Ty Cobb To Build New State-Of-The Art Medical Center For Northeast Georgia

Friday June 12th, 2009, Royston, Georgia - Ty Cobb, baseball's first Hall of Fame player, had another "dream" come true this week as the Ty Cobb Healthcare System, Inc. announced new plans to build a state-of-the-art medical center in Franklin County.

The history of Cobb's medical center "dream" goes back to the late 1940's when Ty announced plans to build a modern hospital in Royston in memory of his parents, Professor W. H. and Amanda Chitwood Cobb.

The Cobb Memorial Hospital opened on January 22nd, 1950 and was equipped with the latest technology available at the time. His dream was that the hospital would some day become a huge medical center for northeast Goergia.

"This is the happiest day of my life," said Cobb, the philanthropist who had also harbored dreams as a youngster to be a doctor.

The current operations have grown into a full-fledged healthcare system with two hospitals, a convalescent center, a kidney care unit, an assisted living facility and several other facilities including the Ty Cobb Museum located with in the corporate offices at the Joe A. Adams building.

The new facility will be located in Lavonia just 12 miles north of Royston. Ty's father once taught school in the town and Ty later served on the board of the local bank. 

The hospital will cost 69 million dollars and is expected to open in 2011. The name will bear that of the baseball great and will consist of some of the best specialist in the state.

The "Ty Cobb Regional Medical Center, LLC." will be centrally located with concentration of about three-forths of the population being with in a twenty mile radius.  

The current Ty Cobb Healthcare System President and CEO, Chuck Adams, said that it takes two things to make a rural medical center successful, "One, is population of about 40, 000 people. The second thing you need are specialists."

The new facility will be built on 40 acres leaving sufficient room for future expansions. The structure will be built to accommodate future construction growth and will be an attraction for new healthcare professionals.

"This is going to greatly strengthen the delivery of healthcare in this part of northeast Georgia," said Adams.

Georgia State Senator, Jim Butterworth congratulated the leaders for their advancement of healthcare in a downward economic time.

"I want to applaud all the people who have worked so hard to make this happen," he said. "That includes the physicians and the leaders at Ty Cobb, as well as hospital authority members and local officials in both Hart and Franklin counties. Working together, they've managed to accomplish something that will benefit the entire region."

For more information on the Ty Cobb Healthcare System, log on to the website at http://www.tycobbhealthcare.org/ 

or the museum at http://www.tycobbmuseum.org/