Ontario Abandoned Places will be rebranded as Ominous Abandoned Places

Smith's Falls Hospital

Demolished Hospital in Smiths Falls, Ontario, Canada

Jan 27 2010

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Recent status Demolished
Location # 1054

On May 16, 1910, Mrs. Mary E. Chambers donated a parcel of land to the town of Smith’s Falls. On this parcel of land the town built a hospital designed by local architect G.T Martin and constructed by John Davidson for a contracted price of $29,000. Money to build the hospital was raised by the town council and members of the town.

The hospital was named The Chambers Hospital out of respect for Mrs. Chamber’s deceased husband and son. It opened in 1912 with a capacity of 45-50 beds. The original building was a two-storey structure with basement built of Milton terra cotta brick. The front of the property had a three-storey veranda with Ionic capped columns.

The north-west corner contained a small sun parlor for the children’s ward and a two-storey sun parlor on the south side. Floors were constructed of oiled hard-wood.

To prevent fire, fire hoses connected to the town’s water system were located at each end of the main hall. Each floor also had six pails full of water (before the invention of the fire extinguisher).

The main corridor housed the anaesthetic room, operating room, sterilizing room, doctor’s wash-up room and doctor’s dressing room. Three of the rooms were built with floor tiles that extended eight inches up the walls. This allowed the rooms to be washed out by hose with the waste carried away to drains.

The basement housed the nurse’s dining room and rooms for the cook, housemaids and caretaker. A dumb waiter ran from the kitchen to the top of the building.

Extensive renovations were carried out in 1958 which brought the number of beds to 94. In 1968 further renovations were undertaken to bring the patient capacity to 100 beds.

With budget cost-cutting on their minds, in 1975 the Ontario Government looked into whether operating two hospitals was necessary. After much dispute the Sisters of Providence agreed to sell the St. Francis Hospital to the Ontario Government on July 16, 1975. The two hospitals were amalgamated to become the Smith’s Falls Community Hospital. The former St. Francis Hospital became the North Unit which focused on active treatment care while the Chambers Hospital became the South Unit which focused on chronic care and rehabilitation.

On March 31, 1995 the hospital was again amalgamated, this time with the Great War Memorial Hospital of Perth District (GWM Site). The merger formed a new corporation called the Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital. The merger has facilitated the rationalization of inpatient and outpatient services across the two hospital sites, which are separated by a distance of 20 km.

Sources: Canadian Builder March 1913, vol 3 Perth and Smiths Falls District Hospital

Writeup by OAP

Comments

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6 years ago

There is still the one building left standing but looked completely boarded up.

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9 years ago

Sad to see the demo :(

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9 years ago

Demolition in progress as of 6/15/2014

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10 years ago

It is too bad you can't go in. I hung around the hospital last summer for about an hour. There was a board off a side window on the back door. I did not go in, was too dark and not properly equipped.

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12 years ago

Not recommended to venture on the Property. Trespass charges pending now for the latest ones that entered.

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12 years ago

Does anyone know the status of this building?

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13 years ago

It is called Chambers Memorial Hospital. It is the hospital myself, my brother and 2 sisters were born in. It was abandoned several years ago and hospital services moved to the former Catholic hospital (St Francis) at the other end of town...

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13 years ago

too bad it's no longer safely accessible, it looks like an interesting place to explore

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13 years ago

This place is no longer safely accessable. The cops have it boarded up tight. The only way in is through a broken window which I would not suggest. In November the first time I went the back door was open, and than about a week later it was sealed shut and had to enter through window which is now boarded up too, and someone (NOT ME) broke a window to get in.