This year, Anna Jaques Hospital (AJH) is celebrating 140 years of providing exceptional, personalized health care with dignity, compassion, and respect. As we reflect on all that AJH has accomplished since its founding, we are deeply grateful for the tremendous community of advocates and supporters who make our work possible, especially the woman without whom our hospital would not exist: Anna Jaques. Below, Board of Trustees Chair Grace Gonzalez Connolly shares a brief history of Jaques’ life and legacy in honor of the hospital’s anniversary.
Celebrating 140 Years
By Grace Gonzalez Connolly
Anna Jaques is a woman whose name we recognize because our local community hospital bears her name, but about whom we know very little. Historical resources with information about her are limited—a reminder of the underrepresentation of women in recorded history, particularly in the nineteenth century. Who was the enigmatic Anna Jaques?
Born in Newbury, on May 8, 1800, she was a descendant of the Jaques family that settled in Newbury in 1640. A pioneering spirit was part of her heritage. Her brothers allegedly made a fortune in gold speculation after the Civil War and left their wealth to their sister, who never married and had no children.
Jaques—who was independent and unconventional for her time—was widely known for her generous support of charitable causes, especially those that relieved the suffering of less fortunate individuals. Her most significant contribution was the founding of Anna Jaques Hospital. On March 14, 1883, Jaques penned an impressive letter setting forth the terms of her intended gift, which reads:
Gentlemen, I, Anna Jaques of Newbury in said County, Single Woman, herewith give and transfer to you the sum of Twenty-five Thousand dollars in bonds at par value as follows, to wit: City of Boston bonds of the par value of twenty-two thousand dollars and the State of Massachusetts bonds of the par value of three thousand dollars, in trust, for the following purposes and uses, namely, the purchase of suitable real estate…and the creation of suitable buildings thereon within the limits of said City [Newburyport] and the establishment and maintenance there of a Hospital, to be called the Jaques Hospital, for the reception and care of sick and disabled persons.
A few weeks later, in a letter dated April 3, 1883, she changed her mind about the hospital’s name, explaining that:
To gratify the urgent wishes of many friends, I request that the within named Hospital be called the Anna Jaques Hospital instead of the Jaques Hospital.
There is legal significance to Jaques’ reference to herself as a “Single Woman.” Unlike married women of her era, she owned and controlled her property, including the right to give it away. Jaques’ decision to use municipal and state bonds for her gift, rather than cash, suggests a level of investment sophistication that is extraordinary for a woman of the nineteenth century. Her initial inclination to deflect attention from herself in naming the hospital is evidence of her humility. It also epitomizes that culturally and socially ingrained feminine trait, which predisposes young girls and women to shy away from accepting just credit for their achievements. Thanks to “the urgent wishes of many friends,” she ultimately overcame her reluctance to give the hospital her name.
In May of 1884, AJH opened its doors with 13 beds. Jaques attended the opening ceremony and was able to witness the realization of her vision for a community hospital that would care for those who were sick and disabled. Jaques died on January 26, 1885, at her home on Parker Street in Newbury, but her remarkable legacy lives on.
AJH is celebrating its 140th anniversary this year, a milestone made possible through the generosity and vision of Jaques and the continued philanthropic support of individuals and institutions who, just like the hospital’s founder, believe in AJH’s mission to provide extraordinary care, close to home.
Grace Gonzalez Connolly, Board of Trustees Chair