Quigless Clinic
Tarboro’s Main Street is home to a healthcare facility on the National Registry of Historic Sites: the Quigless Clinic-Hospital. Started in the 1940s by Dr Milton Douglas Quigless, Sr., the clinic served Tarboro’s African-American community at a time when few medical service providers welcomed them.
Dr. Quigless and his wife opened the Quigless Clinic-Hospital just as World War II was ending. They built the clinic after Dr. Quigless was turned away from the area hospital. Segregation laws denied the doctor, and his patients, access.
Dr. and Mrs. Quigless provided the community with the healthcare that they needed, and together they ran the clinic for the next five decades.
Mrs. Quigless and her children kept the facility working after Dr. Quigless’ death in 1997. Mrs. Quigless worked to make the hospital a Historic Site. The building has been remodeled over the years. Following Hurricane Floyd, repairs were made and the historic designation achieved. In 2000, the U.S. Department of the Interior recognized the historical significance of the Clinic’s Main Street location and it was added to the National Registry.
Dr. Quigless was inducted into the Twin County Hall of Fame in 2004. He is cited as a medical professional and a community activist.
The Quigless Clinic building is still run by the Quigless family, and serves as an natural health center with health services and alternative health products.
Issue date: August 16–29, 2013
