The Edward Hain Memorial Cottage Hospital in St Ives was founded in 1920, following the purchase of Albany House with funds from the Hain Steamship Company. The intention was to create a lasting memorial to Captain Edward Hain, the only son of Sir Edward and Lady Catherine Hain of St Ives, who was tragically killed at Gallipoli in 1915.
The hospital has always been strongly supported by the local community, both from its inception, as well as after it was taken over by the newly-formed National Health Service in 1948. The hospital's League of Friends was formed in the 1960s, and have been unfailing fundraisers ever since. Unfortunately the NHS decided to close the hospital’s wards in 2016, and despite a lengthy campaign to get it re-opened the building was finally deemed 'surplus to requirement' by the NHS at the end of 2021.
Following the closure of the hospital, the Friends faced a decision: either wind the charity up, or continue their long-standing mission of supporting local community healthcare. With the loss of the St Ives Day Centre as well as the hospital, health and social care provision in the town is now considerably worse than it was twenty years ago. So the decision was made: to attempt to purchase the building that has been such a beacon of local care for the past 100 years.
The extended Hain family, now spread worldwide and no longer living in St Ives, are fully supportive of this new initiative by The League of Friends— The Edward Hain Centre project. In a joint statement, they said, “As great-grandchildren of Sir Edward Hain, we fully endorse the commitment to buying Albany House. This building not only commemorates our great-uncle, Captain Edward ‘Teddy’ Hain, but is also a poignant memorial to all the lost sons of St Ives from the First World War. Our great-grandfather gave so much back to the town he loved, but this particular legacy represents the heart and soul of its people and embodies their unshakable sense of community.”
Sir Edward and Lady Hain Teddy Aged 10
