Northwestern Medical Center history

The story of Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital and Northwestern Medicine Valley West Hospital began in 1912 with the founding of Sycamore Municipal Hospital.

In 1914 philanthropist James Deering made a $1 million gift to Wesley Memorial to support free care and solidify the hospital’s relationship with Northwestern University’s medical school.

Northwestern played a foundational role when that relationship was forged in 1946.

In 1948, Jeanne Kerbs funded the construction of a new hospital for St Albans, the Kerbs Memorial Hospital, in gratitude for the life saving care her son had received following an accidental gunshot at Killkare.

The process accelerated with the 1966 establishment of the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University, focused on joint purchasing, shared facilities, graduate medical education and development of a group practices, furthering joint planning efforts towards a unified medical center.

In 1971, Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital became the first physical rehabilitation hospital in the western suburbs of Chicago.

Passavant and Wesley responded by merging nursing schools, exchanging staff privileges, and combining clinical areas—culminating in the consolidation of the two hospitals on September 1, 1972.

In 1994, construction began on a new 2-million square foot facility on the block bordered by Fairbanks Court, Saint Clair, Huron and Erie Streets.