. I suppose she can sew by this time and do anything pretty well. Allice she must be a good child and learn her letters. Let me know how Emma Louisa is, whether mother has turned her out of bed or not yet. You must let me know all their characters when you write again. I know my dear you must be very helpless by this time. I suppose you can scarce get about but my dear you must wait God’s appointed time and trust Him, he will help you through it all. As for myself, I am getting stronger than I have been. I am getting two good large glasses of port wine, a pint and half of beer a day and a pint of lime juice and in case taking 3 ounces of cod liver oil a day. (They say) cod liver oil is the best thing to kill the abscess there is going. I wish you had the wine, I would gladly give it up. W hen I was taking of it last night and I thought you had none I do not know (how) I felt. Give my love to dear mother and Mrs Syms and all friends. Now my dear with my heart full of love, hoping the Lord will bring you safe through all your trouble is the prayers of your affectionate husband
William Knapp
The Lord be with you all
• At this time William is 7, Mary is 6, Alice is 4 and Emma Louisa is about 18 months. Emma is 36 and is nearly at term in her pregnancy. Perhaps Emma Louisa had been sleeping wit h her Grandmother in the same bed?
With Letters written between January – March 1869 from Haslar Hospital by William to his wife who was expecting a child an addition to their family.
St Alban’s Head is the most southerly aspect of the Purbeck Peninsula and a Coastguard Station and houses were part of the Peninsula.
There are 19 Haslar Hospital Letters and notes
Eric C Birbeck MVO
Grateful to Julie Alderman and family for permission to tell William’s Story and the provision of letters, certificate and photo of William Knapp’s son Thomas.