Frank James Hospital

Frank James Hospital
The hospital when it was known as the Frank James Cottage Hospital
General information
Architectural style	Dutch
Town or city	East Cowes, Isle of Wight
Country	England
Coordinates	50°45′19″N 1°17′09″W / 50.75531°N 1.285726°W / 50.75531; -1.285726
Construction started	1903
Client	William and Arthur James
Technical details
Structural system	Brick
Design and construction
Architect	Somers Clarke & John Thomas Micklethwaite

The Frank James Hospital is a currently closed hospital in Adelaide Grove, East Cowes on the Isle of Wight. It was sold by the NHS Trust in 2002 and since then, it has had ownership issues, which has led to its vandalism and disrepair. The building is currently on the endangered buildings list for the United Kingdom. It has a central block with two projecting wings and a verandah to the ground floor on all sides. It is built of red brick, with a tiled roof and has been Grade II listed since 1979.

The building was constructed in 1893, as a home for retired seamen and was originally called the Frank James Memorial Home. It was commissioned by William and Arthur James as a memorial to their brother, Frank Linsly James, eldest son of the New York entrepreneur Daniel James and his wife Sophia, who ran the British arm of their company Phelps Dodge from Liverpool. The building was designed in a Dutch Style by Somers Clarke.

In 1903, the home was transformed into a cottage hospital, with its running costs paid for by charitable donations. It was eventually absorbed into the National Health Service in 1948, before finally closing in 2002. Between then and now, it has been laying empty and gradually deteriorating.

In March 2012, an action group was formed called the "Friends of Frank James", with the aim of saving and preserving the Frank James Hospital for future generations. They have had the support of Isle of Wight MP Andrew Turner. The group's aim is to push for action, to prevent the building being lost forever.

Frank Linsly James was born in Liverpool in 1851, into an extremely wealthy family, headed by the American businessman Daniel James, who ran the British arm of his company Phelps Dodge from there. Frank later attended Cambridge University and was described as being a universal favourite in London society and a member of many leading societies there.