Taborian Hospital in Mound Bayou, Mississippi opened in 1942[2] to great fanfare by the International Order of Twelve Knights and Daughters of Tabor. Everyone on the staff, including doctors and nurses, were black. The facilities included two major operating rooms, an x-ray machine, incubators, electrocardiograph, blood bank, and laboratory. Operating costs came almost entirely from membership dues and other voluntary contributions.

Taborian Hospital
International Order of Twelve Knights and Daughters of Tabor
Map
Geography
LocationMississippi, United States
Organization
TypeGeneral
History
Opened1942
Closed1983
Links
ListsHospitals in Mississippi
Taborian Hospital
Taborian Hospital is located in Mississippi
Taborian Hospital
Taborian Hospital is located in the United States
Taborian Hospital
LocationUS 61, jct. of McGinnis St., Mound Bayou, Mississippi
Coordinates33°52′48″N 90°43′36″W / 33.88000°N 90.72667°W / 33.88000; -90.72667
Area2.1 acres (0.85 ha)
Built1942
ArchitectMcKissack & McKissack
Architectural styleArt Deco
NRHP reference No.96000827 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 1, 1996

The first chief surgeon of the hospital was T. R. M. Howard, who later became an important civil rights leader in Mississippi and mentor to both Medgar Evers and Fannie Lou Hamer, who was often a patient at the hospital.

After years of financial pressure, the hospital lost its fraternal status in 1967 when the federal government took it over and put it under the authority of the Office of Economic Opportunity. The hospital, renamed as the Mound Bayou Community Hospital, finally closed in 1983.[2]

During the 1990s, the Knights and Daughters of Tabor began a continuing campaign to renovate the original hospital building which has been empty for many years.

In 2011, work began to restore the hospital[2] and create a regional medical center. When completed, half of the building will serve as an urgent care facility, which will utilize telemedicine in collaboration with the University of Mississippi Medical Center. During construction, effort will be placed on maintaining the historic integrity of the building.[3]

Notes

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c Wright, Megan (20 August 2013). "Delta town pins high hopes on shuttered, historic hospital".
  3. ^ Robinette, Aimee (March 18, 2014). "The Phoenix Rises: Taborian Hospital Receives Restorations". Bolivar Bullet. Archived from the original on March 18, 2014.

References

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  • Beito, David T. (2000). From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State: Fraternal Societies and Social Services, 1890–1967. University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-2531-0