Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare is a 313-bed regional provider of post-acute care services in Windsor-Essex. This includes all programs and services at the Prince Road campus such as complex care, palliative care, regional rehabilitation, cardiac wellness, bariatric services, specialized mental health and addictions, and children's mental health.

History

The

Hôtel-Dieu In French-speaking countries, a hôtel-Dieu ( en, hostel of God) was originally a hospital for the poor and needy, run by the Catholic Church. Nowadays these buildings or institutions have either kept their function as a hospital, the one in Paris b ...

Grace Hospital was created by an agreement between two hospitals to share services. In 1991, the CEOs of the hospitals began meeting to discuss the options. An agreement was signed two years later on December 1, 1993, and after about three years of discussions and planning, the alliance went into effect as of April 1, 1994.

Hôtel-Dieu of St. Joseph Hospital

Hôtel-Dieu of St. Joseph Hospital is the oldest hospital in Windsor, Ontario. It was founded in 1888 by

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

James Theodore Wagner,

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of St. Alphonsus Parish, and five sisters from the

Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph The Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph (RHSJ; french: Religieuses Hospitalières de Saint-Joseph) are a Catholic religious congregation founded in 1636 at La Flèche, France, by the Venerable Jérôme le Royer de la Dauversière and the Venera ...

(RHSJ), who came from

Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal The Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal (founded in 1645) was the first hospital established in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ''Hôtel-Dieu'', literally translated in English as ''Hotel of God'', is an archaic French term for hospital, referring to the origi ...

on September 14, 1888. Dean J.T. Wagner had become concerned for the

black people Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in s ...

who had migrated from the

southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

to his parish, particularly the children in the community. The families had come from the rural

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

for the industrial jobs. The children were excluded from white schools and had no school of their own. In addition, many had become orphans. Dean J.T. Wagner organized a

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

for black people and sent letters asking for donations. One of these letters reached Mother Bonneau, the R.H.S.J. Superior in Montréal. She was so moved that she sent Wagner $2.50 () and wrote that if he were considering building a hospital in Windsor, her order would be happy to help. Construction on the hospital began on October 10, 1888; it was officially blessed October 15, 1889 and was completed February 1890. The original 1888 building was a three-story brick building built in the

Norman architecture The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is traditionally used fo ...

style with three turrets. An orphanage and school for black children was also opened on the site in 1890 and was run by the RHSJ. After four years, the school was discontinued because of low enrollment. Over the years Hôtel-Dieu of St. Joseph Hospital was renovated and expanded several times, adding more beds as the need arose. Additional beds were added in 1910, 1927, 1938, 1952, and 1962. In 1963 the original 1888 building was demolished.

Salvation Army Grace Hospital

Windsor's second hospital was created in 1918 when the

Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

converted the former Ellis home at Crawford and London Street to fill the need for more hospital beds in Windsor. The Grace Hospital was originally supposed to be a maternity hospital, like others the Salvation Army had founded in Canada. The need for a second general hospital was so great that the plans were changed. The original building (the former Ellis home) had a capacity for only 28 beds, by 1922 the hospital added a second wing to increase the capacity to 122 beds. Over the years, other wings were built, including a South Wing (1942) and a North Wing (1945). After a fire destroyed a large portion of the hospital on June 6, 1960, approval was obtained to build a new five-story high, air-conditioned wing, which was officially opened in September 1966. After this wing was built, all that remained of the original Ellis home was its central door. An additional expansion and renovation project was approved in February 1980. The West Wing was officially opened in March 1985. The Grace site was officially closed February 1, 2004, and demolition of the Grace Hospital buildings began in March 2013 following removal of asbestos.

Realignment of Hospital Services

In October 2013, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital and Windsor Regional Hospital realigned hospital services within the City of Windsor. Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital took over operations of Windsor Regional Hospital's Tayfour Campus on Prince Road and Windsor Regional Hospital took over operations of Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital's downtown location on Ouellette Ave. Windsor Regional Hospital's Metropolitan Campus on Tecumseh Road was unaffected. Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital was renamed Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare.

References

External links

Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare
Official website
History of Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital
Religious Hospitallers of St. Joseph {{DEFAULTSORT:Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital Hospitals in Ontario Buildings and structures in Windsor, Ontario Catholic orders and societies