Built in 1966, the facility was a fulfilled dream of long time Hospital Administrator, Sister Scholastica, back when St Margaret’s stood alone as the premier hospital in South Central Alabama, before neighborhood decay, local crime and an over-reaching ministry brought it down. Today the structure is owned by RSA, and it houses the State’s Department of Pardons & Paroles. Now its exterior detail is painted over to minimize its former character, but despite that effort, one can read the first floor auditorium level, the second floor classroom level, and three levels of dorm rooms for the nurse trainees. The dorm rooms all faced a 3-story open light-court, where the young ladies could sunbathe, but Sister Scholastica was terrified that some miscreant would fly over and look down into the well. That was such a sweet era. Much more information and stories can be found on the Criminal Justice Page.
-Charles Humphries
I was born at St. Margaret’s Hospital sixty years ago. Pretty cool seeing this post today. Thank you so for this and so many interesting historical treasures.
My brother Harris Allen Powell and I, shelma jean Powell, were born at st.margarets in the years 1941 and 1943. My brother was born 6 days before pearl harbor. Mother loved the sisters. At school age we went to Decatur street school. No longer in Alabama, that’s where my heart will always be.