MacLachlan Sanitarium

Dr. Charles H. MacLachlan Sanitarium and House
Location 6482 Pingree Rd., Elwell, Michigan
Coordinates 43°23′9″N 84°44′47″W / 43.38583°N 84.74639°W / 43.38583; -84.74639Coordinates: 43°23′9″N 84°44′47″W / 43.38583°N 84.74639°W / 43.38583; -84.74639
Area less than one acre
Built 1908 (1908)
NRHP Reference # 82000533[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP November 22, 1982
Designated MSHS January 8, 1981[2]

The MacLachlan Sanitarium is a hospital/family home located at 6482 Pingree Road in Elwell, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1981[2] and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.[1]

History

Dr. Charles H. MacLachlan was born in 1845 in Perth County, Ontario, the son of Alexander and Clamina MacLachlan.[3] He later moved to Pennsylvania, and there married Sarah E. Peters in 1871. Maclachlan was an early proponent of "physiological therapeutics," a treatment of chronic diseases without the use of medication.[2] He studied at Juttners Physiological Institute in Cincinnati, then moved to Seville Township in 1883. There, he constructed a sanitarium as a facility to treat chronic diseases such as tuberculosis, rheumatism, and nerve and skin disease. The facility also served as a local hospital. MacLachlan slowly built the establishment into a thriving medical pratcice, and in 1908 added a main section to the facility.[2]

The structure was used as a sanitarium until MacLachlan's death in 1920.[2] Afterward, it was used as a boardinghouse, bar, restaurant, dancehall, and private residence.

Description

The Charles H. MacLachlan Sanitarium consists of two attached sections: a small single-story wood-framed structure built in 1883 and a larger two-story fieldstone structure built in 1908.[2] The 1883 section is clad with clapboards and sits on a stone pad; it has a gable roof and double hung sashwindows. The 1908 section is constructed of uncoursed fieldstone, sitting on a stone pad and topped with a hip roof. A deep veranda spans the front of the building and wraps around one corner. The veranda has support columns and a balustrade constructed of fieldstone. The windows of the structure are surrounded with slightly arced stone frames.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "MacLachlan, Dr. Charles H., Sanitarium and House". Michigan State Housing Development Authority: Historic Sites Online. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  3. Willard Davis Tucker (1912), Gratiot County, Michigan: Historical, Biographical, Statistical, Volume 2, pp. 1119–1120
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.