Riverside Sanatorium
| Parkview Sanatorium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Established | 1915 |
| Opened | 1917 |
| Closed | 1975 |
| Demolished | 1997 |
| Current Status | Demolished |
| Building Style | Single Building |
| Location | Granite Falls, MN |
| Alternate Names | |
History[edit]
In 1915, the counties of Chippewa, Lac Qui Parle, Renville, and Yellow Medicine formed an association to build, maintain, and share the services of the Riverside Sanatorium, which was constructed (and opened in 1917) on a site three miles south of Granite Falls in Yellow Medicine County. The Riverside Sanatorium Commission, which controlled the facility, was composed of members from all of the counties involved. Three members, one a physician, were appointed by the Yellow Medicine County Board of Commissioners, and two members were appointed by each of the other counties' boards of commissioners. The sanatorium provided for the care and treatment of resident patients, and also sponsored clinics and various other out-patient services.
Members of the sanatorium staff gave talks before organized groups in the counties, and administered tuberculin tests and X-rays to adults, and to children through the public school system. The Riverside Sanatorium Out-Patient Department was created pursuant to a legislative act that authorized the State Board of Health to grant funds to counties or combinations of counties for establishing and administering local tuberculosis control programs that provided out-patient diagnostic treatment services. The department operated in conjunction with the sanatorium until 1964, when a significant decrease in the number of tuberculosis patients necessitated the closing of the facility.
The commission sold the facility and the outpatient department continued in a new location in Granite Falls, becoming the Riverside Out Patient Clinic. The sanatorium commission continued as the board of directors of the clinic. The clinic, supported by state, county, and private funds, continued to offer tuberculosis testing, former patient follow-up, and consultant services for residents of southwestern Minnesota counties until 1973, when the testing program was discontinued. Following the termination of state aid for out-patient tuberculosis control programs in 1973, the clinic also was finally closed and the board of directors dissolved in 1975.
