mybonsecours
history of Richmond Community Hospital
The roots of Richmond Community Hospital run deep, originating in the vision of Dr. Sarah Garland Jones, the first woman and African-American to be licensed as a physician in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Dr. Jones and other area physicians opened the first facility in Richmond designed to serve African-American patients in historic Jackson Ward in 1895.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, 12 young women in 1824 formed the
congregation of the Sisters of Bon Secours — French for “Good Help” — to
nurse the sick and dying in their homes. In 1881, the Sisters arrived
in the U.S. to continue their work, and in 1966 they established their
presence in Richmond, Virginia, with the opening of St. Mary’s Hospital.
In 1995, the stories of Richmond Community Hospital and Bon Secours
became intertwined when Bon Secours Health System acquired the hospital,
which by then had moved to the present location of 1500 N. 28th Street
in historic Church Hill. Today, Bon Secours Richmond Community Hospital
continues the legacy of its founders by providing “good help to those in need.”
Written by Ardith Barrow, Director of Project Management, Bon Secours Health System
