When Death Came Calling Salem County Needed a Hospital

Continued from Part I – The Flu of 1918 Shutdown Salem County

Now is the time for a hospital.  That is what the Salem Sunbeam pointed out as life returned to normal.  The suffering and the tragedies which visited the county had demonstrated the need for a well-equipped local hospital.  “We have been shown that when it is necessary we can provide a hospital and take care of those who would otherwise have suffered much more than they did.  The Emergency Hospital was a means of saving life, but how much easier would it have been if this work and how much more could have accomplished if there was a permanent hospital,” the editor asked. ((“Now for a Hospital,”  Salem Sunbeam, October 18, 1918 ))

It had been impossible to tell the actual number of deaths in the county, but at Carney’s Point and Penn’s Grove there were more than 30 deaths, the editor observed.  The emergency hospital at Carney’s Point was taxed to its utmost, and several months ago Judge Waddington made a suggestion along these lines to the Board of Chosen Freeholders, but no action was taken.  That we must have a hospital is becoming more apparent every day. And the people are ready for it.  No matter what plan is adopted what is needed is a start.  The rest will come in good time. (( Ibid ))

Salem County Needs a Permanent Hospital

As troops returned home from Europe, the movement to establish a hospital grew.  But the sponsors of the Salem County Memorial Hospital had a “hard road to Hoe,” according to the Elmer Times.  In addition to financing the undertaking, there was “the exceptionally bothering question of location and style of building,” as the organizers considered how to balance the needs of the western and eastern regions.  If placed in Salem, it would be of little service to the opposite side of the County as Bridgeton and Vineland Hospitals are much more convenient, and if a patient was to be taken by train, it was a quick ride to Camden Hospitals, the paper observed.  On account of these barriers of geography, it was hard to raise enough enthusiasm to start the project. (( Timely Topics:  Editorial Opinion on Matters of Moment.” Elmer Times, 7 Feb. 1919, p. 1. ))

Also, rather than being placed in a municipality, it was thought it should be out in the open.  The wide-awake Chamber of Commerce in Woodstown secured an offer of four acres on the old Woodstown Race Track free, and the Borough pledged $30,000.  This advantage of a central location and admirable surroundings appealed to many.   But the Salem newspaper editor noted that it was an advantage to have it in the city because of the ready access to physicians at all times, and also the ability to retain nurses and aides.  Besides, it would take two years to erect a new building. (( Ibid ))

An option had been procured on the old Ford Hotel in Salem, and William H. Chew, the chairman of the campaign, was forceful in his appeal for this location.  He was convinced that any other site would be beyond financial reach.  Another argument for Salem City was its manufacturing interests.  Also, it was the center of the population (if not of the territory), especially when considering the riverfront settlements between there and Penns Grove, as a vast majority of all the emergency patients would come from this developed area.

When a meeting was held in Penns Grove, an “animated discussion” about the site in Salem City took place.  Since the people of Salem had gone so far with the project, it was a pity that this matter of local pride and prejudice should interfere with the work, Mr. C. E. Wood replied.  “Salem is the logical location for such an institution.  The county seat and the hospital is a matter in which all the people of the county should be interested.” 

Salem County Hospital Difficulties Resolved

These difficulties were soon worked out and ten months after peace was declared, 2,000 people from all parts of the County turned out for the dedication of the fine memorial for heroes, The Salem County Memorial Hospital.  It was a glorious tribute dedicated to the “memory of those who remained in France and those who returned, the Salem Sunbeam reported.  The old Fort Hotel was a “stately mansion for the sick and suffering.”

The hospital opened for the reception of patients Monday morning with Miss Jane D. Nicholson, superintendent, and Miss Josephine Elwell and Miss Alma Baker, assistants.  It was declared by the physicians who toured the building that few hospitals had ever been opened with such complete furnishings, down to the smallest detail.  Mrs. Gilbert Barr of du Pont City was the first patient to enter on Monday.  She gave birth to a fine boy at 9:15 on Tuesday morning. Dr. W. H. James of Pennsville was the physician in charge.  Also on Monday, Frank I. Morrison, came to be treated for an accidental gunshot wound in the hand and on Tuesday John Riley; while painting a roof in Salem was severely bruised in a 20-foot fall.  Chester H. Spicer and Rev. Hyman were also there for repairs on Tuesday. (( “Salem’s Fine Memorial, Salem County Was First in War; First in Dedicating a Memorial,”  Penn’s Grove Record, September 5, 1919, p.1 ))

The deadly pandemic brought a lasting improvement to Salem County.  Following the devastation that shattered so many lives, Salem County established a permanent hospital better to prepare the community for future public health emergencies and provide efficient inpatient care for the growing community while dedicating it to the community’s World War I heroes.   Salem had been the first to answer the call and the first to establish a memorial that continues to serve the residents of the area today.

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A version of this article originally appeared in the Newsletter of the Salem County Historical Society in the summer of 2019