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This group of determined women was not discouraged, however. Instead, they demonstrated their
resourcefulness and innovation, sponsoring bazaars and carnivals, dances and dinners, card parties
and cake sales. We;;-known vaudeville performers who summered at Lake Hopatcong were recruited
for benefit performances at the Baker Theater on behalf of the enterprise.
And yet despite all of this effort, by the end of 1909 less than $2000 had been raised. No less than six
years passed, in fact, before the financial hurdles could be overcome. It wasn't until May of 1914,
nearly a decade after the efforts of Dr. Halloway first began, that a building was purchased for the sum
of $8000.
It was this house, located on the hilly terrain of Ann Street, that served as the first home of the hospital,
after a period of renovation and preparation. When the hospital finally got under way, it gathered
momentum quickly. Suddenly, there were donations and assistance galore. Where once there had
been obstacles and difficulties, now there were ease and opportunity. Funds were provided for the
installation of an elevator and for a total of five completely remodeled and fully equipped rooms for
patients.
It was only fitting that the years of hard work by these dauntless women be formally acknowledged. At
the dedication, held on January 9, 1916, Arthur P. Gelder, speaking for Mrs. Munson Searing,
president of the Board who was ill and unable to attend, lauded the Ladies Auxiliary of Dover General
Hospital for "their faith and heroic efforts (by which) the public has been able to grasp this great
opportunity." The first patient was admitted January 15, 1916. Within six months, the hospital was
running at capacity, drawing patients from every town in the region. It was already clear that the Ann
Street facility was inadequate. In fact, the hospital's first annual report recommends the building of a
"new modern, fireproof hospital" at an estimated cost of $75,000. The hospital in Dover had proved "a
supreme necessity," according to Max Heller, who was elected president of the Board of Trustees in
December, 1917. Initially, the new hospital tried its best to cope with the unexpected demand. The first
medical staff -six surgeons, four physicians and seven nurses - treated over 300 patients in its first
year.
And in 1919, an influenza epidemic nearly overwhelmed the hospital. By 1920 the institution was ready
so well established that it acquired a "nickname" of sorts. The local people called it "maternity
hospital," and it was in this role that it may have made its most important initial impression on the
populace. As one new mother wrote that year, "Had this birth occurred at home, I can not see how I
could possibly have pulled through. My illness was so serious that it called for constant attention. I
shall always be grateful for the wonderful care I received and will use my experience in urging women
not to neglect the great privilege of the Maternity Hospital."
resourcefulness and innovation, sponsoring bazaars and carnivals, dances and dinners, card parties
and cake sales. We;;-known vaudeville performers who summered at Lake Hopatcong were recruited
for benefit performances at the Baker Theater on behalf of the enterprise.
And yet despite all of this effort, by the end of 1909 less than $2000 had been raised. No less than six
years passed, in fact, before the financial hurdles could be overcome. It wasn't until May of 1914,
nearly a decade after the efforts of Dr. Halloway first began, that a building was purchased for the sum
of $8000.
It was this house, located on the hilly terrain of Ann Street, that served as the first home of the hospital,
after a period of renovation and preparation. When the hospital finally got under way, it gathered
momentum quickly. Suddenly, there were donations and assistance galore. Where once there had
been obstacles and difficulties, now there were ease and opportunity. Funds were provided for the
installation of an elevator and for a total of five completely remodeled and fully equipped rooms for
patients.
It was only fitting that the years of hard work by these dauntless women be formally acknowledged. At
the dedication, held on January 9, 1916, Arthur P. Gelder, speaking for Mrs. Munson Searing,
president of the Board who was ill and unable to attend, lauded the Ladies Auxiliary of Dover General
Hospital for "their faith and heroic efforts (by which) the public has been able to grasp this great
opportunity." The first patient was admitted January 15, 1916. Within six months, the hospital was
running at capacity, drawing patients from every town in the region. It was already clear that the Ann
Street facility was inadequate. In fact, the hospital's first annual report recommends the building of a
"new modern, fireproof hospital" at an estimated cost of $75,000. The hospital in Dover had proved "a
supreme necessity," according to Max Heller, who was elected president of the Board of Trustees in
December, 1917. Initially, the new hospital tried its best to cope with the unexpected demand. The first
medical staff -six surgeons, four physicians and seven nurses - treated over 300 patients in its first
year.
And in 1919, an influenza epidemic nearly overwhelmed the hospital. By 1920 the institution was ready
so well established that it acquired a "nickname" of sorts. The local people called it "maternity
hospital," and it was in this role that it may have made its most important initial impression on the
populace. As one new mother wrote that year, "Had this birth occurred at home, I can not see how I
could possibly have pulled through. My illness was so serious that it called for constant attention. I
shall always be grateful for the wonderful care I received and will use my experience in urging women
not to neglect the great privilege of the Maternity Hospital."
