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Charleston General Hospital 1907
Charleston General Hospital started life in the late 1880s up on the hill off Piedmont Road and right in front of the Spring Hill Cemetery. It was called Thomas Hospital and Sanitarium at first, but after several changes over the years became Charleston General Hospital. (Notice the nurses standing on the second floor) It closed in 1924 and all patients and equipment was moved to the new hospital built on Elmwood Ave and Brooks Street.
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A wonderful picture of nurses at the very first Charleston General Hospital.
Here she is with a patient. This is the only picture I've ever seen of an actual patient at the old hospital.
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This interesting photo shows the hospital in the background and headstones of Spring Hill Cemetery to it's right. In the late 1800s, circuses would set-up in an empty field between Morris & Brooks St. This part of town was relatively empty at the time. What I find so interesting in all of the pictures of Charleston in the late 1800s and early 1900s is the many Black faces in the crowds. This is only 50 years or so after slavery and yet Blacks appear to be doing very well, appearing at all the shows and entertainment venues this area had to offer. This area never suffered the "Black Question" as so many would have you believe. Racism? Of course, but there's racism in every culture. The Blacks here did relatively well and their community at the time proved it.
CHARLESTON'S CITY PARK After the hospital moved to Elmwood & Brooks Street, the old hospital property was partially turned into a citypark for the citizens of Charleston. It was under the condition that it never be used for anything else.
This is a photo of me in the City Park. I used to ride up there all the time on my new Schwinn Corvettte. Can you believe that this bike had stainless steel fenders? I didn't know that at the time. So how did a poor kid come to own such an expensive and great bike? Simple: My moms boyfriend bought it for me. Heard of bribing the cow to get the calf? This was just the other way around..... ;) TODAY
When I was a young adult, my mom lived at what was then called "City Park Village", a group of high-rise buildings that were erected in the old city park. At the time, City Park Village was THE place to live, with many professionals calling it their residence. Later however, the complex slowly became a HUD property and soon became one of the most notorious addresses in the entire city, with much crime including many murders. It has now been renovated as new HUD housing with better rules and regulations they say. Nurse photos courtesy of Nancy Williams
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