From Healing to Home: Preserving the Legacy of Whittaker Memorial Hospital Through Affordable Housing
Just over a century ago, Newport News, Virginia, became home to one of the first hospitals in the United States designed and operated by African American citizens. Whittaker Memorial Hospital represents a triumph in resiliency born out of the Reconstruction and Segregation eras when Black patients and physicians were shut out from quality medical care across the country. Today, what remains of Whittaker Memorial Hospital now serves families with high-quality affordable housing units, carrying on the legacy of a building that serves the Newport News community with the same spirit of care and commitment.
The Whittaker Memorial Hospital was founded in 1908 from the vision of Drs. Walter Foreman and Robert Whittaker, both Black physicians who believed in providing high quality care to the growing Black population in Newport News. At the time, 8 out of 39 practicing physicians were Black, yet these qualified providers were prohibited from working at local hospitals. Before Whittaker Memorial Hospital, the only medical facility available to Black patients was a clinic in the city jail, and all other care was home-based and therefore inconsistent in availability and quality.
Location:
Newport News, VA
Developer:
John Biagas, Junior Burr, and Eugene Thomas
Total Homes:
67
Whittaker Memorial first operated out of four rooms in the home of a prominent Black attorney before expanding into a newly constructed building in 1915. Throughout the early to mid-20th century, it thrived, offering high-quality, affordable medical care, a free outpatient clinic, and a nursing school that graduated 112 students.
In 1943, Black architects and civil engineers designed an additional 53-bed facility adjacent to the original 1915 hospital building and increased its capacity to house 126 beds by 1966. The original building was demolished in 1950; however, this second addition became a vital institution in the Black community, providing essential healthcare services and professional training opportunities for several decades.
Despite a few periods of financial hardship, Black doctors thrived at the Hospital. One example is C. Waldo Scott, a Black physician who joined Whittaker Memorial staff in 1948 after graduating from University of Michigan Medical School. Scott went on to become the first Black person of the century appointed to the Newport News School Board.
Whittaker Memorial Hospital was sold to the city in 1985 after its board decided to construct a new medical facility elsewhere. Over the following years, the building served various purposes, including a mental health treatment center, a boarding house, and eventually a 55-bed homeless shelter operated by the Salvation Army. However, during this period, the building fell into disrepair due to a lack of maintenance. In 2018, John Biagas, Junior Burr, and Eugene Thomas purchased the historic site and revitalized it, transforming it into 67 units of high-quality affordable housing for low-income families and individuals and ensuring its legacy of service to the community continues.
VCDC provided investments of $3.7 million in Low Income Housing Tax Credits and $4.5 million in Historic Tax Credits to support bringing the Whittaker Place Apartments to life. Given the building’s history, each unit is unique, and historic features were preserved including the large corridors, high ceilings, and ceramic wall tiles in the original labor and delivery rooms.
By preserving the historic Whittaker Memorial Hospital through thoughtful tax credit investments, we honor the trailblazers in the Black community who fought for equity and access, ensuring their contributions remain a source of inspiration for future generations. VCDC is a proud partner of this revitalization project and its impact through affordable housing for families, amplifying a legacy that uplifts the Newport News community.
