Our History
In 1908, Bishop Conaty, from the Los Angeles Diocese, established a hospital in the St. Clair mansion in Bakersfield, California. Sister Mary Vincent created a new foundation of the Sisters of Mercy and occupied the St. Claire mansion in July 1908.
In September 1908, three other nuns joined Sister Mary Vincent and the first patient was seen on September 15th in the 14-bed hospital. In February 1910, Sister M. Joachim of the Los Angeles Sisters took over St. Clair Hospital at the request of Bishop Conaty. The Sisters began to think about building a new "up-to-date" structure as they determined the St. Clair Hospital to be inadequate for the growing community.
The first donor was William de Gana, a parishioner at St. Francis Church, who gave Sister Joachim a check for $45,000. They secured part of the Tevis estate for the Truxtun site. St. Clair hospital moved to Truxtun and the new hospital was constructed for $41,000.
In November 1913, the three-story concrete structure with accommodations for 50 patients was ready. Mercy Hospital continued to expand with the growing community and developed into the 194-bed facility that it is today.
In an effort to meet the community's increasing needs in southwest Bakersfield, Mercy Southwest Hospital opened in 1992 and quickly established a reputation for superior health care.
The "Spirit of Mercy" that that Sisters introduced so many years ago still lives on in the hearts of Mercy employees as well as donors and community members with special ties to Mercy Hospitals of Bakersfield.
