The Florida Sanitarium
The sanitarium was the brainchild of Dr. W. K. Kellogg (Yes, the cornflakes Kellogg from Battle Creek, Michigan!). Excerpts from an article entitled “Florida Hospitals Traveled Long Road From Sanitarium” by Mark Andrews published in the Orlando Sentinel on November 15, 1996, explain how the Florida Sanitarium became Florida Hospital.
ABOVE: Aerial view of the Florida Sanitarium situated between Lakes Estelle and Winyah, the orange groves and cottages. VIEW Booklet.
“Florida Sanitarium opened in 1908 in an old farmhouse on a wooded campus between lakes Estelle and Winyah in what was then called the community of Formosa. It is now the College Park section of Orlando. The most popular hospital treatment at the turn of the century called for lots of rest, sunshine, fresh air, nutritious food, mild exercise and the so-called ”water cure.” This was the regimen prescribed for victims of tuberculosis, and physicians used it for a variety of other ills they didn’t know how to treat. Until the 1940s, it was the basis for most care at the institution that became Florida Hospital.
Above: Advertisement from 1924 Orlando City Directory, p. 23.
Note that they employ “Battle Creek Methods.”
Several months earlier, a group of Seventh-day Adventists with $5 in their treasury began raising money to buy the building, which had formerly been a tuberculosis sanitarium. They paid $9,000 for the two-story building. The hospital opened in October 1908 with 20 beds, two physicians, a herd of dairy cows on the grounds and four patients, according to a history of Florida Hospital compiled for its 75th anniversary in 1983…
In 1912, a concrete block building was erected across the lawn from the original frame structure. A third story was added to the original building in 1918, bringing the hospital’s capacity to 60 beds. The facility looked more like a hotel than a hospital. The lobby had a hardwood floor and contemporary furniture. Porches extended all the way around the building on all floors, giving patients access to the outdoors from their rooms. Furniture in patients’ rooms resembled what they might have at home. The dining room had linen tablecloths and napkins.
In 1925, a new wing was completed to connect the farmhouse to the block building… The hospital began to modernize both its care and its facilities during the 1940s. The sanitarium-style cure was replaced by more modern medicines and diagnostic and surgical procedures. Also in the 1940s, new buildings that more resembled modern hospitals began to go up. After that, modernization came quickly… in 1970, the hospital finally shed the outdated ”sanitarium” from its name and became Florida Hospital Orlando.
Florida Hospital now (in November 1996) comprises four facilities in Orange and south Seminole counties that have a total of 1,342 rooms. The main campus in Orlando has 805 beds; a second hospital built in Altamonte Springs in 1973 has 290.”
Advertisement above is from an Orlando city directory, and features a photograph of the Florida Sanitarium, and this brief description: “Two miles north of Orlando, Rural Surroundings, Homelike Atmosphere, Two Beautiful Lakes on the Premises. Hydrotherapy, Massage, Electricity, Phototherapy and Surgery. Special attention to diet. For information, rates, etc., address The Florida Sanitarium, Drawer 28, Orlando, Fla. Phone 319.”
A brochure promoting the facilities at the Florida Sanitarium located in what is now College Park area was created around 1930. It includes methods used to promote health and scenes from the campus. Peruse additional brochures, photographs and histories at the AdventHealth archives.
ABOVE: Map showing the old Dinky Line railroad.
A map of the area, shows Lake Estelle situated between Orlando and Winter Park between Orange Avenue and Mills Avenue (Highway 17-92), perhaps near the current location of Florida Hospital on Alden Road and Princeton Street.
Florida Hospitals are now part of the AdventHealth network of hospitals, free standing emergency centers, radiology centers, Centra Care urgent care centers and more.
Postcards
Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and the Hosptial, were donated to the library by the Marillyn Suzuki.
Peruse the postcards below under IMAGES and read more about the history of postcards at Smithsonian.
Photo of Rev. Leroy Thaddeus Crisler and his wife at their home in Orlando. Rev. Crisler served at the Florida Sanitarium for several years prior to his passing on September 10, 1943. The photo was shared with Orlando Memory by Terry Lysek, whose parents were married by Rev. Crisler from his death bed.
Comments from the original Orlando Memory site
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Florida Sanitarium 1924 Orlando City Directory
Florida Sanitarium Advertisement in the 1924 Orlando City Directory on page 23.
Florida Sanitarium 1924 Orlando City Directory
Florida Sanitarium Advertisement in the 1924 Orlando City Directory on page 23.
Florida Sanitarium 1 Back
Florida Sanitarium 1 Back. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 1 Front
Florida Sanitarium 1 Front. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 2 Back
Florida Sanitarium 2 Back. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 2 Front
Florida Sanitarium 2 Front. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 3 Back
Florida Sanitarium 3 Back. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 3 Front
Florida Sanitarium 3 Front. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 4 Back
Florida Sanitarium 4 Back. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Florida Sanitarium 4 Front
Florida Sanitarium 4 Front. Postcards featuring the old Florida Sanitarium and grounds circa 1905-1915 and an aerial view of the Sanitarium and...
Pastor and Mrs. LeRoy Crisler
Pastor and Mrs. LeRoy Crisler. Pastor Leroy Thaddeus Crisler served at the Florida Sanitarium for several years at the Florida Sanitarium prior...
Adventhealth University archives
https://library.ahu.edu/find/adventhealth-university-archives
I was born at Florida Sanitarium hopspital on November 22,1950. I was amazed at how the hospital began as a sanitarium and grew over the years to be such a gift to the community with all the many medical achievements.God bless all that had a hand it making it great.
Greetings Loretta! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and sharing your thoughts about the Florida Sanitarium. We hope you will find additional posts that bring back fond memories of days gone by and continue to share with us all! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Wow, this information is so interesting. I was born at Florida San Hospital in 1961, and both of my older sisters were born there too. I never really knew where the hospital was located, or if it was even still around. My sister just sent this article to me and I am grateful to read about it. Thank you for the article!
Greetings Eileen! Thank you for visiting the Florida Sanitarium post on Orlando Memory! We hope you will find other posts that bring back memories of growing up in Orlando and continue to share your comments with us all! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Hi , I’ve been told I was born at this hospital on June 25 1957.;I was then adopted by a beautiful human being Shirley West Swenson. Shirley is still living and about to turn 92 yrs. young. Shirley was raised in nearby Apopka. My Grandparents ran a fish camp on Lake Apopka. Shirley and Chet Swenson were wonderful parents.
Greetings Robert! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Memory post on the Florida Sanitarium and sharing your beautiful words about your parents. We hope you find other posts on Orlando Memory that bring back fond memories of days gone by. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I am writing a family history and began researching Florida Sanitarium. Both my mother (1926) and my brother (1951) were born there. I appreciate the history provided on this sight, as well as the pictures. Thank you.
Greetings Pat! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Memory post on the Florida Sanitarium. It is certainly amazing that this small Sanitarium has evolved into the AdventHealth! We hope you find other posts that help you in your research on Orlando Memory or in the Florida Collection at the Orlando Public Library! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Hi – I had my babies in 1972 and 1975 at “Florida South”. I live very close to AdventHealth on Rollins and have been there quite often. Every time I go, I wonder where I actually had my babies. Was I in the original Sanitarium Building? If so, is that still there and currently part of the “new” hospital? How would I locate the maternity ward where I had my babies in 1972 and 1975?
Greetings Nancy! Thank you for visiting the Florida Sanitarium post on Orlando Memory. Perhaps you should contact the archives at Advent Health. They may be able to answer your questions. https://library.ahu.edu/find/adventhealth-university-archives We hope you will find other posts that bring back happy memories. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I’m trying to find out if my grandfather was there in the 1920’s. Is there a list of patients anywhere?
Greetings Mary! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Memory post on the Florida Sanitarium. Many people visited the Sanitarium to improve their health during the 1920s. We do not have any further information other than what is posted; however, you could reach out to the Advent Health Archives and see if they have any guest registers. https://www.ahu.edu/library/find/adventhealth-university-archives THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I was born there in 1960. My dad ran orange groves, his parents lived right down from Tinker Field (that was awhile ago). My how Orlando and it’s surroundings have grown. I miss the old Orlando.
Greetings Cindi! Thank you for telling us about your family. If you’d like to, please share your family’s orange grove business name. If you have any photos of your family’s business, we’d be happy to create a post on them. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM.
I was born there in 1960 and my brother was born there in1962.
I have been curious about the sanitarium and enjoy telling folks that’s where I was born.
Really glad to have found this information.
Greetings Charles! Thank you for visiting the Florida Sanitarium post on Orlando Memory and sharing that you were born there. We hope you find more posts that bring back memories of the “good old days” here in Central Florida. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM.
It was interesting finding this site today. Loved seeing the old postcard pics. I was actually born there in 1971. I believe my aunt, Agnes Barclay(now deceased), used to work at and eventually retired from this hospital.
Hello Neitha J., I was born there in 1955. I have many family members in Central Florida within the Seventh-day Adventists community and, went back to the hospital when I broke my arm in little league. Somehow, I have so many memories of the landscape there. When I was born the nurses collected all the ribbons from flowers and made me a receiving blanket. I will go there again soon since I have not been back to Florida in many years.
Greetings David! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and commenting on the Florida Sanitarium post. We hope you find other posts that bring back memories of happy days gone by! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Greetings Neitha! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and the post on the old Florida Sanitarium. It is amazing that this sanitarium created by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg has grown into the huge AdventHealth hospital on Rollins Street between Orange Avenue and Princeton. How exciting that you were born in the original Florida Sanitarium and your aunt worked there. We hope you will continue to share your memories of Orlando with everyone on Orlando Memory.
My Dad was in there in 1958 and 1959 we were allowed to visit on weekends and would have picnics in the surrounding orange groves.
I have a few pictures of him and at least one nurse.
So good to see this on here! I always wondered why I was born in a Sanitarium and eases my mind that I now know it’s just a wonderful , faith based , well renowned Hospital that brought me into this world in 1962. Very interesting content THANK YOU for that!
Greetings Sheri!
Thank you for visiting the Orlando Memory post on the Florida Sanitarium. So glad you are finding connections with others who remember it kindly. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM.
Greetings, Dennis! Thank you for sharing the information about your Dad on Orlando Memory! We will reach out to you about the photos! We hope you find more posts of interest on Orlando Memory! ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Feel free to contact me.
Hello. I believe my grandmother worked at Florida Sanitarium in the 1920s and my mother’s birth certificate indicates that the MDs overseeing her birth show the Sanitarium as their addresses. The certificate is signed by L. L. Andrews MD and Bera J. Balkins. It appears that my mother may have been born there in 1924 to my grandmother (a Cuban refugee Bienvenida Quiza) who may have worked at the sanitarium in some capacity. If any information exists for this piece of my history I would appreciate very much if you could share it.
Greetings! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Memory post on the Florida Sanitarium and sharing this wonderful information. We have some city and telephone directories for that era that might be helpful. We will reach out to you via email regarding the certificate. ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I have five penny postcards from the 1924-1940 era, includong one interior photo of the old lobby. I would be glad to donate these to the archives if there is any interest. My family all were employed there in the 1950s, but I grew up in Orlando knowing the original Sanitarium building. Please contact me if anyone would like to have these picture post cards.
Greetings, Marillyn! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and sharing your exciting information about the Florida Sanitarium. We will reach out about the postcards. It is amazing that your family actually worked at the Sanitarium. If you would like to share their names and occupations, we’d love to have that here on the post in the comments! Thank you again for visiting. We hope you find other posts that bring back warm Orlando Memories! ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM