68 High Street, formerly the Children's Hospital, is a historic

colonial revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archi ...

building in

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. Located on the eastern edge of Portland's West End, the building was built in 1909 and was designed by architect Frederick A. Tompson. According to news archives, Drs. Edville Gerhardt Abbott and Harold A. Pingree and Frank W. Lamb founded this worldwide famous children's hospital for disabled children with

scoliosis Scoliosis is a condition in which a person's spine has a sideways curve. The curve is usually "S"- or "C"-shaped over three dimensions. In some, the degree of curve is stable, while in others, it increases over time. Mild scoliosis does not t ...

together in 1908. It closed in 1948, with most of the 56 patients at the time being transferred to Maine General Hospital, which was later renamed the

Maine Medical Center Maine Medical Center (commonly abbreviated to ''MMC'' or contracted to ''Maine Med'') is a 700-licensed-bed teaching hospital in Portland, Maine, United States. Affiliated with Tufts University School of Medicine, it is located in the Western P ...

. It also served as an annex to the Mussey Mansion until the left part of that building was demolished in 1961. It was also owned by the University of Maine system. It housed the

University of Maine School of Law The University of Maine School of Law (UMaine Law or Maine Law) is public law school in Portland, Maine. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and Maine's only law school. It is also part of the University of Maine System. The school's ...

from 1962? until 1972, after which was used by the

University of Southern Maine The University of Southern Maine (USM) is a public university with campuses in Portland, Gorham and Lewiston in the U.S. state of Maine. It is the southernmost of the University of Maine System. It was founded as two separate state universitie ...

as administrative offices. In 2010, Community Housing of Maine sought to develop the property and the adjacent empty lot into 35 units of affordable housing. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. The Portland Children's Hospital is known for both, its engineering and its commitment to the wellbeing of children. Edville G. Abbott, M.D., as Surgeon in Chief of the Children's Hospital, fostered the "Abbott Treatment" for adjusting bend of the spine in children experiencing scoliosis in 1911. The Abbott Treatment was viewed as the norm of care for quite some time and keeps on being referred to in clinical diaries.

Elm Terrace

In 2011, the Maine State Housing Authority approved the building and the adjacent empty lot, 68

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

, for 38 low-income housing units. The building is set to be renovated to fulfill the

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ...

requirements, including the addition of elevators. The first floor of 66 High Street will include parking units. The plan to redevelop the property became controversial after state treasurer

Bruce Poliquin Bruce Lee Poliquin (; born November 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Maine's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. Poliquin ...

criticized the housing authority for their per-unit cost.

References

{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1909 Apartment buildings in Portland, Maine Colonial Revival architecture in Maine Hospitals in Portland, Maine Buildings at the University of Southern Maine West End (Portland, Maine) Hospital buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Maine

Elm Terrace

See also

References