Overview
St Bernardus in Bredevoort developed at the end of the nineteenth century as a Roman Catholic institution for care and nursing. Based in Huize Sint Bernardus on ’t Zand, it developed from a convent sanatorium into a residential care home for older people.
In 1897 parish priest Bernardus Mulders bought the former steward’s house with his own funds. Under the management of the Franciscan Sisters of Thuine, the R.K. Sanatorium St. Bernardus Gesticht was established there. Income from the sanatorium helped support Roman Catholic education in Bredevoort.
Sanatorium
From 1907 patients came to Bredevoort from across the Netherlands to recuperate at the sanatorium. Several open-air shelters stood in the garden, where patients rested outdoors even in winter. The sanatorium remained in use until 1933.
Residential care
After the sanatorium closed, St Bernardus became a home for older people. In 1938 the Sisters of Thuine were succeeded by the Sisters of St Joseph from Amersfoort. The last sisters left in 1985.
In 1988 the Stichting Verzorgingstehuis St. Bernardus carried out a major renovation and extension. In 2008 the care home moved to new premises near the Ambthuis. The subsequent history of the building itself is recorded on the Place page for Sint Bernardus.