Hattiesburg Hospital

Hidden in the archives of Hattiesburg lore reside names from long ago, names like the Hattiesburg Hospital and King's Daughters Hospital.

They are the first names of an important "infant" born 100 years ago. With the dawn of the Twentieth Century, it served as the first source of healthcare for a fledgling community forming from various logging outposts along the Leaf River.

From 1900 to 1924, a succession of four names detailed a different stage of growth for this infant commonly known as Hattiesburg's hospital. As Hattiesburg grew, so did the hospital. With each leap in growth the need arose for a different administration with newer resources and vision than its predecessors.

In 1924, the Mississippi Annual Conference of the Methodist Church obtained ownership of the hospital. By then it had grown to a 60-bed facility at the intersection of Hall Avenue and Bay Street with a thriving school of nursing.

The infant had come of age; its name was Methodist Hospital.