Wood County Hospital Guild records

Wood County Hospital opened in 1951. The hospital’s website states that it had tremendous support from the community to begin its operations. The support came in the form of door-to-door fundraising, holding rummage sales, auctions and even more unique ways of raising money such as the sale of blankets and even a heifer at one point.

Early labors for a hospital came in the form of petitions for the city of Bowling Green in 1928. The issue of a hospital would arise for a vote again in 1940. Both early votes were struck down by a marginal deficit, discouraging supporters. After World War II and the end of the Depression however, the Hill-Burton Act provided13 million dollars of funding to the state of Ohio for hospital construction. The citizens of Ohio, through bonds and other initiatives, raised around 50 million dollars for the same cause. The Wood County Hospital would costs 750,000 dollars, $250,000 which would be covered by federal funding and $250,000 would be donated by local business man Fred W. Uhlman. The other ways of funding came from donations and previously mentioned forms of fundraising.

The Hospital officially opened its doors on the 14th of August 1951. There were 54 beds and 36 doctors originally. The community showed its support by having 6000 citizens show up for dedication day. Since that day, the hospital has survived a 1953 tornado, a blizzard in 1978, and the Y2K computer scare.

Perhaps one of the most interesting parts of the history of the hospital is that of the Wood County Hospital Guild. Founded in 1954, it began as a female service organization. The first meeting was March 27, 1954. Members could help in several areas such as “sewing, housekeeping, gardening, public relations, secretarial, hostess-social, and Gray Ladies…” Not only did the guild provide their services, but they also provided financial support in the form of fundraisers and community events. Some of these events included fall festivals, a horse and pony show, and even a showing of Clark Gable’s last film, The Misfits. The Guild ended up donating over half a million dollars from the 1960s to 2000. The Guild also ran the gift shop in the hospital, which profits went to the hospital.

The hospital guild also supported programs such as Wood County’s Wheeled Meals and the Candy Stripers, or auxiliary volunteers from the community.