Hayswood Hospital

Hayswood Hospital History

On a steep hillside along 4th Street in Maysville Kentucky, there was once a private school for girls known as the Hayswood Seminary. It was purchased by a Mrs. Mary Wilson in 1907 and gifted to the city to be used as a hospital, and was known as the Wilson Hospital, although after she moved it was re-named the Hayswood Hospital. In 1925, the wooden structure was replaced with a large three-story brick building designed by Samuel Hannaford; a fourth story was added circa 1925.

After the opening of the Simon Kenton Bridge in 1931, Hayswood Hospital treated a large part of southwestern Ohio residents in addition to Kentucky's Mason County and was well renowned, earning several care awards by national accreditation groups. The U.S. Navy also used part of the hospital to treat those who became psychologically traumatized by the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941.

As with many rural and small-city hospitals in the early 1980s, Hayswood struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing world of modern healthcare. An earthquake near Maysville structurally damaged the physical plant, adding to the burden; the non-profit Hayswood Hospital was eventually sold to Nashville-based Hospital Corporation of America, and operated as Maysville Hospital from 1981-1983. On February 9th 1983, the building was shuttered for good as all services moved to the new Meadowview Regional Medical Center south of town.

Plans for redevelopment are stymied by the large costs for demolition and property remediation ($2 million), as well as unknown environmental impacts on the steep hillside the building is situated on, with a focused concern for the residences situated above the building.