History: Why the Presbyterian Hospital was built at Agogo

The Presbyterian Hospital at Agogo in Asante Akyem in the Ashanti Region is one of the well-known hospitals in the region. The reason why the hospital was built in the area has got nothing to do with the population, land size, or financial support.

The decision to build the hospital in the area is because of something which happened in the 19^th century.

The incident is narrated as follows by Mr. Hans Buechner who, together with Mr. Adolf Kirchner, started the construction of the hospital building in 1928. Agogo Omanhene Palace “It was in 1869 that the first European missionaries came to Agogo, not to preach, but because they were prisoners – Fritz Ramseyer, his wife and baby, and Johannes Kuhne.

During fighting east of the Volta they had been captured by the Asante General Adu Bofo and forced to march day after day through the Afram Plains on the way to Kumasi to be presented to the Asantehene. After three weeks they reached Agogo, where they were allowed to rest for much of the month of July.

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They had suffered much on the journey. Their escort treated them as slaves. In the other villages, they had passed through they had, on the whole, received little food and miserable lodgings. The Ramseyers’ child was dying. In Agogo, however, they received much help especially from Nana Yaw Asamoah then Agogohene who, out of sympathy, pleaded with the escort to allow the Ramseyers to rest for a few more weeks to overcome the stress and tiredness to which they had been subjected during the past month. Nana Asamoah and his sub-chiefs and people of Agogo offered to accommodate and feed the Ramseyers for as long as the escort would allow it.

In fact, they offered in abundance eggs and a variety of fruits including pawpaw which was said to be Ramseyer’s favourite. Even though the escort who was himself happy with this gesture of hospitality would have allowed Ramseyer to stay longer, the dying child of the Ramseyer’s compelled them to leave Agogo to continue the journey since the pain connected with the child’s death would have erased the pleasant reception that they had received from Agogo and its people. Nana Asamoah saw them off by offering his own palanquin to carry them a few miles away.

Ramseyer wrote:

“When we had no more eggs (the food which they were trying to save their child) time and again someone who saw our sorrow brought us more.
May the Lord show the friend who helped us, that He does not forget the cup of cold water given to one of his little ones (Mathew chapter 10 verse 42).
And the Lord did indeed begin to show that he had not forgotten the people of Agogo.”

source: Agogo Presbyterian Hospital