College of Physicians of Philadelphia
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building | |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
Coordinates | 39°57′12″N 75°10′35″W / 39.95328°N 75.17636°W |
---|---|
Area | <1 acre[1] |
Built | 1909 |
NRHP reference No. | 08001088 |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | October 6, 2008[2] |
Designated NHL | October 6, 2008[3] |
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia is the oldest private medical society in the United States. Founded in 1787 by 24
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building, designed by the firm of
Current programs
The College remains a private membership organization of physicians, whose members or "fellows" attend regular meetings on professional education and development. Starting in 1995 the C. Everett Koop Community Health Information Center has provided current information about medical and health topics to the general public. The Francis Clark Wood Institute for the History of Medicine, founded in 1976, supports seminars and conferences in the history of medicine and the Mütter Museum and the College Library specialize in the history of medicine rather than general medical topics. The Library and Museum are open to the public.[6]
Museum
Founded by
Historical Medical Library
Their library was established in 1788 and served as Philadelphia's main medical library for over 150 years. It is now a research library specializing in the history of medicine. De sedibus et causis morborum (On the Seats and Causes of Disease) by
In addition to its rare books and nineteenth- and twentieth-century collections, the College Library is notable for its manuscripts and archives. Within this collection are the College's own archives, the archives of other Philadelphia medical institutions, and letters, case books, and student notebooks that document the personal life and professional practice of doctors in the Philadelphia region and around the world.[citation needed]
The library is open to the public three days per week by appointment only.[8]
As members of the Medical Heritage Library and the Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries (PACSCL), the Library's medieval manuscripts and state medical journals have been digitized. Visitors can also view digital exhibitions created by the Library: https://www.cppdigitallibrary.org/.[9]
History of the college
Because of the
The College's public health activism began in 1787 with statement on
The earliest meetings of the College were held at Fourth and Arch Streets but the growth of the library soon made that space inadequate. In 1791, the College moved to a room on the second floor of the American Philosophical Society’s new hall at Fifth and Chestnut Streets, in the group of public buildings surrounding Independence Hall. In the 1840s and 1850s the College moved twice, and in 1859 considered new quarters again when Thomas D. Mütter gave the College his pathology collection, and an endowment of $30,000 to support it, on the condition that the College build a fireproof building to house it within next five years.[11]
Architect James H. Windrim designed a utilitarian two-story building that opened on March 4, 1863, at Locust and Thirteenth Streets and cost $40,858.28. In 1885 a third story was added and the interior was transformed into the style of a gentleman's club. By 1900 the growth of the library and museum collections forced consideration of another move. Andrew Carnegie contributed $50,000 in 1903 to start the building fund, and in 1906 he agreed to contribute the final $50,000 needed for construction. The cornerstone was laid on April 29, 1908, and the building dedicated on November 10, 1909. The completed cost was $289,266, excluding the furniture and finishing of the principal rooms.[12]
Building
The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building is a two-story rectangular red brick structure with limestone trim that was completed in 1909. Many of its forms are drawn from London's Royal College of Physicians, designed by Robert Hooke and built in 1673–77. The building houses the library, a lecture hall, the museum, and offices. Three facades are highly decorated – the main facade on South 22nd Street facing west, the northern facade facing Ludlow Street, and the southern facade facing a courtyard. Three broad horizontal bands of limestone – along the basement, at the top of the first floor, and the balustrade – artistically unite all the facades.[13]
The 22nd Street facade is most richly ornamented with a grand entrance behind a monumental gate and a wrought iron fence. The entrance is classically composed, flanked by Roman Doric columns with richly carved capitals. Outside this pair of columns are two pilasters, carved with the seal of the College of Physicians, that support a Doric entablature.[14]
The interior is an opulent example of the
Notable fellows
Founders
Among the 24 founding fellows were:[16]
- William Currie
- John Morris
- Benjamin Duffield
- Adam Kuhn
- John Redman, first president of the College
- Benjamin Rush, signer of the Declaration of Independence
- John Morgan, founder of America's first medical school
- Benjamin Say
- William Shippen Jr., the second Surgeon General of the Continental Army
- John Carson, original Trustee of the University of Pennsylvania
- Nathan Dorsey
Others
- Franklin Bache[17]
- Arthur Caplan
- Samuel D. Gross
- Joseph Leidy
- Joseph Lister, foreign fellow
- Silas Weir Mitchell, America's first neurologist
- Jane M. Oppenheimer
- Stephen G. Post
- William Ruschenberger, naval surgeon
- John Anderson Strong
- Caspar Wistar
- C. Everett Koop Former Surgeon General
- Elaine Zackai
See also
- List of National Historic Landmarks in Philadelphia
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Center City, Philadelphia
References
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, p. 32
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ a b c "The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved February 22, 2010.
- ^ "Detailed History of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia". Birthplace of American Medicine. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Archived from the original on November 21, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, p. 4
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, p. 21
- ^ "Detailed Museum History". Mütter Museum. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Archived from the original on December 31, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
- ^ "About the Historical Medical Library". College of Physicians of Philadelphia. College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
- ^ "Digital Resources". College of Physicians of Philadelphia. College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
- ^ a b National Historic Landmark Nomination, pp. 12–14
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, pp. 14–15
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, pp. 15–17
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, pp. 4–5
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, p. 5
- ^ National Historic Landmark Nomination, pp. 6–9
- ^ All fellows and their date of election through 1882 are contained in Charter, ordinances and by-laws... pp. 62–76.
- ^ England, Joseph W. (1922). The First Century of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy 1821-1921. Philadelphia: Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science. pp. 399–400. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
Sources
- College of Physicians of Philadelphia (1882). Charter, ordinances and by-laws of the College of physicians of Philadelphia: as amended November 1st, 1882. Philadelphia: Collins. p. 76.
- Susan Glassman; Bill Bolger; Patty Henry (December 2, 2002), National Historic Landmark Nomination: The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building (PDF), National Park Service
- Norman, Henry, J (1908). College of Physicians of Philadelphia. p. 62.
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