The Evolution of the Corner at Anderson Street and Barton Road

It used to be that when driving west on Barton Road and would approach Anderson Street one could count on having a grand view of the Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital, and the iconic clover leaf towers of the Medical Center. The Loma Linda Beige of the hospitals stood out above the campus, and against the clear azure skies, the towers seemed to rise even taller. When the safety wall went up around the site, the hospitals appeared to rise out from behind the wooden barrier. That would be the scene for the next couple of years. It was in the late spring of 2018, that the first columns rose above the wall. At first one would have to look close or they would miss the first tangible evidence that there was indeed a structure being built behind the barricade.

What a stunning transformation. It took the ironworkers approximately seven months to completely obscure the existing Medical Center and Children’s Hospital.

This 1966 aerial view of the existing Medical Center was taken just after the last of the concrete exterior had been poured. The photograph was taken near the corner of Barton Road and Anderson Street. What a difference 53-years makes! This state-of-the-art building would soon become a world renowned icon of health and healing.

Compare this 2019 image with the 1966 photo above. Note all the changes that have been made on campus and toward the west end over the last 50 plus years.

Dennis E. Park, MA

After graduate school Dennis accepted a position at Loma Linda University. He worked there for 42 years in the areas of administration and financial management, also teaching accounting and management to dietetic students at the School of Public Health. Through the years Dennis has chronicled the growth of the campus, including the construction of the Drayson Center and the Centennial Complex and the razing of Gentry Gym. He is the author of "The Mound City Chronicles: A Pictorial History of Loma Linda University, A Health Sciences Institution 1905 - 2005." dEp 09.30.2016 🔨

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