By Suchetana Kona / September 1, 2023
Was Ground Reynolds really a morgue? Was Beall a psychiatric ward? As students get accustomed to NCSSM, they have probably heard from their seniors about the purpose of the rooms they lived in before the school was established. Watts Hospital was opened in 1895 to account for the lack of hospitals in Durham, with its increasing population. During the first few years, Watts hospital was meant to be small, containing only four buildings. They were all connected with corridors that were enclosed during winter, one of which contained patients and isolation rooms, where the others had the mortuary, autopsy facilities, and a carriage shed. However, as the hospital grew, so did its facilities.
In 1906, the hospital needed more space and it underwent construction to expand the building, but also the staff. This project was finished around 1909. By this point the hospital included an administration building, operating building, power house, laundry, and one patient pavilion. The entire building was constructed from fireproof material. The first research was located in the pathological and bacteriological labs of the administration building in what is now Watts Lobby.At the time Watts Lobby was the “first of its kind” based on architectural history. Although the new hospital provided for numerous people, there was still a need for expansion. The medical facility underwent another construction period a year later to make a patient pavilion specifically for female patients. The hospital accommodated 98 patients, and had 40 single rooms for nurses with the new building housing other services such as a gym, reception rooms, and more. There was more space dedicated to new medicine practices such as isolation rooms, and a shift towards surgery as the central focus of hospitals.
(The Herald Sun)
Later towards the mid-20’s the hospital peaked, ranging from the amount of patients to the type and quality of the services. More doctors had specialized fields while working there, and the amount of surgeries occurring increased by 25%, which began to dominate the work of the hospital. Due to the rise in surgery cases at the hospital, in 1926, the hospital decided to create a branch for private patients, which has become present day Beall. This expansion eventually led to the hospital receiving an “A” for their services, patient care, and staff. This construction was the final major installment in the hospital.
The historical journey of Watts Hospital, which eventually evolved into the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM), had major developments. Even though we will never truly know all the locations of the hospital, it is certain that the hospital was very popular!