In the 19th century , the indigenous hospital at Cheribon had been replaced by a Stadsverband, by which the municipality of Cheribon took care of the patients among its population. Schoute (Occidental Therapeutics, p. 163) dates the origin of the Stadsverband in the year 1868 and defines Stadsverband as: “municipal dressing stations, houses where wounded and sick were dressed and soon also received for treatment.” (See Gouvernementsbesluit of 1 April 1870 no. 15 and 11 Maart 1899 no. 13). In 1920, the new municipal hospital at Cheribon replaced this old institution (See KV 1921). This municipal hospital at Cheribon (West Java) was one of the first public hospitals that had been founded by a local authority. Together with the hospitals at Garoet, Bandoeng, Soekaboemi , Medan, Makassar and Palembang it became one of the examples of modern hospital management by local councils.
Cheribon (Cirebon) was in the 1930s a Residency, regency and district in the province of West Java. Its inhabitants were about 2 million,of whom 3,400 Europeans and 34,000 Chinese. The Residency was situated in a very fertile region, in the north low lands, in the south mountainous, a continuation of the Preanger mountains. The capital Cheribon (Cirebon) had 52,000 inhabitants of whom 1,500 Europeans. In the 1930s the city had a municipal council and a mayor. Cheribon was a vassal state of Mataram, when the VOC company was negotiating a contract with the three reigning princes in 1681. Cheribon remained vassal state and this situation was continued unchanged until the beginning of the 19th century.In 1803 a smouldering revolt under the population was pacified by the governor of the Northeast coast of Java, Nicolaus Engelhard. In 1813 the British abolished the administration of the sultans (Gonggryp 1934, 207).
See Grote Atlas van Nederlands Oost-Indie(Asia maior/knag, 2003), pages 266-269 for an elaborate townplan of Cheribon. The municipal hospital is indicated with figure 39, the indigenous hospital with figure 6.
See also General Hospitals 1940 -Google maps, for the exact situation of the town of Cheribon.
