Abbott Hospital, 1717 1st Avenue South
From Placeography
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Abbott Hospital | |
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| Address: | 1717 1st Avenue S |
| Neighborhood/s: | Stevens Square, Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| City/locality- State/province | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| County- State/province: | Hennepin County, Minnesota |
| State/province: | Minnesota |
| Country: | United States |
| Year built: | 1910 |
| Primary Style: | Renaissance Revival |
| Additions: | The adjacent Janney Building to the north was built as a children's ward in 1919, and the more modern Westminster additions in 1929, 1939, and 1957 extended the hospital along 18th Street to Stevens Avenue. |
| Major Alterations: | Some/mostly intact |
| Historic Function: | Hospital |
| Architect or source of design: | William Channing Whitney |
| Material of Exterior Wall Covering: | Brick |
| Material of Roof: | Asphalt |
| Material of Foundation: | Concrete |
In 1902 Dr. Amos Wilson Abbott established a small hospital for women in a former house at 10 East 17th Street. In 1910, grateful for the care Abbott had provided to his wife Kate, industrialist William Dunwoody allocated funds for a new building to be built for Dr. Abbott's hospital. This 1910 hospital building, sometimes called the Dunwoody Building, recognizable by its pitched roof, front balustrade, and rows of windows, sought to maximize natural light in its interior.
In 1919 Thomas Janney had a four-story Children's Hospital constructed on the same block, just north of the Abbott Hospital for Women. The Janney Hospital became a part of Abbott Hospital upon Janney's death in 1921. In 1929, 1939, and 1957, additions funded through the Hospital's affiliation with Westminster Presbyterian Church a few blocks to the north connected the two buildings and extended the hospital along 18th street to Stevens Avenue, and filling an entire city block. The main hospital entrance was moved to 110 East 18th Street, and the entrances on 1st Avenue were closed.
In 1970 Abbott Hospital merged with the similarly-sized Northwestern Hospital on 27th Street and Chicago Avenue, about a mile to the southeast, to become Abbott Northwestern Hospital. For ten years both hospital locations continued care at both locations, but by 1980 the hospital board had agreed to expand and modernize the former Northwestern Hospital location on 27th Street, and consolidate all operations there. The last baby was born in and the last patient moved out of the old Abbott Hospital in 1980.
The former Abbott Hospital buildings housed a long-term and transitional care facility called the Ebenezer Caroline Center from 1980 to 1992, which in the 1990s became the City of Lakes Transitional Care Center, closing in 2004. Since the departure of City of Lakes, the hospital buildings have been vacant.
As characteristic examples of early twentieth century Renaissance Revival architecture in Minneapolis, the Dunwoody and Janney Building portions of the old Abbott Hospital received historic designation from the city of Minneapolis in 1986 as part of the larger Stevens Square Historic District. In 1993 the district, including these buildings, was recognized on the national level by its placement on the National Register of Historic Places. A commemorative plaque on the site acknowledges this designation.Contents |
Memories and stories
Memory
It's a shame to see it in such decay now http://www.flickr.com/photos/25165196@N08/sets/72157624241617726/with/4686886374/
