The story of Jacksonville Memorial Hospital began in 1868 when Mrs. Eliza Ayers, a widow from Jacksonville, wrote a letter to Reverend William Passavant, a Lutheran minister with a national reputation for creating hospitals and orphanages. She expressed her desire to donate a valuable block of five acres on the city’s leading street to accommodate a new facility. After spending several years determining the ideal location, Mrs. Ayers gave the property to Reverend Passavant in 1875, and Jacksonville Hospital (now known as Jacksonville Memorial Hospital) was built on East State Street.