Methodist North Hospital history

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare began in the early 1900’s as Methodist Hospital and the dream of John M. Sherard, Sr., a Mississippi farmer and Methodist Church layman from the North Mississippi Conference.

In 1901 the Women’s Auxiliary of the Kalamazoo Hospital was formed. It was officially opened to the public and dedicated on December 4, 1905.

The Kalamazoo Hospital Association re-organized in 1907 and changed the hospital’s name to Bronson Hospital after the founder of Kalamazoo, Titus Bronson.

In 1918 the hospital began a campaign to raise $50,000 for the purposes of paying off debt and making improvements to the facility.

The hospital grew under the leadership of the Methodist Church and in December 1945 Bronson proposed an $800,000 expansion.

The first students arrived in July 1947.

In June of 1950 the hospital began a campaign to raise $991,000 to cover the remaining costs of the expansion as well as the addition of another 21 beds.

In 1952 the hospital began planning for a heart catheterization clinic.

The clinic opened in the summer of 1956 and was used to diagnose heart ailments in patients.

In March 1960 the hospital announced they would demolish the school administration building and build a 177-space parking lot.

In May of 1966 Bronson received permission from the city of Kalamazoo to move one block of Cedar Street 150 feet south so that they could build their new pediatric-adolescent unit on that property.

The hospital began a Kidney Care Unit in 1968 and began making plans for a future kidney transplant program.

Outpatient facilities would also be provided in the unit which opened in February 1970.

The two remaining floors of the main building were completed and opened in 1978.