DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Picture the highest point in McLennan County — McArthur Hill, named for a World War I army installation base sitting just north of the spot. Now picture the Waco Baptist Association, back in 1910, authorizing a committee to put a Baptist hospital right on top of it.
That's an ambitious idea. That's a statement. Local pastors, congregations, citizens, physicians — everybody pitching in, ecumenical support the marker calls it, which is a fancy way of saying this was bigger than any one congregation.
They had a site. They had a plan. The Central Texas Baptist Sanitarium was going up on the highest ground in the county.
Then World War I had other ideas. Construction was delayed. The war stretched on, and the hill stayed quiet.
But here's the thing about a good idea sitting on high ground — it waits. On May 25, 1920, the hospital finally opened, under the ownership of the Waco Baptist Association. And it wasn't just sitting up there admiring the view.
Seven rail lines put it within easy reach of four neighboring counties. Seven. People could get there.
That mattered. Then the Depression hit, and this is where the story turns human. When the money dried up and the doors were in danger of closing, the community held fundraisers, held activities, held on.
Residents kept that hospital open with their own hands and their own dimes. Maybe that's why, in 1938, when the name changed — to Hillcrest Memorial Hospital — it changed because of the increasing number of memorial gifts coming in from the community. The community had already made it theirs.
The hospital took an active role in the polio epidemic of the 1930s, establishing a physical therapy program, fighting a disease that didn't care how high your hill was. Then World War II brought more than 150 cadet nurses here for training. Then 1953 brought the Waco tornado, and the victims came here.
Always the hill, always the hospital, always the same bargain — you need us, we'll be here. The name kept changing as the institution kept growing. In 1963, Hillcrest Baptist Hospital, marking its affiliation with the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
In 1982, Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, to reflect the hospital's approach to health, preventive medicine and education. And then the modern era — one of the early magnetic resonance imaging services in Texas, a neonatal intensive care unit, specialized cancer and wellness centers. From a delayed construction project on a hill named for a wartime installation, to a place with some of the earliest MRI technology in the whole state.
The marker sums it up plainly: a tradition of pioneering medicine in Waco, and caring for the community. Sometimes the plainest sentences carry the most weight.
What the marker says
The Waco Baptist Association authorized a committee to build a Baptist hospital in Waco in 1910. With ecumenical support from local pastors, congregations, citizens and physicians, the Central Texas Baptist Sanitarium was slated to be built atop McArthur Hill, the highest point in the county, named for a World War I army installation base north of the building site. Construction was delayed by World War I, but on May 25, 1920, the hospital opened under the ownership of the Waco Baptist Association. Seven rail lines put it within easy reach of four neighboring counties. The institution began a tradition of community involvement during the Depression era, when residents held fundraisers and other activities to keep the hospital open. In 1938, the name was changed to Hillcrest Memorial Hospital because of the increasing number of memorial gifts from the community. The hospital took an active role in the polio epidemic of the 1930s, establishing a physical therapy program. More than 150 cadet nurses received training here during World War II, and victims of the Waco tornado of 1953 were brought here for treatment. In 1963, the hospital's name changed to Hillcrest Baptist Hospital to signify its affiliation with the Baptist General Convention of Texas; in 1982, the name became Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center to reflect the hospital's approach to health, preventive medicine and education. Modern facilities include one of the early magnetic resonance imaging services in Texas, a neonatal intensive care unit, and specialized cancer and wellness centers. The hospital continues a tradition of pioneering medicine in Waco and caring for the community. (2000)