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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBryan Hospital1 S3 Bryan Hospital has changed its name 5 times in 67 years. And now we are changing it again. For the last time. Honest. When our hospital was founded in 1931 at the corner of 27th and Regent Street in Bryan, it made sense to call it Bryan Hospital. When we moved to Memorial Drive in 1974, we were called "the NEW Bryan Hospital".And later we adopted the name of our owners: Humana B-CS. When we moved to Rock Prairie Road in College Station in 1987, we became Humana-Brazos Valley After we joined the Columbia system, we chose the name Brazos Valley Medical Center and later, Columbia Medical Center. Now, with new focus on local management and local involvement in the health of our community, we've changed our name again to better identify us with our location. Most hospitals are named after their location, even those which serve multiple towns or counties. We asked lots of local people (business leaders, members of the health care community and our employees) for recommendations.They all said make it local, make it short and make it permanent. Our Board of Trustees selected College Station Medical Center for obvious reasons: it was local, short and permanent. We're proud of the 67 years we've spent providing healthcare to families in this area.And we're proud of our state-of--the-art facility on Rock Prairie Road. And, after the new wears off, we think ~ ~~ ` you will agree that we fmally found a name that will las~~^~ ~(p~ ~t N 1- -s r 1 ~ ~sa•5 parr, a;ea- -1~~315y ~ ~ ~ ,~ 1 sl s.l ~~ COLLEGE STATION MEDICALCENTER 1604 Rock Prairie Road • College Station, Texas 77842-3500 • 409-764-5100 ~SBRYAN HOSPITAL FOUND ro rr~~ G~.oR~r o~ Gon, E ryan Hospital was founded on August 23, 1931 by Dr. L. O. Wilkerson, a prominent surgeon and a pioneer aviator of the time. Dr. Wilkerson, who was trained at Vanderbilt, opened his practice here in 1919. During this time he met and married Edna Wickes of Bryan. In 1921, he served as a medical missionary in China, stud- ied surgery at the Rockefeller Foundation Hospital in Pe- king, and later was given charge of the Southern Baptist Hospital at Cheng Chow A problem with Mrs.Wilkerson's health caused the couple and their one-year old daughter, Sarah Edna, to return to the United States. He opened a practice with Dr. C.A. Searcy in 1925 in"commodious offices with modern conveniences for the accommodation of pa- tients" in the Moehlman Build- ing in downtown Bryan. Dr. Searcy died May 4,1931, a few months before the hospital was completed. HARD TIMES Times were hard in Bryan dur- ing 1931.A special lunch at the LaSalle Hotel Coffee Shoppe cost 50 cents. Bath room was still two words since it referred to a facility "down the hall:' George was King of England, crude oil sold for 70 cents a Dr. i~ilkerson barrel, and A&M played a doubleheader football game with Southwestern (Georgetown) and JohnTarleton (Stephenville). Babe Rush hit 34 homers (Lou Gehring only had 33) and Wards adver- tised "wavy brim felt hats for ladies @$1.95" Professor and Mrs. Geo. Wilcox of College (in those days faculty lived in houses on the campus, thus their address was "college") entertained a party of young men at their home on Friday evening complementing their niece, Miss Frances Adele Cameron. The Palace Theatre was playing "Young as You Feel" starring Will Rogers and the QueenTheater was show- ing Clark Gable's newest film,"Sporting Blood," which was billed thusly:"It ranks with Big Parade for heart throbs and Ben Hur for thrills.. DEDICATED TO THE GLORY OF GOD The two-story clinic and hospital building at 27th and Re- gent Street (just east of the current Bryan Public Library) cost $35,000, a tidy sum for the day. Funds for the hospital were not available from local banks so a wealthy cotton broker advanced the money to Dr. Wilkerson with the understanding that the building be located near the South- ern Pacific depot (so if the hospital failed, the building could be converted into a boarding house for travelers). The white marble facade of the original building is still visible in the structure now used as an annex to the Brazos County Courthouse. Dr. Wilkerson was joined by Dr. Turner T Walton (a family practitioner and the son of T. O. Walton, the president of the A&M College); and Dr. Sid Perry, a specialist who dealt with ear, eye, nose and throat diseases. "All equipment will be of the latest and most efficient type," the doctors announced. "All ~ the main fields in modern medical practice will be in- cluded including a first floor general client and a 17-bed hospital on the second floor...plus operating rooms, X- ray and laboratory equipment. All ward and room furnishings and Dr. Searcy are of the latest designs, em- bodying the newest in adjust- ments for the comfort and care of patients..:' At the dedication ceremony, Wilkerson placed a bronze plate in the hospital foyer that read, "This clinic is dedi- cated to the glory of God and the service of our fellow man. In memory of my mother, Ora Belle Wilkerson:' Ora Belle's granddaughter, Sarah Holmgreen, salvaged the marker when the hospital building was sold and has loaned it to College Station Medical Center for their historical dis- play center. FAMILIES LIVED IN PATIENT ROOMS Mrs. Holmgreen and her brother, Lonnie Otto Jr., lived with their family in hospital rooms on the second floor as d the other doctors' families, which included Dr. & Mrs. Walton and their children Turner Jr. and Jean (Vilas); and Special Advertising Section ICED IN ZSS 1 931 a DEDICATED .:~v~c~ ro FE~~ow Mnr~ Sarah Wilkerson Holmgreen Sid and Ila Perry and their children, Anna Belle and Sid Jr. The families did not cook, be- cause they were fed from the hospital kitchen. By 1933, the h o s p i t a l needed more space for pa- tients so the doctors' fami- lies moved to "real" homes in town. Mean- while, the hospital continued to grow and grow In 1943, the facility was sold to Dr. S. C. Richardson and renamed Bryan Hospital. The hospital was then sold to a group of local doctors and enlarged in 1951 (the red brick additions are visible at the 27th Street site). FIRST TRUSTEES In 1970, Extendicare bought the Bryan Hospital and in 1974 moved the operations to a new, modern facility on Memo- rial Drive.The new building cost $2.5 million and was re- dedicated as the NEW Bryan Hospital.A local Board ofTrust- ees was established to advise hospital management. That first Board included Jerry Barton, Ruben Bond, Charles Cargill, Linton Jones, Pat Lackey, Dr. H. D. Pope, Bob Spearman, and Bob Wood. In 1980, Humana Corporation bought the hospital from Extendicare and in 1983 renamed the facility Humana Hospital-Bryan-College Station. In 1987, Humana purchased a 25-acre tract of grassland on Rock Prairie Road and constructed a 100,000 square-foot, $20 million medical center.At the dedication in April of that year, the name was changed to Humana-Brazos Valley. The dedicatory speaker reminded well-wishers that be- fore this opening, one could not be born or die in College Station. "This new facility in our university town offers all general hospital services -even cardiac care," it was noted. When Humana (Galen) merged with Columbia/Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) in 1993, the hospital adopted a new name: Brazos Valley Medical Center. A national branding campaign prompted another name change in 1996 and the facility became know as Columbia Medical Center. And in 1998, Columbia "spun off" and sold various hospi- tals and nursing care centers. Every business was urged to find a local name, refocus on local needs, and become a more significant participant in the health of the commu- nity it served. After a month of interviews, focus groups, and discussions with all the stakeholders in the health care of the two cities and the surrounding areas, the local Board of Trustees adopted College Station Medical Center as the next (and hopefully, the last) name for the organization. LINK WITH OUR LOCATION "We wanted a name that told people where we were," said Tom Jackson, chief executive officer of the Medical Cen- ter. "We are very proud of our location and our long asso- ciation with the people of Bryan and now College Station. continued on next page ~, ~, . .. lam.. ~. ,~ ~` _ n ~' ~..,.~ ~~ The Original Hospital on 27th and Regent Special Advertising Section ~~'IME LINE Hospital on Rock Prairie Road in College Station, Texas 1 ~~ 1 Founded by Dr. L. O. Wilkerson (27th & Regent Street, Bryan) 19.35: Sisters of Charity huy Ehlinger, Crant Clinic (renamed St. Joseph Hospital) 1 ~C ~ Dr. Wilkerson sells to Dr. S. C. Richardson (renamed Bryan Hospital) l.9.51. Bryan Hospital expands (red brick addition) and sold to local doctors 19`0 Bryan Hospital sells to Extendicare 197 Bryan Hospital moves to Memorial Drive (called NEW Bryan Hospital) 19$0 Extendicare sells Bryan Hospital to Humana 1 ~$~ Bryan Hospital renamed Humana Hospital B-CS 1987 Humana moves to Rock Prairie Road in College Station,renamed Humana Hospital- Brazos Valley 1987 First Cardiac Catheterization Lab in region opens at Humana-Brazos Valley 1 ~)j Humana (Galen) merges with Columbia/ HCA, renamed Brazos Valley Medical Center 195 Cardiac Cath Lab expands 1 X96 Renamed Columbia Medical Center 1997 Open heart (cardiovascular) program begins 1)9f3 Spun off from Columbia/Nashville, refocuses on local service, local management Continued After some study, we discovered that most hospitals link their name to their community notwithstanding their mission to serve a group of cities or counties. Some people urged us to use our address in our name but we could not be sure that out-of-towners would know where Rock Prai rie Medical Center was situated. With Texas A&M's glori- ous reputation and the growing awareness of the George Bush Presidential Library, the up and coming medical school here and a thousand other points of light, we think just about everyone on the planet knows about College Station. We are here to serve everyone but we are located in College Station. We think that name will last and we hope to add luster to the city's already outstanding reputa- tion as well as save money by not repainting our signs anymore.." 5 NAMES, 3 BUILDINGS, 2 TOWNS In sixty-seven years, the Medical Center has changed its name five times, occupied three buildings in two cities, worked side by side with some outstanding doctors, nurses and technicians, walked the floor with expectant fathers, consoled worried families, rejoiced with patients when the news was good and shared the burden when tragedy came. The journey toward good health and extended life is far from complete but the goal is ever closer. Science and dedication are sure to find answers to mankind's quest for long, productive life no matter what. And as this community grows as a center for excellent health care, College Station Medical Center is striving to be at the heart of the matter. ,Joe Buser, who wrote this article, is a professional writer and a student of the history of Bryan-College Station. 1604 Rock Prairie Road • P.O. Box 10000 College Station, Texas 77842-3520 (409) 764-5100 Special Advertising Section