The History of the Almonte General Hospital in 1970

Eighteen Historic Plaques from the Lobby of the Almonte General Hospital Thanks to Sarah More

July 1970

Almonte General Hospital continues a service to Almonte and surrounding communities which has been most significant over many years. A fully accredited publicly operated hospital, it was opened officially on May 31st, 1901, replacing the Rosamond Memorial Hospital, which had served these communities since 1907. Hospital service in this whole area really began as a result of the efforts of one, Mrs. Alex Rosamond in 1903. 

In that year, Mrs. Rosamond organized the Alexandra Club to assist the Victorian Order of Nurses in providing nursing care in the Town and District. The Hospital, called the Victoria Hospital, opened in 1904 with two private rooms and a ward with two beds. It was soon found that more care was necessary than what could be carried out in the Hospital and homes and the Cottage Hospital concept was developed. After several makeshift arrangements in homes the Rosamond Hospital was “created” in 1907. In organizing the Alexandra Club, Mrs. Rosamond made house-to-house canvases for young women as members. 

The Club was named in honour of Queen Alexandra, who was interested in organizing and working in hospitals A strong Executive was formed and again a house-to-house canvass was made for funds to “create” the hospital.

Memorial plaques from the Rosamond Memorial Hospital were transferred and mounted in the main entrance of the Almonte General Hospital. Prominent among these are two which testify to the early history of hospital services in this area. 

Eighteen Historic Plaques from the Lobby of the Almonte General Hospital Thanks to Sarah More

“In memory of Mary E. Cotton, died April 3rd, 1950, Wife of the late Alexander Rosamond. She was the Founder and Charter member of the Alexandra Club Club founded April 25th, 1903.  ‘Rosamond Memorial Hospital, Almonte.

 In connection with the Victoria Order of purses for Canada. Created A.D. 1907.” Two more recent plaques testify to the incentive and effort which resulted in the construction of the modern hospital in Almonte. ■ T he first campaign towards the new hospital was centred around the concept of a memorial to the Late Dr. Jam es Naismith and there is a plaque mounted in his ; memory. The Late Dr. John R. Fraser was Honorary Chairman of the Committee which led to the completion of the new building in 1961. 

Acting with him as Chairman was Col. E. D. Taylor with a committee including Dr. E. F. Johnston, R. A. Stewart and P. W. The plaque in the hospital in memory of Dr Fraser testifies to his optimistic enthusiasm which refused to hesitate in face of the many difficulties which faced the Committee at that time. The Women’s Auxiliary of the Almonte General Hospital carrier on the work so ably started by the Alexandra Club as a dream of one of our earlier pioneers. Community support is of vital importance in the continuing operation of a public hospital. Almonte and area have indeed been fortunate over the years to have such dedicated support as was given by the pioneers in the hospital service field and to have this support continued in the Interests of better service to the people of this community. 

Mr. Hugh Duncan, Chairman, and Mr, Doug Kells, Secretary, of the Board of Directors of the Almonte General hospital and Mrs. Caroline Tosh, Superintendent, would welcome a visit by anyone interested in seeing first-hand this modern facility which, in cooperation with our excellent Medical staff, provides first-class hospital care for the sick from this district.

The Almonte Hospital Hoopla

So What was the Almonte Cottage Victorian Hospital?

Union Almonte and Ramsay Contagious Hospital — “The Pest House”

Eighteen Historic Plaques from the Lobby of the Almonte General Hospital

Rosamond and Victoria Mill — Rosamond Journey from Carleton Place to Almonte

The General Hospital 1867-1929 Photos — Simpson Books

The General Hospital 1867-1929 Photos — Simpson Books

Thanks to Ed and Shirley Simpson I am slowly going though boxes of books from the late Ed Simpson to document and after will be donated to a proper spot-Ed and Shirley’s Simpson –Historic Books — the List —

CLIPPED FROM
The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada09 Feb 1929, Sat  •  Page 35

CLIPPED FROM
The Ottawa Journal
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada20 Aug 1904, Sat  •  Page 11

also read-“Dominique, nique, nique s’en allait tout simplement”–The Pembroke Grey Nuns

Interesting advertising page fromthe booklet

David Jeanes
This part of the hospital was originally built in 1927-29 as a separate building on the east side of Parent Avenue which then ran through the hospital campus. Today it is connected to the rest of the hospital by a wing on Bruyère Street. Also two more floors were added to this building. You can still view it from the north side on Cathcart Street.–

Maybe We Should Film Oak Island in Carleton Place? The Day the Money Disappeared

Names Names Names — Local Donation List – The Carleton County Protestant General Hospital

Union Almonte and Ramsay Contagious Hospital — “The Pest House”

Becoming a Nurse — Rosamond Memorial Hospital

Dark Moments in Ottawa History- Porter Island

So What was the Almonte Cottage Victorian Hospital?

Documenting Fran Rintoul — Carleton Place District and Memorial Hospital 1988

1988 Carleton Place Canadian

What’s in the Cornerstone at the Carleton Place Hospital?

Clippings of the Opening of the Carleton Place Hospital February 14 1955

Chuck Norris Does Live in Carleton Place—Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital (CPDMH) Auxiliary

Sitting in the Emergency Ward at the Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital

Maybe We Should Film Oak Island in Carleton Place? The Day the Money Disappeared

1980 Statistics for The Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital

The Day We Lost Hand in Carleton Place — Carleton Place District and Memorial Hospital

What Did it Cost to Stay in the Hospital?

1920 St. Vincent de Paul

 

Lost Ottawa Photo

 Nuns of the Sisters of Charity of St. Paul, on the lawn of 1153 Wellington Street in Hintonburg, the site of the St. George’s Home for Boys. This “home” was a basically a distribution for boys removed from industrial cities — and often their families — in England. The boys would then become indentured labor, mostly on Canadian farms, until they reached the age of 18.

As many as 100,000 boys and girls were transported to Canada by Catholic and Protestant organization between 1869 and 1935, when this home was closed. (LAC Topley 106034)

 

1920  St Francis General Hospital–The Abandoned Smiths Falls Hospital 2011

Carleton Place Hospital 1958 Thanks God for Blue Cross

 

Photos of the hospital bills from the McRae family

Information where you can buy all Linda Seccaspina’s books-You can also read Linda in The Townships Sun andScreamin’ Mamas (USA)

Come and visit the Lanark County Genealogical Society Facebook page– what’s there? Cool old photos–and lots of things interesting to read. Also check out The Tales of Carleton Place.

What’s in the Cornerstone at the Carleton Place Hospital?

The Abandoned Smiths Falls Hospital 2011

Clippings of the Opening of the Carleton Place Hospital February 14 1955

Chuck Norris Does Live in Carleton Place—Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital (CPDMH) Auxiliary

Sitting in the Emergency Ward at the Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital

Maybe We Should Film Oak Island in Carleton Place? The Day the Money Disappeared

1980 Statistics for The Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital

The Day We Lost Hand in Carleton Place — Carleton Place District and Memorial Hospital

What’s in the Cornerstone at the Carleton Place Hospital?

Second in a memory series thanks to the CPDMH 

Thanks to the Women’s Auxiliary  we know what is inside the cornerstone of the Carleton Place & District Hospital. Time capsules can be pretty boring. But time capsule nerds like me live for those rare capsules with something really cool inside.  Did you know that construction crews in Indiana were shocked to discover a time capsule from 1958 at a former mental hospital. The most exciting part? It contained a film with a message to the future–a message about electroshock therapy and psychiatric drugs. Based on the audio that’s survived, they’re talking about some pretty heavy things: electroshock therapy, and the “problems of the future.”google image

In 1957 this is how many people used the Carleton Place & District Hospital. hospital. Can you imagine how many people use it now?

Clippings of the Opening of the Carleton Place Hospital February 14 1955

Chuck Norris Does Live in Carleton Place—Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital (CPDMH) Auxiliary

Sitting in the Emergency Ward at the Carleton Place & District Memorial Hospital

Maybe We Should Film Oak Island in Carleton Place? The Day the Money Disappeared

1980 Statistics for The Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital

The Day We Lost Hand in Carleton Place — Carleton Place District and Memorial Hospital

The Abandoned Smiths Falls Hospital 2011

W.H. Kerfoot

Year/Format: 1910, Picture

Debi Cavanagh Sparks– The photo is of St Francis hospital, now the Smiths Falls site of the Perth, Smiths Falls Hospital. The Chamber St hospital then eventually known at the north unit hospital was abandoned and then eventually torn down and the property is still for sale.

This was found online posted at 10/8/2011 1:34 AM by- Sweets

A few friends and I decided to visit the old abandoned hospital about an hour or two before the sun was going down (great light!) to take pictures. When we got there, three young girls were standing outside giggling (maybe 12 years old)
They told us that the building is haunted and wouldn’t go in. Someone else must have been there recently because one of the doors was wide open. Anyways we explored the floors (not the basement though.. I wish we would have). They mostly were all the same.. empty rooms maybe some curtains, a lot of peeling paint, a few toilets and bathtubs. When we got to the top floor it was covered in dead birds so we didn’t explore that floor either. A little further up there

One of the bathrooms

a better view of how large the building is

hallway

this was one of the areas that was not just a normal room. It must have been either a common room or for the staff, I think across the hall or somewhere near was another area that looked like it might have been a kitchen

Vintage Smiths Falls & Perth

March 10, 2020  · 

Smiths Falls-St. Francis General Hospital c1955

Colleen Kenny

 The whole South unit sat empty for many many years was vandalized and stripped of all it’s copper fittings and things finally the town convince the people that owned it at the time they needed to tear it down as it was dangerous. The new hospital is wonderful state of the art and what is now classified as a Perth and Smith Falls Hospital as the two hospitals amalgamated about 20 years ago. State of the art surgical theatres in both hospitals we even have our own CAT scan machine and lots of specialists come to either hospital in the city which makes driving for appointments a lot easierOur little town has certainly grown.

On May 16, 1910, Mrs. Mary E. Chambers donated a parcel of land to the town of Smith’s Falls. On this parcel of land the town built a hospital designed by local architect G.T Martin and constructed by John Davidson for a contracted price of $29,000. Money to build the hospital was raised by the town council and members of the town.

The hospital was named The Chambers Hospital out of respect for Mrs. Chamber’s deceased husband and son. It opened in 1912 with a capacity of 45-50 beds. The original building was a two-storey structure with basement built of Milton terra cotta brick. The front of the property had a three-storey veranda with Ionic capped columns.

The north-west corner contained a small sun parlor for the children’s ward and a two-storey sun parlor on the south side. Floors were constructed of oiled hard-wood.

To prevent fire, fire hoses connected to the town’s water system were located at each end of the main hall. Each floor also had six pails full of water (before the invention of the fire extinguisher).

The main corridor housed the anaesthetic room, operating room, sterilizing room, doctor’s wash-up room and doctor’s dressing room. Three of the rooms were built with floor tiles that extended eight inches up the walls. This allowed the rooms to be washed out by hose with the waste carried away to drains.

The basement housed the nurse’s dining room and rooms for the cook, housemaids and caretaker. A dumb waiter ran from the kitchen to the top of the building.

Extensive renovations were carried out in 1958 which brought the number of beds to 94. In 1968 further renovations were undertaken to bring the patient capacity to 100 beds.

With budget cost-cutting on their minds, in 1975 the Ontario Government looked into whether operating two hospitals was necessary. After much dispute the Sisters of Providence agreed to sell the St. Francis Hospital to the Ontario Government on July 16, 1975. The two hospitals were amalgamated to become the Smith’s Falls Community Hospital. The former St. Francis Hospital became the North Unit which focused on active treatment care while the Chambers Hospital became the South Unit which focused on chronic care and rehabilitation.

On March 31, 1995 the hospital was again amalgamated, this time with the Great War Memorial Hospital of Perth District (GWM Site). The merger formed a new corporation called the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital. The merger has facilitated the rationalization of inpatient and outpatient services across the two hospital sites, which are separated by a distance of 20 km.

Sources: Canadian Builder March 1913, vol 3 Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital

One lingering question is when the demolition of the original homestead occurred, which sat between the powerhouse and the 1958 addition – it is plainly visible from the scar on the two buildings and foundation ruins where it used to sit.

Regardless, the final change for the South Unit came in 1995, when the Smiths Falls Community Hospital merged with The Great War Memorial Hospital in Perth, located 23km to the west of town. After the amalgamation, it was decided that only one hospital needed to remain operational; and that was the North Unit. The South Unit was shuttered and left to rot away, despite attempts to sell it as office space.

Related reading:—

Photographer Finds Money in a Local Abandoned Home

The Abandoned Farm House in Carleton Place — Disappearing Farms

The Church that Died

Inside the Old Honey Pot — The Henderson Apiaries Carleton Place

Burning Down the House — Literally in Lanark County

Investigating the Basement of the Carleton Place Canadian – If These Walls Could Talk

Channeling John Gillies