Sanatoriums were erected to give people suffering from tuberculosis somewhere to recover.
In the mid-1800s, tuberculosis had become one of the most wide-spread and deadly diseases. Because there was no cure, sanatoriums were erected across Europe and the America's to combat the disease--not by curing it, but by helping the patients live as healthfully as possible. Some recovered in time, and although they still carried the disease, they were healthy enough to work and survive. Many others were less fortunate, either dying from the disease or suffering from poor health for the rest of their lives.
Brehmerschen Heilanstalt fur Lungenkranke
The first sanatorium was opened by Hermann Brehmer in 1863 in Silesia. The ideas and approach he set forth his Brehmerschen Heilanstalt fur Lungenkranke would influence the hundreds of sanatoriums later developed. At the heart of its philosophy was the idea that people could recover with adequate nutrition, bed rest, and high-altitude air--away from the coal burning smog of major urban centers. Like many other effective sanatoriums, Brehmerschen Heilanstalt fur Lungenkranke catered to society's elite, as the poor could not afford the good food and medical attention of the sanatorium's staff.
The Adirondack Cottage Sanatorium
The first sanatorium established in the United States was The Adirondack Cottage. Compared to the massive hospitals of Europe, The Adirondack Cottage was just a quaint set of houses in a remote part of New York state. Also unlike the sanatoriums of Europe, The Adirondack Cottage was specifically intended for the working poor. Although other sanatoriums would later be erected for the poor, they were notoriously over-crowded and poorly staffed. Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau, the founder of The Adirondack Cottage, was personally affected by tuberculosis when he was younger and felt the need for quality care. When reports of other sanatoriums neglecting their patients began to surface, he conducted a series of experiments showing how the disease was most deadly in poor conditions. Patients given quality care were far more likely to recover.
Waverly Hills Sanatorium
Waverly Hills Sanatorium was precisely the type of sanatorium Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau detested. Overcrowded, poorly maintained, and operating under inhumane policies, The Waverly Hills Sanatorium became a place of mass-death rather than recovery. Built in Louisville, Kentucky in 1924, it operated for nearly 60 years and saw the deaths of hundreds of patients. Since its closure, it has become a refuge for the homeless, as well as the site of a fabled haunting. Much of its current fame resides in the tales of phantasms pacing the hallways and of horrific voices being heard in Room 502.
Tags: Adirondack Cottage, Brehmerschen Heilanstalt, Brehmerschen Heilanstalt Lungenkranke, Heilanstalt Lungenkranke, Hills Sanatorium, Waverly Hills
