06/15/2026
Time Capsule Spotlight: Graham Hospital and the Graham Hospital School of Nursing
The artifacts and the history of Graham Hospital were particularly interesting to museum board member Kathy Myers so she selected those to spotlight. Kathy’s mother Lorene Myers and her sister Linda Myers Brown both had careers spanning over 30 years at Graham Hospital. Linda graduated from the Graham Hospital School of Nursing, and Kathy and her brother Butch both worked at the hospital in the summers to earn money for college.
In 1925 when the Canton Centennial was celebrated and artifacts were placed in the time capsule, Graham Hospital was only 16 years old. However, the need for medical care and a hospital went back even further. The first hospital established in Canton in 1890 was known as the Altruistic Hospital. It was located on the southeast corner of South Main and Maple in the G.B. Vittum residence. The Altruistic Society of Canton provided the medical equipment used there. That hospital continued until approximately 1900. A second city hospital was established at the Cooper property on South Second Avenue, across from South Park, that was leased and staff was hired. In 1903 a local typhoid epidemic was so large that the existing hospital at the Cooper residence on South Second Ave. was filled to capacity and many patients had to be housed in temporary tents. It was this typhoid catastrophe that provided the impetus for a fundraising drive for a larger, more permanent hospital.
In 1904 the Fulton County Medical Association, Canton city officials, and the Altruistic Club of Canton began working together to establish a permanent city hospital to replace two earlier facilities which had been housed in private residences. Although Alice and Caroline Graham had moved to Washington, D.C. from their home in Canton, they gifted the city with funds for a hospital in memory of their parents, John and Lydia Graham. They temporarily returned to Canton to oversee that project. Construction bids were accepted in 1907. The Cornerstone was laid in 1908. The original Italian Renaissance style building included 18-25 beds, an office, a children’s ward, a surgical room and solarium, along with housing for nurses and nursing students. Graham Hospital and Graham Hospital School of Nursing were opened in October 4, 1909.
The first two years were rocky, as the majority of patients admitted were terminal when they entered, resulting in the relatively rapid resignations of the first two administrators. During those two years, the Graham sisters continued to support the hospital, but in 1912, the hospital was reorganized and chartered as a non-profit organization. One board member was chosen from each of the following churches: Methodist, Episcopal, Baptist, Congregational, Presbyterian, and Christian, along with a member from the following lodges: Morning Star Lodge, A.F. and A.M. Olive Branch Lodge, Odd Fellows, Bohemond Lodge, and Knights of Pythian. Miss Alice Graham also served as a board member. A bequest from Joseph L. Murphy in 1907, provided for an additional $40,000 for the construction of the hospital. After a bitterly contested legal battle with his family, the Murphy Memorial Unit was completed in 1925. In 1916, a generous gift from Chicagoan Mrs. Samuel Allerton provided for the purchase of a residence across the street from the hospital named the Nurses Home, to house nurses and nursing students, allowing for additional patient beds in the hospital. Due to the need for isolation during the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic, patients were housed in the Central Grammar School. All public events were suspended during this time. At the time of her death, Alice Graham provided additional funding through a trust she had created to continue upkeep of the hospital, the School of Nursing, and to provide for a new Nurses Home and its upkeep. As the number of patients increased, so did additions to the hospital. Fundraising began in 1955 for a new East Wing to provide for more beds, a pharmacy and gift shop. A 1964 fundraising campaign provided for an extended care unit and additional space for the School of Nursing. The School of Nursing’s mission was to provide staffing for the new hospital. Originally, the nursing students were educated by the physicians, as well as working long hours with strict supervision providing personal patient care, preparing patient meals, cleaning patient rooms and performing some routine laboratory analysis. As one graduate from the 1930’s quipped, “All we had were Lysol and morphine to take care of our patients.” The first class of Graham Hospital School of Nursing students graduated in 1913 and included Mrs. Signa C. (Axcell) Thomas who later became the Superintendent of the hospital in 1933 and remained so until 1959. When she died in 1965, she left her entire estate to Graham Hospital. The School was approved by the IL Department of Registration and Education in 1923 as a three-year diploma program and accredited by the National League for Nursing in 1968. The name of the School changed from Training School for Nurses to Graham Hospital School of Nursing to reflect the current recognition that nurses were not “trained”, but educated. The School has now received accreditation as a four year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree granting program. Thousands of nurses have received their training through the school, serving communities throughout Illinois and beyond.
From a single building with a capacity of 25 beds, Graham Hospital is now Graham Health System operating in five counties (Fulton, Mason, Knox, McDonough, and Peoria) with 12 clinic locations continuing the commitment of the Graham sisters and those who came before.
Among the items submitted to the 1925 time capsule are a letter from T.T. Smith, Secretary of the Hospital Board of Directors and a catalogue from the 1916 “Training School for Nurses” that includes photographs of the hospital, lists of board members and students, interesting statistics about the operation of the hospital, and so much more.
In his letter dated Sept 21, 1925 T.T. Smith related the following:
“Supplementing the information contained in the enclosed 1916 Year Book of the Graham Hospital, the enclosed 1925 photograph of the Building and the following data is submitted.
The building is 40 feet deep, 90 feet front, three stories and basement and is situated at Nos. 210 to 220 West Walnut Street, Canton. The walls are of a light colored fire clay brick, roof of tar and gravel, interior construction of wood. The site between Walnut and Maple streets has the approximate dimensions of 180 x 260 feet and cost with building about $40,000. The basement of the building consists of Kitchens, Dining room, Laundry, Drying room, Stock, rooms, Boiler room, and three maid’s room. First floor consists of office, Reception room, Sun Parlor, Superintendent’s room, Linen room and seven patient rooms. Second floor, Nursery, General Ward, and Nine Patients rooms. Third floor, Two operating, Sterilizing, Dressing, and Service rooms, and Diet Kitchen. The site and the building constructed and equipped (with the exception of a few rooms, see 1916 Year Book) by Caroline J. Graham and Alice L. Graham, daughters of John Gleason Graham, one of the founders of the City of Canton.”
The 1916 “Training School for Nurses” Year Book contains statistics and photos of many of the rooms of the hospital and nurses quarters. The Statistical Report on page fifteen lists the following:
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1915 1916
Number of patients received during the year 347 457
Number of deaths during year 20 16
Per cent of deaths to patients received 5.7 3.5
Number of deaths with 48 hours after admitted 7 7
Per cent of deaths after deducint 3.8 2.4
Number of operations performed 315 453
Number of patients operated on 236 323
Number of days treatment given 4476 ` 5115
Greatest number of days any patient in Hospital 320 129
Average number in hospital per day 12 14
Average cost to Hospital per day 2.15 2.33
Average days stay of patient 13 11
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These selections from T.T. Smiths’s letter and the statistics and photos from the 1916 Year Book are just sampling of the documents submitted by Graham Hospital on display from the time capsule. Included are photos of the Graham sisters as well as selected photos from the 1916 Year book illustrating the operating rooms, patient rooms, and nurses’ rooms. The pages of statistics about the illnesses treated and operations performed are fascinating!
Like Kathy, maybe many of you, our members and followers, may have a connection to the Graham Hospital artifacts preserved in the 1925 time capsule.
Come visit us at the museum and find an interesting connection to your past. We are open Friday 10-12, Saturday 10 -2, Sunday 1-3 or by appointment.
Additional Sources:
Graham Hospital School of Nursing historical collection in the Illinois Digital Archives includes over 2000+ online digital items such as photographs, yearbooks, oral histories, postcards, meeting minutes, capping and graduation programs, newspaper clippings, etc. regarding both Graham Hospital and the School of Nursing history. Access to this collection is available by going to idaillinois.org.
Reflections of Canton in a Pharmacist’s Show Globe: A Comprehensive History of Canton, Illinois and the Important Events in Fulton County by Edward R. Lewis, Jr., 1967
