Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children, former hospital in Oregon, United States
The Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children was a facility in Portland that treated children with bone and joint problems. The original building in northeast Portland featured Colonial Revival architecture and was relocated to Marquam Hill in 1983, where it expanded with additional clinics, therapy rooms, and research facilities.
The Shriners decided in 1920 to build a hospital for children with disabilities after a member named Forrest Adair delivered an inspiring speech that motivated the organization. The original facility opened in 1924 in Portland as the fourth hospital in the Shriners system.
The name reflects the Shriners, a fraternal group dedicated to helping children in need. The site represents how the community once organized care for children with physical challenges and how charitable efforts shaped local medical history.
The original site in northeast Portland near Sandy Boulevard no longer exists, as the building was demolished in 2004. The current facility operates on Marquam Hill next to Oregon Health & Science University and treats children from Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Alaska, and parts of Canada.
In 1920, a member named Forrest Adair gave a famous speech called the 'Bubbles Speech' that convinced the Shriners to focus their efforts on helping children. This speech became a turning point and led to the creation of the hospital system.
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