With the increase in tuberculosis cases in the United States reaching new heights and no cure in sight, the State of New York ordered the establishment of a treatment facility to combat this crisis. The location required plenty of natural light, clean air, and a distance from the crowded, polluted city of New York. The site chosen was in the town of Willowbrook on Staten Island.

 

Planning for the new hospital began in 1905, and it was designed in a pavilion plan featuring Colonial and Tudor revival styles. The layout was designed like a fan to ensure optimal airflow and light for its patients. There were four isolation buildings for females and another four for males, with ample open breezeways and courtyards for patients to enjoy during their stay.

 

Seaview Sanatorium opened on November 12, 1913, although the construction of the campus wasn't completed until 1938. It became the most expensive municipal treatment center for tuberculosis of its kind. Seaview also established itself as the first TB hospital in the United States to have a maternity ward for expectant mothers.

 

One of the hospital's most iconic features was the mosaic tiles depicting nurses, patients, and seashells on the upper floor of the isolation buildings. This massive facility achieved significant success in its research department, contributing to the discovery of a cure for tuberculosis. As a result, when patients were no longer needed for its operation, Seaview Sanatorium closed in the 1960s as a TB hospital and was subsequently converted into a geriatric hospital.