Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum, and Hospital, 1839-1984Eloise, which started out as a poorhouse, later became known as Wayne County General Hospital. From only 35 residents on 280 acres in 1839, the complex grew dramatically after the Civil War until the total land involved was 902 acres and the total number of patients was about 10,000. Today, all that remains are five buildings and a smokestack. Only one of them, the Kay Beard Building, is currently used. In Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum, and Hospital, 1839-1984, this institution and medical center that cared for thousands of people over the years, is brought back to life. The book, in over 220 historic photographs, follows the facility's roots, from its beginnings as a poorhouse, to the founding of its psychiatric division and general hospital. The reader will also be able to trace the changing face of psychiatric care over the years. The book effectively captures what it was like to live, work, and play on Eloise's expansive grounds. |
Contents
Acknowledgments | 6 |
Psychiatric Division | 23 |
Tuberculosis Sanitarium | 43 |
A City in Itself | 71 |
Faces of Eloise | 101 |
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AERIAL VIEW amusement hall ANN ARBOR RAILROAD background bakery basement Black Horse Tavern Building or Kelley built Burton Historical Collection cafeteria Cleveland Indians clinic Conklin County General Hospital Courtesy Detroit Public Library ELOISE CEMETERY Eloise grounds Eloise Hospital Eloise Museum employees equipment Friends of Eloise front row group photo Gruber Auditorium Hamtramck Hospital Board Hospital Complex INFIRMARY BUILDING inmates institution Kay Beard Building Keenan Kelley Hall kitchen LABORATORY later left to right located mental patients Merriman Road Michigan Avenue Michigan Central Michigan Central Railroad Michigan State Fair Nankin Township number of patients nurse occupational therapy program Office on Aging PATIENT WARD Patricia Ibbotson pediatric unit poorhouse post office power plant powerhouse psychiatric buildings psychiatric division Railroad Reuther Library Seymour Hospital shown smokestack staff Stanislas TB SANITARIUM Term Care Facility TERRACE BUILDING THIRD COUNTY HOUSE trolley station tuberculosis vacated in 1973 Walter Wayne County Wayne State University Westland x-ray
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Page 4 - The Detroit Historical Society, the Department of History of Wayne State University, and the Burton Historical Collection of the Detroit Public Library sponsored a conference on Nov. 7 and 8, 1958, on "Michigan in Perspective," emphasizing participation in activities relating to local history.
Page 5 - Eloise evolved into a self-supporting community with its own police and fire department, railroad and trolley stations, bakery, amusement hall, laundries, and a powerhouse. It even had a schoolhouse that was used for about ten years.
Page 5 - There was also low rent housing for employees and about 20 percent of the staff lived on the grounds. It was not uncommon for someone to meet his future spouse while working at Eloise and many children grew up on the grounds.
Page 4 - ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This book was made possible by the efforts of many people associated with the Friends of Eloise.