The Boston Dispensary (est.1796) or Boston Medical Dispensary provided for "medical relief of the poor" in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
, from the late 18th century through the mid-20th century. It was
one of the first hospitals in the United States. In the 1960s the Boston Dispensary merged with New England Medical Center and is now known as
Tufts Medical Center
Tufts Medical Center (until 2008 Tufts-New England Medical Center) in Boston, Massachusetts is a downtown Boston hospital midway between Chinatown and the Boston Theater District.
The hospital is a community based medical center for biomedical r ...
.
History
Founders included Jonathan Amory, John Andrews, William Brown, John Codman, Samuel Dunn, Stephen Gorham, John Coffin Jones, John Parker,
Samuel Parker, William Shattuck, William Smith,
Samuel Stillman
Samuel Stillman (1737–1807) was an American Baptist minister. From 1765 until his death in 1807, Stillman served as pastor of Boston's First Baptist Church of Boston, Massachusetts; for these 42 years, Stillman was considered "the leading Bapti ...
, and Samuel West. Early benefactors included
Benjamin Dearborn. The charity incorporated in 1801.
By 1807, "the Boston Medical Dispensary, instituted in October, 1796, has afforded the means of relief to many necessitous persons, among others, whose feelings would have been hurt by an application for assistance from the alms house; as they are by this charity attended free of any expense by an able physician, either at their own houses, or at the Dispensary, as the case may require, and furnished with whatever medicine they may need, and with wine, if necessary. This institution is supported by subscriptions; the payment of 5 dollars annually, entitling tile subscriber to recommend two patients constantly to the care of the Dispensary. The town is divided into three districts; the southern comprehends all the south part of the town from the south side of Winter and Summer streets; the Middle from thence to the Mill creek, including West Boston; the Northern district all the north part of the town from the Mill bridge." Fundraising events took place at the
Federal Street Theatre
The Federal Street Theatre (1793–1852), also known as the Boston Theatre, was located at the corner of Federal and Franklin streets in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was "the first building erected purposely for theatrical entertainmen ...
in 1821, and
Doggett's Repository of Arts
Doggett's Repository of Arts (c. 1821-1825) was an art gallery in Boston, Massachusetts, located at 16 Market Street. Its proprietor, John Doggett, was a gilder and framer with a retail shop near the gallery (nos.18 and 20 Market Street). The g ...
in 1823.
Through its history, there were many physicians who received their training at the Boston Dispensary including
Oliver Wendell Holmes,
James Jackson, Asa Bullard,
Gamaliel Bradford, Pliny Hayes,
Edward Warren, Henry Bowditch, Benjamin D. Appleton, Daniel Slade, E. Whitley Blake, and Buckminster Brown.
In addition to organizing the charitable provision of medical service throughout the city, the dispensary maintained a central clinic at
no.76 Cornhill (ca.1823), no.138 Washington Street (ca.1832), and no.25 Bennett Street, at the corner of Ash Street (ca.1858-1911).
[Directory of directors in the city of Boston and vicinity. 1911] A newly constructed clinic replaced the old building on the Bennett Street site in 1883.
"In the 1960s, the Boston Dispensary merged with the
Floating Hospital for Children
Tufts Children's Hospital (formerly Floating Hospital for Children) in Boston, Massachusetts was a downtown Boston pediatric hospital owned by Tufts Medical Center, occupying the space between Chinatown and the Boston Theater District, which ...
and the Pratt Diagnostic Clinic/Tufts Medical Center Hospital. It also formed alliances with
Tufts University School of Medicine
The Tufts University School of Medicine is the medical school of Tufts University, a Private university, private research university in Massachusetts. It was established in 1893 and is located on the university's health sciences campus in downto ...
which serves as the principal teaching affiliate for the Medical Center."
1883 BostonDispensary AshStreet BennettStreet.png, The Dispensary's central clinic on Bennett St., built 1883
Boston Dispensary building at Tufts Medical Center in Boston Massachusetts USA.jpg, 1883 Boston Dispensary building at Tufts Medical Center in 2019
Boston Dispensary building at Tufts Medical Center in Boston Massachusetts MA.jpg, Carving of the Good Samaritan
In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil and is of interest in the study of ethics, morality, ph ...
above door of 1883 building
See also
*
Tufts Medical Center
Tufts Medical Center (until 2008 Tufts-New England Medical Center) in Boston, Massachusetts is a downtown Boston hospital midway between Chinatown and the Boston Theater District.
The hospital is a community based medical center for biomedical r ...
, successor to the Boston Medical Dispensary
*
List of the oldest hospitals in the United States
The following is a list of the oldest hospitals in the United States, containing wikt:extant, extant hospitals in the United States established prior to the year 1900. The dates refer to the foundation or the earliest documented contemporary ref ...
References
Further reading
* Boston Dispensary. Annual report
18601883
*
*
*
*
{{Authority control
1796 establishments in Massachusetts
History of Boston
Hospitals established in 1796
19th century in Boston
20th century in Boston
South End, Boston
Healthcare in Boston