- Item
- 1954-10
Part of Richards Studio Photographs
This is what the exterior of the Tacoma Indian Hospital looked like in October of 1954. A shortage of building materials due to WWII delayed the construction of the nearly $2,000,000 U.S. Indian medical center at the Cushman site. Construction was finally completed in April, 1943. In October, 1954, the hospital cut Native American care to treat only those with tuberculosis. The hospital had served 285 patients the previous year; the number had dropped to 250 in 1954. Native Americans from Alaska and the Pacific Northwest were eligible for care at this facility. When the TB level dropped, the hospital was closed in 1959 despite Northwest Native American requests to keep the facility open. It was demolished and the Puyallup Tribe of Indians Bingo Hall and Emerald Queen Casino were built on this site. (TNT 10-14-54, A-9)
Tacoma Indian Hospital (Tacoma); Cushman Indian Hospital (Tacoma); Hospitals--Tacoma--1950-1960;