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Seaview Sanatorium

History

With the increase of Tuberculosis cases in the United States reaching new heights and no sign of a cure, the State of New York ordered a treatment facility to help battle this crisis. The location need plenty of natural light, clean air and be farther enough away from the dirty over populated city of New York. The site chosen would be in the town Willowbrook on Staten Island. Planning for the new hospital started in 1905 and would be built in a pavilion plan with Colonial and Tudor revival style. The hospital would be laid out like a fan to give the best air flow and light to its patients. There would be 4 isolation buildings for females and another 4 for males with plenty of open breezeways, and courtyards for the patients to enjoy while being at the hospital. Seaview Sanatorium opened November 12, 1913 but construction of the campus was no completed until 1938. It would be the most expensive municipal treatment center for tuberculosis of its kind. Seaview also became the first TB hospital in the United States to have a maternity ward for expecting mothers. One of the most iconic features of the hospital would be the mosaic titles of nurse, patients and seashells on the upper floor of the isolation buildings. This massive facility was so successful in its research department that it help helped find a cure for tuberculosis. With a cure and patients no longer needed the hospital to survive, Seaview Sanatorium closed in the 1960s and turned into a geriatric hospital. 

Photography

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