Isabella Garnett facts for kids

Isabella Garnett (born August 22, 1872 – died August 23, 1948) was a very important person in Evanston, Illinois. She started the first hospital there that specifically helped African-American patients. After her hospital joined with a new one in 1928, she led that hospital for over ten years. She is still known as one of Evanston's most famous African-American historical figures.

Even though she got married twice, Garnett always used her maiden name (Garnett) for her work. Her full name is sometimes written as Isabella Maude Garnett Butler Talley.

Isabella Garnett's Early Life and Education

Isabella was one of seven children. Her parents, Daniel and Hannah Garnett, were among the first African-American families to settle in Evanston. They lived in a community called "Ridgeland Village." They also helped start the Second Baptist Church of Evanston.

Isabella didn't finish high school. But she took classes at a business school in Minneapolis in the 1890s. Starting in 1894, she worked and studied at Provident Hospital in Chicago. This was the first hospital in the United States owned by Black people. She earned her nursing degree in 1895.

After working as a school nurse for two years, she went to Harvey Medical College from 1897 to 1899. There, she got a premedical certificate. With this certificate, she enrolled at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Chicago. She earned her MD degree in 1901. This made her one of the first African-American women to become a doctor in Illinois.

Starting the Butler Sanitarium

Dr. Garnett first worked on the South Side of Chicago. But she moved back to Evanston by 1904. She married Arthur Butler, who was also a medical student, on January 5, 1907. She worked on her own until he graduated from Northwestern University Medical School in 1909.

By 1910, hospitals in the Evanston area stopped accepting African-American patients for regular care. To help with this problem, in 1914, Dr. Isabella Garnett and her husband, Dr. Arthur Butler, opened the Evanston Sanitarium and Training School. It was on the top floor of their home at 1918 Asbury Avenue in Evanston.

The Sanitarium focused on the most urgent health needs of the community. It mainly treated serious illnesses. This was the first African-American medical center north of downtown Chicago. It was also one of only four hospitals in the area that accepted African-American patients and hired African-American doctors.

Dr. Butler worked as the surgeon, a general practitioner, and also helped with childbirth and anesthesia. He passed away suddenly in 1924. After his death, Dr. Garnett managed the Sanitarium by herself. She renamed it the "Butler Memorial Hospital" to honor him.

The need for medical care for African-American residents grew even more during the Great Migration. This was a time from 1910 to 1925 when many African Americans moved from the Southern states to the North. Evanston's Black population almost doubled. This time also led to more segregation, meaning people were kept separate in many places, like schools and businesses. Dr. Garnett's small hospital, with only three rooms and two floors, was the only place for medical treatment for about 5,000 African Americans.

The Community Hospital of Evanston

In 1930, Butler Memorial Hospital joined with The Booker T. Washington Association of Evanston. It moved to 2026 Brown Avenue and was renamed The Community Hospital of Evanston. Dr. Garnett married James Talley, a Baptist minister, on February 5, 1930. Dr. Garnett served as the hospital's superintendent until 1945. Because of this, The Community Hospital is sometimes seen as a continuation of her first Sanitarium.

The Community Hospital started in a local doctor's large brick home. It began with 18 beds. They had planned to build a much larger hospital with fifty beds. But the start of the Great Depression made it impossible to raise enough money. To help get funds for the hospital, the Women's Auxiliary of Community Hospital was created in 1939. It was started by a hospital staff member, Dr. Elizabeth Webb Hill. Dr. Hill later became the hospital's chief of staff, making her the first African-American woman to hold that position in Illinois.

In 1952, the Community Hospital opened a new, bigger facility to meet the growing needs. In 1980, the hospital closed. The building was then turned into apartments for adults with disabilities. In 1986, the apartment complex was named Hill Arboretum Apartments, honoring Dr. Hill. This non-profit apartment building still displays pictures of Dr. Garnett and Dr. Elizabeth Hill.

The Community Hospital of Evanston collection is kept at the Shorefront Legacy Center in Evanston, Illinois.

Isabella Garnett's Later Life and Legacy

Dr. Garnett hoped to keep working as a private doctor after leaving the hospital. But she had to fully retire in 1946 because of poor health. On August 23, 1948, one day after her 76th birthday, she passed away in the very hospital she founded. She died from problems related to heart disease. Earlier that year, a day during National Negro Health Week had been dedicated to honoring her.

The Community Hospital became a place of debate in the 1950s. Some people wanted hospitals to be integrated, meaning all races could be treated together. Others, like Dr. Garnett's successor Dr. Hill, felt that "the sick can't wait" and that the hospital was still needed. Dr. Hill's view won, and Community Hospital expanded to a 56-bed facility in 1952.

Even though other Evanston hospitals started treating African-American patients later in the 1950s, Community Hospital continued to serve people of all races in Evanston until it closed in 1980.

In 1975, Evanston named a 16-acre park after Dr. Garnett. It's called the "Isabella G. Butler Park," but people often call it "Butler Park." The park is located near the North Shore Channel, close to where Community Hospital used to be.