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St. Mary Hospital Makes Its MarkWhile Blessing Hospital was establishing itself as a community hospital for the sick and the destitute, Quincy's first permanent hospital, St. Mary Hospital, was nearing its 10th year of operation.The story of St. Mary Hospital begins in 1866 when the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor arrived after a request by the Rev. Herman Conrad Schaefermeyer, pastor of St. Boniface Church, to open a hospital in Quincy. The mission and goal of St. Mary Hospital was much like that of Blessing - to minister to the sick and the poor of the community.The Sisters were inspired by the "healing ministry of Jesus," with the philosophy to see Christ in every person and treat each patient with compassion and dignity. By October 1867, their efforts to raise money and support for a hospital culminated in the opening of St. Mary Hospital, a 50-bed facility built on a plot of land located at 14th and Broadway sold by William Moore and C. Fischer for $17 per foot.