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Guide to the Shadyside Hospital Records, 1852-2008, MSS 1203

Arrangement

Metadata Details

Title
Shadyside Hospital Records, 1852-2008
Subject
McClelland, James Henderson, -- 1845-1913, Homeopathic Hospital of Pittsburgh., Homeopathic Medical Society., Hospitals--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh, Physicians--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh, Nursing schools--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh, Homeopathy--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh, Medical care--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh
Description
Shadyside Hospital has been a part of Pittsburgh’s health care system since 1866 when it was founded as the Homeopathic Medical and Surgical Hospital and Dispensary of Pittsburgh ( commonly known as the Homeopathic Hospital). The hospital changed its name to Shadyside Hospital in 1938. In 1997, the hospital became part of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) organization. The Shadyside Hospital Records contains financial records, meeting minutes, correspondence, newsletters, and photographs of hospital administrators, staff, and supporting organizations., The Shadyside Hospital Records contain meeting minutes, correspondence, employee newsletters, medical publications, and photographs of hospital staff, events, and supporting organizations throughout the hospital’s history. The Homeopathic Hospital of Pittsburgh Records, 1868-1924, MFF 2746, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center, was incorporated into this collection., Physical Characteristics / Technical Requirements: Access to born-digital folders (noted as “Digital”) is available upon request at the computer workstation in the Detre Library and Archives at the Heinz History Center., Materials Separated from the Resource: Peacock, Alexander R. Catalogue of Paintings in the Alexander R. Peacock Collection. Self-published, Rowanlea, 1904. Westinghouse Park: The Suburb Beauty. c. 1890-1920. Artifacts from this donation, including a Homeopathic hospital gavel, syringe and box, sterilizing kit with tray, heated food plate with lid, butter knife, lidded jar, a Congress of the International Council of Nurses pin from the 1947 meeting, a commemorative 125th anniversary token, miscellaneous instruments and Dr. McClelland's medical box are in the museum collection. Two photograph albums and eight photographs were removed and placed in the McClelland Family Papers and Photographs, 1821-1977, MSS 66, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center., Processing Information: Collection processed by Bryan Brown in 2020., Shadyside Hospital Records, 1852-2008, MSS 1203, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center., A portion of the Shadyside Hospital Records have been digitized and are accessible online at https://historicpittsburgh.org/collection/shadyside-hospital-records., Gift from UPMC Shadyside Hospital Foundation via Executive Director Louise Brown on September 12, 2017. Archives accession # 2017.0092., In 1866, three physicians: John C. Burgher, Herman H. Hofmann, and Marcellin Coté, members of the Homeopathic Medical Society of Allegheny County, gathered donations to open a hospital dedicated to homeopathic medicine in Downtown Pittsburgh. On April 4, 1866, the Pennsylvania Legislature granted the hospital’s charter to Burgher. The hospital incorporators created a Board of Trustees to report on the hospital’s operations to financial contributors that included Judge Wilson McCandless, president; William Frew, first vice president; James B. Murray, second vice president; and George Bingham, treasurer. In addition to the Board of Trustees, the hospital incorporators created a governing Executive Committee. The Executive Committee consisted of Trustees responsible for the management of the hospital. The Homeopathic Medical and Surgical Hospital and Dispensary of Pittsburgh opened its doors on July 26, 1866, at 146 Second Avenue (now Boulevard of the Allies near the intersection with Smithfield Street) in Downtown Pittsburgh. The original hospital building was once a school owned by James B. Murray, second vice president of the Board of Trustees. Dr. Coté was elected president of the Executive Committee, a committee of physicians and laypeople to manage and supervise the hospital. The Homeopathic Hospital offered four services to patients: medical, surgical, obstetrics, and an outpatient dispensary. The hospital treated individuals who could not afford medical care as well as paying patients, with patients unable to afford care making up the majority of cases. Due to this, the hospital relied upon charitable donations to purchase supplies needed for patients. In the first year, the hospital admitted 99 patients and treated 1,700 outpatients without charge at the dispensary. With such a high demand for hospital care, the medical staff increased accordingly. Dr. James Henderson McClelland, a graduate of Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia, joined the Homeopathic Hospital’s medical staff in 1868 and would remain a prominent figure with the hospital, serving as Chairman for the Executive Committee from 1882 until his death in 1913. McClelland played a critical role in the hospital as it continued to grow and expand its services. Within the first ten years of existence, the list of prominent donors grew to include William Anderson Herron, mine-owner, banker, real estate investor and civic leader; B. F. Jones, a partner of Jones and Laughlin Great American Iron Works; William Kennedy Nimick of Singer, Nimick and Co.; and Andrew Carnegie. Due to the increase of donations, the hospital was able to purchase materials that provided comfort as well as care to patients. The hospital’s reputation for care and comfort drew in more paying patients. As the hospital treated more patients, space became an issue. By 1876 physicians and members of the Board of Trustees agreed that the forty-bed institution was too small and expansion was needed. Following the aftermath of the 1877 Railroad Strike, the Board of Trustees decided to build a new structure at Second Avenue rather than just an expansion of the existing building. In January 1880, businessman and philanthropist William Thaw served on the Board of Trustees building committee tasked with raising funds for the new hospital building. The new hospital gained contributions of $50,000 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, $50,000 from William Thaw, $15,000 from philanthropist Jane Holmes, $5,000 from Charles J. Clarke, $1,000 from William Metcalf, $1,000 from William Barnes, and $1000 from Colonel James M. Schoonmaker. With these contributions, construction for the new hospital building began. The original Homeopathic Hospital closed its doors to patients in 1882. Construction of the new Homeopathic Hospital completed in 1883, with a “Grand House-warming” event held from December 4 to December 14, 1883. The new hospital was very close to the location of the old building on Second Avenue near Smithfield Street, its northern wing reaching Second Avenue and its southern wing reaching First Avenue. The house-warming event offered members of the community to tour the new facility, purchase food, and partake in pageants and games to raise money for the hospital. The event raised over $23,000 for the hospital. The formal opening of the hospital to patients occurred on April 12, 1884. Following the grand opening in 1884, the new Homeopathic Hospital established the first professional nurses’ training school between Chicago and the East Coast. The Pittsburgh Training School for Nurses admitted its first eight students in 1884. Women in the program trained at the hospital for a 25-month course with lectures in management of the sick room, anatomy, physiology, surgical emergencies, obstetrics, gynecology, and bandaging and dressings. Nursing students worked in the hospital for 12-hour shifts and attended lectures after their shifts. Industrial accidents, automobile and trolley accidents, and diseases like typhoid kept hospital staff busy. To transport patients, the hospital received its first ambulance as a result of a donation from Mrs. Robert Pitcarin in 1888. During the 1890s, the use of antiseptics and sterilizing practices reduced the rate of surgical infections at the hospital, enabling surgeons to treat patients in a sanitary manner. Henry Clay Frick, whose wife Adelaide was a member of the Ladies Association, donated funds to the hospital to purchase equipment necessary for antiseptic surgeries. The hospital's first cesarean operation took place in 1894. Advancements in science led to new developments in medicine. The first X-ray machine in Western Pennsylvania arrived in Pittsburgh’s Homeopathic Hospital in July 1896. In 1898 the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company donated a one-horsepower 125-volt direct current dynamo to the hospital, bringing electricity to the hospital. In 1901 the entire surgical department received a renovation to enlarge and improve equipment. Between 1903 and 1904, anesthetics and pathology arrived at the hospital, improving both treatment and diagnosis of diseases. Due to rising admissions, lack of space, and Downtown Pittsburgh’s population growth, the Board of Trustees sought a new home for the hospital. The hospital’s admission rose from 1,800 in 1897 to 3,000 in 1904. In 1900 more than 21,000 outpatients used the hospital’s dispensary. In 1906 Alexander R. Peacock, a member of the Board of Trustees, donated $25,000 toward the purchase of land at the corner of Centre Avenue and Aiken Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood. Construction for the new hospital began in 1907 with C. Emil Müller as the architect. The new structure was completed in January 1910, dedicated on February 22, and opened its doors to patients on March 1, 1910. The new Homeopathic Hospital's main structure stood at six stories tall with two four-story wings spreading out in opposite directions. Patients admitted to the hospital had a choice of rooms, including private rooms, pay wards for those who could not afford a private room, and charity rooms for those who could not afford to pay for their stay. Charity rooms housed as many as eighteen beds per room and the pay wards held six to eight. With the new hospital in Shadyside, the original downtown hospital remained opened as an emergency branch until 1915. Samuel Dempster of the Gilmore Drug Company purchased the building for $200,000, destroyed the building, and built a warehouse. In 1924 the Equitable Gas Company built its headquarters at 420 Boulevard of the Allies, on top of the site of the former hospital. The company has since moved its headquarters from this building to another downtown. Overcrowding still plagued the Homeopathic Hospital despite its move to Shadyside. The addition of a six-story wing nearly doubled the size of the hospital in 1926 to combat this overcrowding. During the Great Depression, the Homeopathic Hospital saw its private rooms empty and its charity wards filled with patients, offering its private rooms to unemployed graduate nurses in exchange for eight hours of service. James E. MacClowskey Jr., president of the Homeopathic Hospital Board of Trustees, along with other hospital leaders in the area, created the Hospital Service Association of Pittsburgh, a predecessor of Highmark, in 1937 as a voluntary health insurance program to reinvent how patients paid for health care. Due to the diminishing role of homeopathy in the care of patients and the rise of scientific advancements in medical care, the Board of Trustees renamed the hospital Shadyside Hospital in 1938. In addition to the name change, the trustees also created a plan to improve the nursing school and dispensary with a new six-story building. Using the newly created The Voice of Shadyside newsletter to inform donors and gather funds, ground broke for the new building in 1940 and completed the following year. The new facility proved necessary as the nation entered World War II and the need for doctors and nurses intensified, doubling the School of Nursing's enrollment. The expansion of the hospital continued in the 1950s. Construction of the South Wing, fitted with semi-private rooms, and improvements to the main structure started in 1955. Only a few months after this project, Shadyside Hospital received a gift of more than $1.5 million from the estate of Ruth Bailey McMechen after her death for an additional wing. McMechen’s will requested the name of the new wing be the James Madison Bailey Wing, after her father, and focus on treating women. During this time of expansion, Shadyside Hospital kept pace with advances in modern medicine. Improvements to the Physical Therapy Department, X-Ray Department, and Department of Anesthesia, and the introduction of the Department of Nuclear Medicine highlighted the years 1956 and 1957. In 1960, prominent Pittsburgh business leaders created the Hospital Planning Association, an organization dedicated to the oversight of proposed expansions of hospitals in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. The creation of this organization created an external form of oversight and justification for Shadyside Hospital, which relied on donations and internal decisions regarding expansions and improvements. Despite the creation of this new association, Shadyside Hospital broke ground for its current building in 1970. To make room for the new 8-story structure, the hospital razed the original main tower. The current Main Tower admitted its first patient in 1972. Shadyside Hospital continued to advance its medical practices during this time. During the 1960s and 1970s, Shadyside Hospital became known for its cardiology department and cardiac surgeries. In 1973 the hospital opened the Family Health Center to replace the dispensary as a place for those who did not have a regular family physician. In order to assist hospital functions and projects, such as expansions and a gift shop for patients and visitors, Shadyside Hospital had four organizations achieve these goals: the Ladies Association of Shadyside Hospital, the Social Service Board, the Shadyside Hospital Auxiliary, and the Shadyside Hospital Foundation. When the Homeopathic Hospital opened in 1866, the hospital treated individuals who could not afford medical care as well as paying patients, with patients unable to afford care making up the majority of cases. Due to this, the hospital relied upon charitable donations. The Ladies’ Charitable Association (commonly known as the Ladies Association) formed shortly after the opening of the hospital from a group of wives, daughters, and sisters of physicians and trustees. Two Ladies Association members, Mary Copley Thaw and Mary E. Moorhead were the first two women to sit on the Executive Committee. Due to a decrease in membership, the Ladies Association disbanded in June 1999. The second organization designed to assist the hospital was the Social Service Board. Originally under the jurisdiction of the Ladies’ Association as the Junior Auxiliary, the Social Service Board began in 1914 as a volunteer support system for patients leaving the hospital. Members would visit patients’ homes, assist patients to gain admission to convalescent homes, write letters to social agencies and supply post-operation bandages. As the hospital grew, the Social Service Board assumed responsibility for the hospitality shops, such as the Blue Box store, and hospital volunteers. Due to a lack of members, the Social Service Board dissolved in 1995. The third organization responsible for assisting Shadyside Hospital was the Shadyside Auxiliary. Organized in October 1929 from the wives and relatives of the medical staff, the Auxiliary’s primary focus at its inception was the sewing of linens due to the constant need for gowns, sheets for patient beds, covers for operating tables, and wrappings for medical equipment. As membership grew the Auxiliary hosted more fundraising events such as the Christmas Mansion, the Spring Benefit, and the Strawberry Festival. The final organization tasked with supporting hospital functions was the Shadyside Hospital Foundation. In 1975 the Foundation began raising funds for the hospital as a separate organization dedicated to collecting funds on a continuing basis. The Foundation uses donations to support projects for the hospital that are outside the normal budget. With the help of the Foundation, Shadyside Hospital expanded its facilities in 1992 and 2002 with the construction of the Hillman Cancer Center. In 1997 Shadyside Hospital became part of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) network continuing its mission of providing high-quality medical care for the residents of Pittsburgh and the tri-state area. ., McClelland Family Papers and Photographs, 1821-1977, MSS 66, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center Shadyside Hospital and Hillman Cancer Center Materials, 1967-2002, MFF 1827, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center.
Contributor
Shadyside Hospital (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Detre Library & Archives, Heinz History Center (depositor)
Date
1852-2008
Type
Collection
Format
59, 823
Identifier
pitt:US-QQS-mss1203
Language
eng
Relation
https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3AUS-QQS-mss1203/viewer
Coverage
Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Shadyside (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Rights
Copyright Not Evaluated. The copyright and related rights status of this Item has not been evaluated. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/, Copyright Not Evaluated. The copyright and related rights status of this Item has not been evaluated. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
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