HQ-S-3191

HQ-S-3191

This is the site of the Pine Grove Hospital, which originally opened on August 15, 1883. The initial three story structure is within a portion of the current building which faces 32nd street to the South and was since renovated when the entire hospital was rebuilt in 1897. The 1897 renovation project was initiated by Carbondale after the suicide of Marilou Saunders occurred the previous November of 1896, who was subsequently referred to by the Runner members as "Racine" after the incident. The renovation led to the creation of an entire new building built adjacent to the original structure, the two of which being connected by a pair of external hallways at the third floor. The new structure was developed as a specific and independent psychiatric ward to treat mental trauma and illnesses. In 1943, this secondary facility because focused with the treatment of autism after the publishing of the article "Autistic disturbances of affective contact" by Leo Kanner of nearby Johns Hopkins Hospital. It is believed that there were several patients transferred to this hospital from Johns Hopkins when that facility became overwhelmed with an increasing number of newly identified autism cases. Pine Grove was rebuilt once more in its entirety in 1981 when the segregated building concept proved untenable, and the separate buildings had its inner walls removed to allow the hospital to be essentially combined into one structure, as it presently stands today. Pine Grove employs a staff of over one hundred doctors and nurses, fifty EMS persons, and can accomodate a maximum of two thousand patients. Current estimates indicate that Pine Grove has handled a minimum of two million patients in its span of operation.