Pat Boone, Kim Alexis: Before Publix, Jacksonville's Riverside Hospital cared for the stars and community
Pat Boone, the popular singer, was born there. Kim Alexis, the former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, gave birth there. Frank Slaughter, one of the top-selling U.S. novelists of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, worked there as a surgeon. For years, many of Jacksonville's socially elite preferred Riverside Hospital.
In addition to its reputation of prominence, Riverside Hospital had a reputation of progress.
It was the first hospital in Florida to perform X-rays, electrocardiograms and blood chemistry tests. It was the first hospital in the state to contract with a preferred provider organization. And the clinic next door was one of the nation's first group medical practices.
Curious Jax:Yes, Elvis did have a suite at a riverfront hotel in downtown Jacksonville. Here's what we know.
Curious Jax:'Magnificent' Hotel Windsor played central role in Jacksonville's heydey as a tourist destination
Curious Jax:Bailey's Drive-Inn was Main Street fixture until 1973
At its zenith, Riverside was a 183-bed independent hospital with a staff of more than 400 and a multi-faceted operation.
That ended in the mid-1990s.
And the hospital, which first opened in 1911, was erased from the site at 2033 Riverside Ave. in 2001.
Now, you can shop for groceries on what was once the site of the sprawling 240,000-square-foot hospital and clinic on 2.9 acres bounded by Riverside and Margaret, Oak and Goodwin streets.
Riverside Market Square, anchored by Publix Super Markets, occupies the spot where the hospital complex once stood. It also contains a variety of retail shops and restaurants such as Tijuana Flats, Starbucks, Papa John's Pizza, China Joy Restaurant, Sushi Cafe, Great Clips Hair Cut Salon and The UPS Store. Publix opened in 2002.
It's perhaps fitting that a grocery store is on the property considering that Riverside's cafeteria was noted for dishing up good food and even did a large neighborhood business. It was a popular spot for diners after church on Sundays with some coming for years. Morrison's Food Service managed the hospital's dietary department.
Riverside Hospital originally was a three-story brick building known as Rogers Hospital when it opened in 1911, according to the Times-Union. A six-story patient tower was added in 1968, and the original building was razed in 1982 to make way for a new wing.
The 183-bed hospital was purchased in 1991 by St. Vincent's Health System, which formed a partnership with Baptist Medical Center in 1995. Officials decided to shutter the facility in the wake of the merger, which was later dissolved. A community fixture in its heyday, Riverside was suffering from a dwindling patient load, the Times-Union reported.
Worman's, Crawdaddy's, The Embers:Classic restaurants from downtown Jacksonville's past
Timeline: Riverside Hospital
1911: Physician Carey P. Rogers opens Riverside Hospital, then known as Rogers Hospital, on Riverside Avenue between Goodwin and Margaret streets.
1968: Six-story patient tower completed.
1982: Original hospital structure razed to make way for ancillary wing.
October 1990: Riverside loses contract with Prudential Insurance Co. of America, seriously affecting revenues.
1991: Hospital purchased by St. Vincent's Health System.
July 1, 1995: St. Vincent's and Baptist health systems begin operations under a single board of directors.
Oct. 3, 1995: Hospital announces all inpatient services will cease and the emergency room will be closed.
Jan. 29, 1996: Officials confirm hospital will be closed by end of year and put up for sale.
June 1996: Riverside Hospital closes, becoming the largest Jacksonville hospital to close.
June 2001: Hospital demolished.
June 13, 2002: Publix Riverside and Riverside Market Square opens at former hospital site.
Sources: "History of St.Vincent's Health System," published in Jacksonville Medicine, August 1994; Florida-Times Union news stories.
This report contains information from former Times-Union reporters Sandy Strickland, Mike Stobbe and John Dunbar.