Tuberculosis treatment in Colorado Springs

Beginning in the late 19th century, people sought tuberculosis treatment in Colorado Springs, Colorado, because of its dry climate and fresh mountain air. Some people stayed in boarding houses, while others sought hospital-like facilities called sanatoriums. In the 1880s and 1890s, it is estimated that one-third of the people living in Colorado Springs had tuberculosis. The number of sanatoriums and hospitals increased into the twentieth century. During World War II, medicines were developed that successfully treated tuberculosis and by the late 1940s specialized tuberculosis treatment facilities were no longer needed.

Several of the facilities evolved into hospitals or medical facilities: Glockner Tuberculosis Sanatorium evolved into Penrose Hospital. Beth-El Hospital, with the National Deaconess Sanitarium, evolved into Memorial Hospital. St. Francis Hospital was a hospital that had a sanatorium in its three building complex. Union Printers Home and the Modern Woodmen Tuberculosis Sanatorium, now Mount Saint Francis, are going concerns with skilled nursing care. Today, however, the structure's usages are different. Miramont Castle, which was the site of the Montcalm Sanitarium, is now a museum. National Methodist Sanatorium evolved into a building for the Ent Air Force Base and its site is now part of the United States Olympic Training Center.

People also came to Colorado for the restorative benefits of its "clean air and sunshine." Starting in the 1860s, when tuberculosis (TB) was a worldwide problem, physicians in the eastern United States recommended that their patients go to Colorado to regain their health. As a result, the number of people with tuberculosis, called "lungers", in the state grew alarmingly and without the services or facilities to support their needs. Tuberculosis was called consumption "because its symptoms consumed those who had it."

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