In the 1890s, Omaha was a city of immigrants and pioneers, workers and criminals, and lots of regular people who got caught in between. From 1896 to 1978, only one organization in the city offered prenatal and birthing services for low-income, unwed and “unsuitable” pregnant women. This is a history of the Omaha Salvation Army Women’s Hospital in North Omaha.
Beginnings
- First location of The Salvation Army Home for Unwed Mothers later called the Rescue Home and Maternity Hospital
- Location: 3824 North 24th Street
- Opened: 1896
- Closed: 1920
Starting in 1896, the The Salvation Army ran the Rescue Home and Maternity Hospital in North Omaha. Originally located at 3704 N 24th Street from 1896 to 1920, the hospital supported young women and women without support from pregnancy through birth. The children born there were often placed for adoption.
The structure was on an early streetcar line that ran the gamut of North 24th Street, allowing patrons easy access to the facility. It was in the leafy Kountze Place neighborhood, which was waiting its star turn just two years later with the opening of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition. The facility would have sat just outside the bounds of the event.
This building continued to stand and was called the Spaulding Apartments until the early 1960s. It was demolished in the 1970s.
Growing Bigger
- Second Location of The Salvation Army Rescue Home and Maternity Hospital
- 2008 North 16th Street
- Opened: 1920
- Closed: 1938
In 1920, the Omaha Salvation Army opened the Rescue Home and Maternity Hospital in the old Governor Saunders Mansion at 2008 North 16th Street, and stayed there until 1938. Expanding the mansion repeatedly, there were eventually more than 60 rooms there. In 1921, the facility was described as “a home for girls who are incorrigible.” They got religious training and “are encouraged to start life over in a new manner.”
The building had many uses after the Salvation Army moved out and was demolished in 1975. The site became a parking lot for the Interstate Printing Company housed next door.
An Entire Hospital
- Third Location of the Salvation Army Booth Memorial Hospital
- Location: 2404 Pratt Street
- Opened: 1938
- Closed: 1966
It was renamed for Catherine Booth in 1938 and moved to 2404 Pratt Street at the location of the former Evangelical Covenant Hospital. The Booth Hospital was also called the Salvation Army Home for Unwed Mothers. The facility was rebuilt in the late 1940s.
Booth Hospital operated until 1966, when it was closed permanently. It sat empty for almost a decade and was demolished in 1974.
“Write or telephone, asking for an interview. Policies and programs are flexible to meet individual needs. All factors are discussed confidentially with the applicant and arrangements made to give the girl and her baby the specific help that their situation requires. This service is available on the basis of need, regardless of creed, color, class or circumstances. The spiritual purpose is paramount. We are concerned with the whole person – not only the physical need but the mental, emotional, social and spiritual needs as well.”
—1964 newspaper ad for the Booth Hospital
Moving Away
The fourth location of the Booth Memorial Hospital opened in 1967 when the hospital was moved to South 40th and Dewey Streets. That building was closed in 1978 and sold to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in 1990.
From 1896 to 1978, the Salvation Army Booth Memorial Hospital had four incarnations, three of them in North Omaha. Today the Salvation Army North Corps Community Center operates a new facility at the corner of North 24th and Pratt Streets. However, there is no historical marker there and the Salvation Army apparently doesn’t recognize the location for its historical value. However, North Omaha was home to this institution for a long time, and its role is indelible and should be recognized.
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MY ARTICLES ABOUT THE HISTORY OF KOUNTZE PLACE
General: Kountze Place | Kountze Park | North 16th Street | North 24th Street | Florence Boulevard | Wirt Street | Emmet Street | Binney Street | 16th and Locust Historic District
Houses: Charles Storz House | Anna Wilson’s Mansion | McCreary Mansion | McLain Mansion | Redick Mansion | John E. Reagan House | George F. Shepard House | Burdick House | 3210 North 21st Street | 1922 Wirt Street | University Apartments
Churches: First UPC/Faith Temple COGIC | St. Paul Lutheran Church | Hartford Memorial UBC/Rising Star Baptist Church | Immanuel Baptist Church | Calvin Memorial Presbyterian Church | Omaha Presbyterian Theological Seminary | Trinity Methodist Episcopal | Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church |
Education: Omaha University | Presbyterian Theological Seminary | Lothrop Elementary School | Horace Mann Junior High
Hospitals: Salvation Army Hospital | Swedish Hospital | Kountze Place Hospital
Events: Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition | Greater America Exposition | Riots
Businesses: Hash House | 3006 Building | Grand Theater | 2936 North 24th Street | Corby Theater
Listen to the North Omaha History Podcast show #4 about the history of the Kountze Place neighborhood »
MY ARTICLES ON THE HISTORY OF HEALTHCARE IN NORTH OMAHA
GENERAL: Segregated Hospitals
HOSPITALS: People’s Hospital | Salvation Army Hospital | Immanuel Hospital | Provident Hospital | Swedish Mission Hospital
PEOPLE: Dr. William W. Peebles | Dr. Craig Morris | Dr. John A. Singleton, DDS | Dr. Aaron M. McMillan | Dr. Matthew O. Ricketts
RELATED TOPICS: Lead Poisoning
Listen to my podcast on the History of Hospitals in North Omaha »
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