25 Years of Southwoods Health

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of Southwoods Health helping patients not only find the right treatment, but the right way to be treated. Our services, network of physicians, and facilities have dramatically expanded since June 1996, but our caring and compassionate professionals remain focused on the individual needs of each patient – and we’ll continue to make the patient experience our main focus for the next 25 years.

While the compassionate care at Southwoods hasn’t changed, the world around us definitely has! Keep reading to see how different the world was 25 years ago in 1996.

1. The cost of bread was $0.88, milk was $1.56, and a dozen eggs were $1.11.
2. The average price of a new car was $16,300 in the United States. Today, that average is $40,000.
3. The average cost to purchase a new home was $140,000. 25 years later, the average price is $372,400.
4. The average cost for a gallon of gas was $1.23.
5. In January 1996, there were only 100,000 websites compared to the 1 billion websites that exist on the internet today.
6. The popular dance song, “The Macarena” became a worldwide sensation.
7. The Olympics were held in Atlanta, Georgia – the last time they were held in the United States.
8. The New York Yankees won the World Series, ending an 18 year dry spell.
9. The Dallas Cowboys won the Super Bowl.
10. The Chicago Bulls were the NBA Champions and Michael Jordan the Finals MVP.
11. Minimum wage was $4.75/hour.
12. If you had a baby in 1996, these were the top ten name choices among parents: Emily, Jessica, Ashley, Sarah, Samantha, Michael, Matthew, Jacob, Chris, Topher, Joshua.
13. The medical drama ER was the number one show on television.
14. Independence Day was the biggest movie of the year, while The Nutty Professor and Mission: Impossible were among the 10 highest-grossing films of the year.
15. Jay Z, the Spice Girls and the Backstreet Boys released their debut albums.
16. The must-have Christmas gift in 1996? Tickle Me Elmo.
17. Michael Jordan made his cinematic debut in a movie called Space Jam.
18. Now a household staple, Febreze first began test-marketing.
19. On July 5, 1996, Dolly the Sheep was the first mammal to be successfully cloned.
20. EBay started its online auction and shopping website. 25 years later, there are 185 million active buyers.
21. DVDs were launched in Japan.
22. The Hubble Space Telescope revealed images of Pluto’s surface for the first time.
23. The popular gaming system, Nintendo 64, was released.
24. The McDonald’s Teenie Beanie Babies giveaway sparked a craze across the nation.
25. The North American Blizzard of 1996 was a massive snowstorm that moved up the Atlantic coast of the United States and into the Northeast dumping several feet of snow across several states.

As you can see, the world is a different place than it was 25 years ago when Southwoods opened its doors, and so are many aspects of Southwoods Health. While the world around us will continue to change and Southwoods will continue to grow, one thing will remain the same: the values of each and every individual at Southwoods Health and the compassionate care they offer to our patients. Because at Southwoods, It’s not just about the treatment, but how you’re treated!