Our Faith Heritage
A Foundation of Faith
Our Roots
During the 1800s, providing health care to the sick was an important mission for churches because access to health care was limited primarily to the wealthy through in-home care by private physicians. During this time, several hospitals that are now Norton Healthcare facilities were established through the charitable works of local church members.
Episcopal Founders
Shortly after the Civil War, a small group of young women called the Home Mission Society of St. Paul's Episcopal Church initiated plans and fundraising activities to create a self-supporting hospital. Mary Louise Sutton Norton enabled the Home Mission Society's idea to become reality when she donated a generous amount of money from the sale of her home on Broadway near Preston Street to establish and name The John N. Norton Memorial Infirmary (opened in 1886) in her husband's memory. Rev. John N. Norton was associate rector of Christ Church Cathedral and was called the Good Samaritan by his congregation. He was considered an idealist and a man with strong values who devoted many hours and much money to those in need. Originally located at Third and Oak streets, the hospital, now at 200 East Chestnut Street, continues to provide health care in the same caring spirit as its namesake.
United Methodist Church and United Church of Christ (formerly Evangelical) Founders
The Methodist Hospital Commission and the Evangelical Hospital Association combined resources in the late 1940s to fulfill their shared health care mission by planning for a hospital where they could demonstrate the spiritual value of caring for the sick. Methodist Evangelical Hospital opened in 1960 with a loyal volunteer base and soon became renowned for its excellent nursing practices and focus on patient care. These values and commitment to excellence continue today in this facility known as the Norton Healthcare Pavilion.
Catholic Connections
Members of the Louisville Catholic community opened facilities to care for sick people and homeless children in the early 1800s. Their commitment to provide health care grew as did the needs of the Louisville region. By 1927, they had built St. Joseph Infirmary, the largest private hospital in Kentucky at that time. In 1970, Humana (then Extendicare) purchased the hospital and 10 years later built a new facility that is now known as Norton Audubon Hospital . It became part of the Norton family and returned to its locally owned, not-for-profit status in 1998 with the organization's purchase of four Columbia/HCA hospitals.
The Beginning of Kosair Children's Hospital
Children's Free Hospital opened in 1892 at 220 East Chestnut Street when civic activist Mary Lafon and two physicians were determined to create a hospital devoted to children with any illness or injury. A small group of women from Warren Memorial Presbyterian Church were also instrumental in establishing and running the hospital with a 99 percent volunteer workforce. Some 34 years later, Kosair Charities established the first hospital exclusively for disabled children in Kentucky . Kosair Crippled Children Hospital opened on Eastern Parkway in 1926. The hospital was recognized for its treatment of children with orthopaedic disorders. In 1981, Children's Hospital and Kosair Crippled Children Hospital consolidated in the Louisville Medical Center to form Kosair Children's Hospital. A new facility was built at 231 East Chestnut Street and is the region's only comprehensive, free-standing pediatric hospital.
Sources:
Norton Hospital: The First Hundred Years 1886-1986 by Gail McGowan Mellor
The Mission: The History of Methodist Evangelical Hospital 1960-1993 by Betty Lou Amster, APR, and Barbara Zingman, Ph.D.
Kosair Children's Hospital: A History 1892-1992 by Gail McGowan Mellor
