Forsyth in Rosebud County, Montana — The American West (Mountains)

Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 13, 2020

1. Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital Marker

Inscription. “Remember the Flu epidemic” declared a notice advocating support for Rosebud County Hospital. In 1918 and 1919 influenza killed over 5,000 Montanans. Flu victims in Forsyth received care at the Masonic Hall, temporarily converted into an emergency hospital, but the epidemic underscored the need for a well-equipped hospital close to home. Despite drought and declining crop prices, Rosebud County voters responded to the call, passing a $70,000 bond issue in November 1919 and a second $20,000 bond issue in 1920. Billings architects McIver, Cohagen, and Marshall designed the hospital and then modified the plan when post–World War I inflation placed the original design out of financial reach. The thirty-two-room hospital, constructed by Billings contractor Alfred Lyle, included a lobby, kitchen, patient rooms, and solarium on the main floor; operating theaters and additional patient rooms on the second floor; and laundry and storage areas in the daylight basement. The hipped-roof building, ornamented with a row of stone medallions, exhibits Georgian Revival style features in its symmetrical composition and

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

classical detailing. To manage the hospital and nurses’ training school, the county contracted with the Deaconess organization, a Methodist women’s order that opened its first Montana hospital in 1896 in Great Falls. On April 22, 1921, Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital held an open house and “shower day”; Approximately 1,000 visitors, many bearing donations for the hospital’s food pantry, came to admire the new facility. Three days later, under direction of Deaconess superintendent Lyra Sanborn, the hospital admitted its first patient.

Erected by Montana Historical Society.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Buildings • Science & Medicine. In addition, it is included in the Montana National Register Sign Program series list.

Location. 46° 16.242′ N, 106° 40.201′ W. Marker is in Forsyth, Montana, in Rosebud County. It is at the intersection of North 17th Street and Cedar Street, on the right when traveling north on North 17th Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 251 North 17th Street,

Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 13, 2020

2. Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital and Marker

Forsyth MT 59327, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Montana’s Northern Cheyenne Nation,

in Southeast Montana, in Custer Country and in the Powder River Basin.

It is also in the American Mountain West,

in the Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

on the Great Plains,

and specifically on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Thurston Residence (approx. ¼ mile away); Forsyth, MT (approx. ¼ mile away); Forsyth Residential Historic District (approx. ¼ mile away); Thomas Alexander, 1856-1918 (approx. 0.3 miles away); Bland Residence (approx. 0.3 miles away); McCuistion Residence (approx. 0.3 miles away); Maurice and Mary Lord Residence (approx. 0.3 miles away); Beeman Residence (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Forsyth.

Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, September 13, 2020

3. Rosebud County Deaconess Hospital

Credits. This page was last revised on January 16, 2021. It was originally submitted on January 16, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 206 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 16, 2021, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.