The search for Dr. A Barr Snively's Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium continues. To find the site here is a recap of the research gathered so far. The Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium pamphlet identifies several key items:
Marked on the topographic map below is an approximate 1 mile radius from the Blue Ridge Summit WMRR station. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that present day maps have different streets and buildings than what was in the area in the time period- June 1905 to April 1916. Currently, I have yet to find a historical street map in this time period. However, the elevation of the land and surrounding areas would not have (naturally) changed that drastically, even in 100 years. Therefore, the elevation of the land is the first consideration. This narrows down the searchable areas to only a few spots from the mile radius image above. A First Impression For the reasons above, my first thought was that Snively's land was situated to the west of Blue Ridge Summit, PA. This would fit the stated description of the elevation of the property. The pamphlet has pictures of the view west, Blue Ridge Summit, and Charmain and Monterey. It stated (but did not include a picture) of the view of Gettysburg which was "a 10 min walk" away. The photographs of those views will hopefully help to identify a more exact location. The mountains in the photos can certainly help to triangulate the sanatorium location. Land Records There are several Snively deeds in Franklin County, PA. Both Dr A Barr Snively and his father I.N. Snively held land in Waynesboro and Washington Township, PA. A closer look at these land records is warranted, if nothing turns up from the Bullet/ Snively deed, below. John Bullet Jr gave Dr. A Barr Snively land in Washington Township in April 1905. Two months later, in June, Dr. A Barr Snively opened his Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium. It seems likely that this new property is the one that the Sanatorium was on. But where was the Bullet/Snively property located, exactly? My next step, therefore, is to plot the land out, using the Bullet/Snively deed. After I plot it out, an attempt to locate the land will include going back to the Franklin County archives and/or courthouse to follow the deed forward to present day.
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I have been obsessed with researching Dr. A. Barr Snively's Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium. I have been trying to help a friend identify the location of the private Tuberculosis sanatorium. Little is known of the Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium, most likely due to the fact that two neighboring sanatoriums grew to be large, state run facilities. To the north in Mount Alto, PA was a very large sanatorium- currently the South Mountain Restoration Center (previously White Pine Camp 1901 - 1907, Mount Alto Sanatorium 1907 - 1918, etc). The Maryland State Sanatorium, to the south, in Sabillasville, MD (previously Hilltop Hospital 1907 - 1908) housed over 200 patients by the time Snively dismantled his facility. The "Snively Sanitarium" (postcard circa 1909, above) was located in Franklin County, Pennsylvania near Blue Ridge Summit. When it opened its doors in 1905 the Tuberculosis epidemic was the leading cause of death (below). The fight against Tuberculosis, aka Consumption, had been raging for thousands of years. But Hermann Brehmer's notion of seeking a higher altitude in sanatoriums (so the heart wouldn't have to work so hard to fight off the disease) was a relatively new idea. Medical facilities to treat the disease were few and far between; states scrambled to find suitable sites above sea level where they could build sanatoria. There are various articles on Dr A Barr Snively: his work, professional accomplishments and community involvement which range from helping to select the "State National Guard" camp location to his memberships in various medical associations. There are numerous accounts of accidents in the Waynesboro, PA where the good doctor was called upon to patch people up. He extracted bullets, amputated fingers and eyes, and even reset his own fractured arm. Details are scarce, however, about the Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium. Pennsylvania newspapers identify it was near Blue Ridge Summit, PA, and Dr. A. Barr Snively operated it from 1 Jun 1905 and dismantled 18 Apr 1916. The Blue Ridge Mountain Sanatorium pamphlet, below, is the only known publication of the sanatorium in existence today. It is housed in the US National Library of Medicine, National Institute for Health, in the History of Medicine Reading Room (Bethesda, MD). It is my hope to soon unravel the mystery of the exact location of the sanatorium from the clues within. |
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