In partnership with the Maine Memory Network Maine Memory Network

Life on a Tidal River

Ebb and Flow of Bangor History

Bangor: Healthcare Center of Eastern and Central Maine

Text by The 7th Grade Maine Studies Students of the William S. Cohen School.
Images are from Eastern Maine Medical Center and St. Joseph Healthcare.

Eastern Maine Medical Center History

Beginnings

After the public discussed wanting a local hospital, a petition was started in 1891 to open up a hospital which would be called Bangor General Hospital. A public meeting was held to discuss opening the hospital. Many came to the meeting, and seventy people signed the petition, meaning that citizens were expecting a new hospital. The public was looking forward to having a local hospital for their medical needs.

On June 7, 1892 renovation was started on what is now the oldest building in EMMC, the Mace Building. The Mace Building was donated and was located at 489 State Street in Bangor Maine, at the foot of what is now Summit Avenue. Founded by William H. Simmons, William C. Mason, Walter H. Hunt, Everett T. Nealy, and William E. Baxter, the rather small building only consisted of an operating room and a few rooms in which to keep and treat patients. The original building was fairly small for a hospital and it is unbelievable to see how substantially it has grown into a major operation.

The first official name of the hospital was Bangor General Hospital, later being renamed Eastern Maine General Hospital. After the hospital became more popular throughout the years, it began accepting more patients and expanding. This explains why the name was changed from Eastern Maine General Hospital to Eastern Maine Medical Center. This shows how the small operation grew throughout the years to become a major addition to the city of Bangor. In fact, the hospital, at first, was mainly for treating physical problems and less for sicknesses and illnesses. The hospital’s popularity grew as people began to recognize more and more its success with treating an enormous amount of patients. The hospital was chartered by the Maine State Legislature in 1897.


Highlights

As time went on, Eastern Maine Medical Center continued to improve and grow. It started to become more popular as people realized how much of a help the doctors and nurses at the hospital could be to them and their community. It was actually the first general hospital in Bangor, Maine so it was a very important part of the city. More and more patients began turning to the hospital for advice and assistance. There were 50% more patients in 1901 than in 1900 at the hospital. This goes to show how successful the hospital was becoming.

But many people had predicted that the hospital would eventually get more business over time because of all the contagious diseases that were beginning to spread. Some examples of these diseases would be smallpox, yellow fever, and cholera. The hospital staff did their best to cure as many patients as possible, this led to even more publicity for the new hospital. It really started becoming popular in the early 1900s. People were impressed at how efficient the doctors were at caring for the patients no matter how many there were.

On many occasions the amount of patients outnumbered the staff at the hospital, but they still found a way to carry on. Amazingly, the hospital had treated over 150 patients within their first year of service. The doctors and nurses continued to impress as more patients were brought in but they still managed to cure a huge percentage of them. Some of the hospital’s more recent highlights include receiving an A in hospital safety from the Leapfrog Group, beginning the modernization project, and recruiting 21 new physicians to expand the amount of care they can supply. The modernization project is a large-scale construction project that is renovating and adding to the hospital. All of the highlights that this hospital has had in its past are what make it such an amazing addition to our community today.

EMMC Today

Today, EMMC is a huge hospital, ranking as the second largest hospital in Maine, next to Maine Medical Center (MMC) in Portland, Maine. EMMC serves 40% of the population in the state of Maine and is the sixth largest employer in the entire state of Maine. It is now part of Eastern Maine Healthcare System with many clinics and other facilities as well throughout the Bangor area.

EMMC, to this day, remains a non profit hospital and offers many services to the community. These include Advanced Surgical Care of Maine, an Anticoagulation Clinic, CancerCare of Maine, Care Management, Diabetes treatment, Endocrine and Nutrition Center, Digestive Diseases Treatment, Eastern Maine Inpatient Care, Emergency Services, EMMC Lung Cancer Screening Program, EMMC Neurology Specialists, Employee Health, Endoscopy, Epicenter, General Surgery, Hearing Center, Heart Center of Eastern Maine, Imaging Services, Infusion Center, Intensive Care Unit, Interventional Pain Management Clinic, Joint Center, Maine Rehabilitation Center, Men’s Health, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Palliative Care, Patient and Family Centered Care, Patient Blood Management, Pediatric Services, Pelvic Floor Disorder Treatment, Respiratory Medicine, Rheumatology Specialists, Robotically-assisted Surgery, Sleep Center of Maine, Sports Health, Stroke Center, Surgical Navigation, Surgical Weight Loss Program, Vascular Care of Maine, Wellness Services, and Women’s Services. With these services EMMC has been a substantial addition to the greater Bangor community, and it still continues to amaze every day.


St. Joseph Hospital History

Beginnings

Saint Joseph Hospital in Bangor, Maine, is one of the major medical centers in the city. This hospital, which rises adjacent to the street of Broadway, has a history that spans further back in history than the time it was built. The facility has accommodated many patients in the sixty-five years that the new complex was constructed.

The hospital originated as the Paine Private Hospital on Center street, which is around the back of the new hospital. It was established in 1906 by Ellen Paine, and it kept its name until April 29, 1947, when it was renamed Saint Joseph Hospital by the Felician Sisters. The Felician Sisters, who were from Enfield, Connecticut, purchased it then in that particular year.

In the 1950’s, significantly in 1956, the hospital was provided a grant by the Ford Foundation for $130,000. The money was put forth to build two more sections as an extension to the hospital in existence. One of the new departments was a pediatric ward, which is a section for treating diseases and other things in children. The other division became a doctor’s lounge, dressing room, conference room, and library.

Plans for the new facility started to arise in early 1960 and completed blueprints for the new hospital and thoughts were finished within that year. To accommodate the new hospital, the Fleming property was purchased which was also on Center street next to the old hospital. That property was purchased for $20,000, and that meant that the final cost of starting the new section was raised to $33,000. It was October 11, 1964 when the city of Bangor celebrated the dedication of the new medical center of St. Joseph’s Hospital. Later that year the patients of the old hospital were moved to the new one. This was the end of the beginning of the new St. Joseph Hospital.


Recent Developments

St. Joseph Hospital announced the start of a multi-million dollar renovation to the hospital in March of 1993. This renovation would include a new Emergency Department, new rooms for patients and inpatient and outpatient surgical suites. They never actually started the renovation until two years later in September 1995. To start the ball rolling, the renovation officially began when the first wall was knocked down. This construction would go on for about seven years.

The first major project St. Joseph took on was the Emergency Department. This was completed a year later in November of 1996, and another stage of this renovation, the surgical suites, was completed the year after that in March of 1997. They continued to renovate the hospital in areas such as the Pain Management center in 2000 and the renovations to the Radiology Department also completed in 2000. In 2002, there took place a ribbon-cutting-ceremony for the new MRI center in the medical center. This completed the renovations of the hospital to become the one we know today.

The St. Joseph Hospital also has a multitude of clinics and facilities as well. These are mostle located on 900 Broadway, which is called the St. Joseph Healthcare Park. Some of these include endocrinology, rheumatology, and a nutrition center. These are recent additions to the hospital's network of healthcare options for people. The St. Joseph Hospital is one of the oldest and one of the best hospitals in Maine.


Resources:

Ann Trainor. "One Hundred Years of Caring -- EMMC" Maine Memory Network. Maine Historical Society, 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.

"Awards." Eastern Maine Medical Center. Eastern Maine Medical Center, 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.

"Eastern Maine Medical Center: 1892-1920." Maine Memory Network. Maine Historical Society, 2000-2009. Web. 28 May 2015.

"Eastern Maine Medical Center." EMHS Access to Quality Healthcare. Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems, n.d. Web. 3 June 2015.

"Maine Legislature." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.

"Services List." Eastern Maine Medical Center. Eastern Maine Medical Center, 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.

"St. Joseph Healthcare: History." St. Joseph Healthcare. Covenant Health, 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.

"St. Joseph Healthcare: Our Services." St. Joseph Healthcare. Covenant Health, 2015. Web. 04 June 2015.

"Welcome to Eastern Maine Medical Center. Eastern Maine Medical Center." Maine Memory Network. Maine Historical Society, n.d. Web. 28 May 2015.


The Outside of St. Joseph Hospital Today
The Outside of EMMC Today
Bangor Resident and Historical Journalist Richard Shaw Instructs W.S.C.S. 7th Grade Students
Bangor Public Library Special Collections Librarian Bill Cook Teaches W.S.C.S. 7th Grade Students
W.S.C.S. Students Creating St. Joseph Hospital Page
W.S.C.S. Students Creating EMMC Page