St. Anne’s Guest Home (St. Michael’s Hospital and Nurses’ Residence)

The former St. Michael’s Hospital and the related Nurses’ Residence are outstanding examples of Classical Revival in Grand Forks. The buildings served health care needs for forty-five years. Design and construction of the complex were initiated under Fargo’s Bishop John Shanley and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. After the hospital closed in 1952 and medical services were relocated to a new building in 1971, these historic buildings operated from 1952 to 1982 as St. Anne’s Guest Home for elderly residents, the name that is retained today. The connected brick and stone buildings are three stories tall above raised basements and have symmetrical facades. Roof dormers were added sometime after the original construction. The central portion facing the river (to the east) projects as a porch in several stages from the body of the building, and the entrance is supported by stone columns and surmounted by a wide dentiled frieze. The apex of the hospital roof is capped by a small, octagonal domed cupola with arched openings. Attention was given to natural ventilation through large operable windows.

Because of its proximity to the Red River, the complex has been protected by a flood wall since 2007, which was carefully integrated to preserve the building’s historic character. This pair of buildings forms an irreplaceable part of Grand Forks’ cultural heritage, and special effort was made, first from 1996 as assisted living apartments and again following the 1997 flood, to preserve them for use.