The Nailling Hospital was established in 1913 by William A. Nailling, a studious man with an entrepreneurial, curious, and innovative spirit. Apart from running the hospital and acting as the town’s Chief Surgeon, he had many business endeavors, including real estate investments and ownership of the Nailling Lumber and Milling Company.

A father to eight children, Dr. Nailling spent most of his life in Union City. His adult children included Sam, a prominent attorney and former mayor of Union City, William Jr., owner of the Nailling Mill, and Richard, who also graduated from Vanderbilt Medical School and became a physician. When the time came, however, he sent his three daughters to college in Boston. One of those daughters, Ima Nailling Ring, eventually became a grandmother to David Ring, a businessman who would decide to carry on Dr. Nailling’s legacy.