Pictured above: The Marion Hawley Dunham Nurses’ Home, built in 1923, was the site of Brattleboro’s first nurse training program. Today it is known simply as The Dunham Building and is home to various BMH administrative offices.
It is with great pride that all of us at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital celebrate 120 years of continuous service to Brattleboro and surrounding communities in the tri-state area. While a lot has changed since 1904, one thing has remained constant. And that is our commitment to improving the health and lives of every person we serve.
BMH would not exist if not for the generosity and foresight of the Thomas Thompson Trust, which provided $100,000 to build a hospital and establish a nurse’s training school in 1904. At the time, Brattleboro had neither a hospital nor a single nurse. That meant people in the community had to travel some distance to Massachusetts or New Hampshire when they were ill or injured.
In its first year of operation BMH had 37 beds and provided care for 217 people. By 1926, the hospital had expanded to 50 beds and served approximately 1,500 patients.
Over the decades, BMH continued to grow and modernize its medical services to become the incredible healthcare resource we know today. Our hope is that 2024 will not only mark BMH’s first 120 years of operation, but will also mark the start of another 120 years of service to our incredible community!