BON SECOURS MARY IMMACULATE HOSPITAL FACT SHEET

History

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The hospital which eventually became Mary Immaculate Hospital was originally built at the turn of the century by Dr. Joseph Buxton. It was located in the eastern part of Newport News, near the current location of Newport News General Hospital and the Monitor-Merrimac Bridge Tunnel. Dr. Buxton’s son - Russell Buxton - wanted to dedicate his time to his surgical practice. At Bishop Ireton’s recommendation, he turned his hospital over to the Bernardine Franciscan Sisters. The Bernardine Sisters, Order of St. Francis, first came to the United States from Poland in 1894. They established their mission in Pennsylvania. In 1952, they assumed the sponsorship of the hospital and renamed it Mary Immaculate Hospital. Recognizing the demographic trends occurring on the Peninsula, the Sisters made plans in the late 1970s to relocate the hospital to an area where limited healthcare services were available. In the early 1980s, the hospital was finally relocated to its current campus in the Denbigh area of Newport News. Throughout its long history, Mary Immaculate Hospital maintained a strong commitment to meeting the needs of patients from throughout the Peninsula by continuously expanding its breadth of service and its numerous community outreach programs. On November 1, 1996, through a joint venture arrangement, Mary Immaculate Hospital became a Member of the Bon Secours Health System.