The hospital was previously housed in a building complex at 687
Pine Avenue on the slope of
Mount Royal in the borough of
Ville-Marie. Most of the hospital's operations moved to the new Glen site of the
McGill University Health Centre on April 26, 2015. The
McGill Reproductive Centre and the
Dialysis Clinic remained at the original site for a time, but eventually were relocated. Of the Legacy Site's nine pavilions, three date from the original 1893 hospital and were designed by
Henry Saxon Snell in the
Scottish baronial style. The nearby
Allan Memorial Institute continues to house the psychiatry department. The post-2015 future of the 122-year-old Royal Vic building is yet to be determined.
McGill University has unveiled an idea to repurpose the hospital for academic purposes, but also add community and green space, a project that opposes the wishes of the founders, lords Strathcona and Stephen. The original hospital was designed by the Scottish architect
Henry Saxon Snell, who from the 1860s had made a name for himself in
England and
Scotland as a leading specialist in the design of hospitals, particularly in
London. Constructed of
Montreal limestone, the original Royal Vic is distinguished by its
crenelated structures and romantic
turrets framing generous
sun porches at the corners of its imposing medical and surgical wards. Snell's aesthetic plans for the Royal Vic were inspired by the
Scottish baronial style of the
Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. From a medical perspective, his design of the Royal Vic was influenced by the ideas of
Florence Nightingale as a
Pavilion Hospital, in which the separation and isolation of both patients and diseases were thought to discourage the spread of infection. The original part of the building was completed in 1893. The hospital was later enlarged by the addition of new wings of the same architectural style. The H pavilion opened in 1905 as the nurses' residence. The 1920s saw the addition of the Women's and
Ross Memorial pavilions. Another expansion was completed in the early 1950s giving the hospital its M and S pavilions; a portion of the original hospital was demolished to accomplish this. Lastly, the C pavilion, housing the emergency room, birthing centre, and a large modern ICU opened in 1993. A time capsule is located in the wall facing the C pavilion's elevators on the ground floor.
Hersey Pavilion , 1905. It was designated a
National Historic Site in 1997 The Hersey Pavilion, also known as the H Pavilion, was one of the first purpose-built nurses' residences in Canada. It was constructed in 1907 and designed by the well-known Montreal architects Edward &
William Sutherland Maxwell. It was designated a
National Historic Site in 1997 in recognition of the important role the building played in the training and professionalism of nurses in Canada.
Pool The hospital had an outdoor pool and patio located between the Hersey pavilion and
Allan Memorial Institute. In 2014, the pool closed until further notice.{{Cite web|author=Michelle Lalonde|work=Montreal Gazette|title='Hidden gem' pool behind Royal Vic sits empty ==Notable surgeons==