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Promise Fulfilled For a century, Boone Hospital keeps up with medical advancements and a growing community.
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or a century, Boone Hospital keeps up with medical advancements and a growing community. Long before Columbia became mid-Missouri’s medical center, people received healthcare in their doctor’s office or at home. But as the city grew and medicine advanced, new approaches were required. This need was made plain in 1918 when the flu pandemic struck Boone County. Parker Memorial Hospital at the University of Missouri quickly became crowded. At one point, severely ill flu patients were placed in tents on Stankowski Field, which unfortunately resulted in the virus spreading further. During the crisis, local physicians, including Dr. Frank Nifong, pledged that Boone County would provide safe medical care for its citizens and led the founding of Boone County Hospital. Since the hospital first opened its doors to its owners – the people of Boone County – the hospital has grown along with
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BOONE HEALTH
Winter 2022
the community. Over the century, as Boone County grew from 29,000 to 180,000 residents, Boone County Hospital grew from 37 beds to our current 392. With each expansion, the hospital has upheld the promise made by Dr. Nifong and his colleagues.
1921: Boone County Hospital Opens
On December 10, 1921, a crowd lined the corridors and stairway of the new Boone County Hospital to watch the opening ceremony and tour the three-story building. The 37-bed hospital featured an X-ray department and surgery suite with bay windows. The campus included a chicken yard for registered nurse Eleanor Keely, the hospital superintendent, who lived in the neighboring Tandy House. The staff included five other employees – an engineer, housekeeper, cook and two interns. With the trustees’ permission, a neighbor’s cow grazed on the hospital grounds.
