Shodair
Children's Hospital
Receiving
Home of the Montana Children's Home Society, ca. 1917
46°35'42.19"N
112° 1'49.32"W
COLLECTION
OF KENNON BAIRD
|
Begun
in 1896, Montana's first organized effort to aid homeless
children was called The
Children's Home Society. The Receiving Home of the Montana
Children's Home Society is still standing at 840 Helena
Ave., just east of the old Shodair Children's Hospital...
COLLECTION
OF NANCY GOODSPEED
Between
1854 and 1929, orphaned children in the eastern U.S. would
sometimes be placed on "orphan
trains" and sent out west to be adopted. This was
seen as a healthy alternative to institutional living, and
also a way to help populate the west. Montana Children's
Home was developed to care for these children.
Some
of the children reaching Helena had health problems, and
a need for hospital facilities was recognized. Construction
of a hospital building began in 1930, just west of the Receiving
Home, at 840 Helena Avenue. However, financial problems
brought about by the Great Depression halted construction
in 1931...
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Post-Earthquake
Federal Aid Helps Complete Hospital
|
Helena's
devastating earthquakes in October and November of 1935
heavily damaged the old
St. John's Hospital, leaving a shortage of beds in the
city. Federal Emergency Relief Administration money then
became available to finish the children's hospital.
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Philanthropist
Louis W. Shodair
|
Louis
W. Shodair (1862-1940) made his fortune in Montana as an early-day
grocer and entrepreneur. In 1937, Shodair donated $200,000
to the Montana Children's Home and Hospital to build a new
wing for crippled children..
|
Shodair
Crippled Children's Hospital Under Construction, 1937
46°35'40.63"N
112° 1'52.47"W
COURTESY
OF KATHRYN FEHLIG • CLICK ON IMAGE FOR
A BIG VIEW IN A NEW WINDOW
COURTESY
OF KATHRYN FEHLIG • CLICK ON IMAGE FOR
A BIG VIEW IN A NEW WINDOW
The
Completed Hospital, January 1938
COURTESY
OF KATHRYN FEHLIG • CLICK ON IMAGE FOR
A BIG VIEW IN A NEW WINDOW
Shodair
Hospital Dedication Story - Helena Independent
Click
image to download pdf format file
Polio
Fight
| Shodair
Crippled Children's Hospital was the only hospital in Montana
prepared to care for victims when the polio epidemic hit in
the 1940s. Shodair accepted both juvenile and adult patients. |
Royalties
of Official State Song "Montana"
Benefit Montana Childrens' Home
|
"Montana"
was written in Butte in 1910 by Joseph E. Howard (author of
the song "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now?") and
Chas. C. Cohan. It was adopted as the State Song that same
year by Governor Edwin L. Norris.
In 1941,
Howard gave the copyright to the Montana Children's Home &
Hospital/Shodair. The song was officially adopted as the State
Song in 1945 by the Montana legislature.
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1910 "Montana" Sheet Music
COURTESY
OF THE FAMILY OF GERTRUDE HAIGHT MILLER
| Contact
Shodair to purchase sheet music of the official Montana
State Song. |
1941"Montana" Sheet Music
"Montana"
Tunesmiths Passed Away
Shodair
Hospital 1947- Today
Shodair, 1951
KENNON BAIRD COLLECTION • CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE IN A NEW WINDOW
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In 1947,
a nursery wing for adoptable infants was completed. Shodair
developed the first physical therapy unit in the state, and
brought one of the first orthopedic doctors and one of the
first pediatricians into the state.
In 1955,
your editor had his tonsils removed at the Montana Children's
Home & Hospital, which by then was simply called "Shodair".
They knocked me out with diethyl
ether. I got ice cream afterwards.
In 1969,
an additonal wing was added which included a surgical suite,
dining area and 17 additional rooms.
Shodair
has moved to the east side of Helena, and the buildings on
Helena Avenue now house various offices. The emphasis of Shodair
has now shifted to children's psychiatric and developmental
care. You may visit Shodair's website here.
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Helena
High Students Sing Carols Outside Shodair, Dec. 23 1955
From the 1956 'Vigilante' Yearbook
