11/27/2022
Hospital meeting - June 17th 1893
Minutes from hospital records.
The proceedings were started by the election of Mr. J.F. Armstrong to the chair. He briefly pointed out the need of a hospital for Golden and that the government had made a grant towards the maintenance of such an institution in the East Kootenay country. This grant was to expire on September 1st, so prompt action should be taken in the matter. Donald had decided not to repair its hospital building. It is well known that this district has been sadly neglected in this respect, and as our progress advances, and our population increases, we do feel the need of a hospital and a doctor.
The speaker expressed a wish that our Donald, Beaver, Field, Palliser, Fort Steele, Wasa, and Windermere friends work for the good of the cause and make a personal canvas for subscriptions and other purposes and generally assist with our main object, that of placing ourselves in a position to help the sick and needy.
Nearly $700 towards the required amount has already been promised in the district of Golden, and this is without any canvas.
The meeting considered that the best site would be the government ground on the other side of the bridge which crosses the Kicking Horse River.
The Golden Hospital Society was established in 1893. Fees were set at $1.00 per month or $10 per year, for which some full medical and hospital care was provided for paid up members. In 1927, the fee was increased to $1.25 a month or $12.50 per year. The local lumber companies used a payroll deduction plan for their employees. For many years the 600 men employed by the CPR where the mainstay of this plan.
It was not long before the building was used to its capacity of nine patients, and in 1906, a veranda was built on the front and often used in the busy summer months for extra beds.
This building contained two wards downstairs and one upstairs, a surgery, bathroom, kitchen, nurses quarters and dining room, while wide hallways held cupboards for supplies and laundry. The land, a crown grant, provided large and beautiful grounds. On these grounds were an ice house, a morgue, an sheds of many descriptions. A cabin for the janitors stood near the channel of the Kicking Horse River. A tall flagpole stood in front of the building and this was moved to the Civic Centre in 1958, for the raising of the Centennial flag.
One janitor, George Murray, kept cows and cultivated a vegetable garden, while the cook Sam, looked after chickens, so patients were well supplied with fresh produce.
In reviewing the hospital records, it is interesting to note the areas served by the Golden Hospital in 1894. These were Barr’s camp, Ottertail, Palliser, Beaver, Windermere, Good’s camp, Moberly, Donald, canal flats, Profue’s camp, Milligan’s camp, McCardel’s camp, Bubar’s camp, Peacock’s, McLaughlin’s, Harrison’s, Schunter’s, and Firland’s.
The attached photograph shows the General Hospital left and the Women's Hospital to the right. Photo credit Golden Museum P5339.
