Maine General Hospital building, Portland, ca. 1876
Contributed by Maine Historical Society
Description
An early photo of Maine General Hospital, designed by architect Francis Fassett. Fassett originally planned for four wings and a central building. When the hospital was dedicated in October of 1874, only one of the wings was complete. The central building followed in 1876 and the west wing in 1892. While many additions have been built in the intervening decades, this original structure is still visible from the Western Prom.
The first patient admitted at this brand new hospital was Henry S. Harding, on November 9, 1874. Most likely, he spent his time on one of the 20-bed, 30-by-80 foot wards, each bed having a gas jet, a venting register, and a shared heating unit. For the sake of cleanliness, the walls had a hard sand finish and simple, dark woodwork. The patient would have had a view of the city from any of the very large twelve windows on the ward. Mr. Harding was not discharged until the following May and was "not relieved" of his condition according to the MGH Patient Discharge Book.
Maine General Hospital is the predecessor of Maine Medical Center.
View additional information about this item on the Maine Memory Network.