Rancho Los Amigos Hospital (formerly The County Poor Farm) 7601 East Imperial Highway, Downey Then - - And - - Now (Okay, its not Whittier, but its close by, was established at the same time so was probably well-known to early Whittierites, and I keep stumbling across references to it in my research into Whittiers history which intrigued me ... I kept thinking What is this County Poor Farm? I found out, its kinda cool, so now Im sharing.) ;) Known originally as the County Poor Farm, today’s Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center was founded in 1888 by the county of Los Angeles to serve farming families who could not afford medical services. It was built as a catch-all institution; a place to care for the handicapped, homeless, insane and elderly. When the Spanish influenza epidemic hit in 1918 the facility began treating all victims rather than just the indigent, and the word Poor was simply stricken from the name. In 1932, the County Farm was renamed once again, becoming Rancho Los Amigos, which translates to Ranch of the Friends. Located in the former town of Hondo, which was absorbed by Downey in the 1950s, the property’s 500+ acres encompassed an aviary, zoo, and rail line used for freight and passengers. In lieu of paying for room, board and medical care, able-bodied residents could work on the large farm which sustained most of the hospitals dietary needs. Unclaimed bodies of residents who died at the poor farm were buried at a potters field nearby (which has been relocated, but no one seems to know where! BOO!). During World War II, the U.S. Army turned part of the grounds into Camp Morrow, and at the same time the facility operated as an emergency hospital. After the war it was reorganized once again as a long-term care facility, when in the early 1950s the hospital opened its state-of-the-art respiratory center, positioning itself as one of the country’s leading polio treatment facilities. Entire wards were filled with iron lungs. Rancho has an illustrious history in shaping rehabilitation research. In the early years, the wide range of activities offered at the hospital made it a legendary place to receive physical and occupational therapy; swimming, woodworking and weaving proved to help restore broken limbs and spirits. One example was that of a man with a badly crippled left arm and hand; the therapist placed a sanding block in it and directed the patient to sand furniture which exercised the muscles, and the patient also earned his own stipend to spend at the hospital store. Another patient who suffered from polio learned to paint by wielding an artists brush between her teeth. In 1955, Dr. Vernon Nickel developed the halo device for use in spinal surgery and rehabilitation. In 1992, Dr. Jacquelin Perry introduced groundbreaking studies on gait analysis, and in 2011 in partnership with MIT, Rancho began using robotic technology to help children with cerebral palsy. By the late 1950s, the farm, dairy, and mental health wards had closed, and most of the 500+ acre property was divided and sold. Rancho continued to operate as a modern chronic-disease hospital on today’s 62 acre north campus. The 70 acre south campus remains, for the most part, unused and awaiting plans for redevelopment. In contemporary times, the south campus is often referred to as the Hollydale Mental Hospital or the Downey Insane Asylum,“ however, as we’ve seen, these misnomers clearly paint an incorrect picture of the hospitals amazing, needed and in some cases groundbreaking past use. Source: opacity.us/site237_rancho_los_amigos.htm Source: aaos75th.org/stories/physician_story.htm?id=10
Posted on: Sun, 26 Oct 2014 03:23:55 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015