The College of Physicians of Philadelphia is the oldest private medical society in the United States. Founded in 1787 by 24

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

s "to advance the Science of Medicine, and thereby lessen human misery, by investigating the diseases and remedies which are peculiar to our country" and to promote "order and uniformity in the practice of Physick," it has made important contributions to medical education and research. The College hosts the

Mütter Museum The Mütter Museum is a medical museum located in the Center City area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It contains a collection of anatomical and pathological specimens, wax models, and antique medical equipment. The museum is part of The Coll ...

, a gallery of 19th-century specimens, teaching models, instruments, and photographs, as well as the Historical Medical Library, which is one of the country's oldest medical libraries. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Building, designed by the firm of

Cope & Stewardson Cope and Stewardson (1885–1912) was a Philadelphia architecture firm founded by Walter Cope and John Stewardson, and best known for its Collegiate Gothic building and campus designs. Cope and Stewardson established the firm in 1885, and were jo ...

and built in 1909, was designated a U.S.

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in October, 2008. It was also then listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

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 Charles Everett Koop (October 14, 1916 – February 25, 2013) was an American pediatric surgeon and public health administrator. He was a vice admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and served as the 13th Surgeon Ge ...

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.

Museum

Founded by Thomas Dent Mutter in 1858 for

medical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

, the museum's contents include medical oddities,

anatomical Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...

and

pathological Pathology is the study of the causal, causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when us ...

specimen Specimen may refer to: Science and technology * Sample (material), a limited quantity of something which is intended to be similar to and represent a larger amount * Biological specimen or biospecimen, an organic specimen held by a biorepository ...

s, and antique

medical equipment A medical device is any device intended to be used for medical purposes. Significant potential for hazards are inherent when using a device for medical purposes and thus medical devices must be proved safe and effective with reasonable assura ...

. Anatomical specimens include the conjoined

liver The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...

Siamese twins Conjoined twins – sometimes popularly referred to as Siamese twins – are twins joined ''in utero''. A very rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 49,000 births to 1 in 189,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence ...

Chang and Eng Bunker Chang Bunker and Eng Bunker (May 11, 1811 – January 17, 1874) were Siamese-American conjoined twin brothers whose fame propelled the expression " Siamese twins" to become synonymous for conjoined twins in general. They were widely exhibited as ...

; and a section of the brain of

Charles J. Guiteau Charles Julius Guiteau ( ; September 8, 1841June 30, 1882) was an American man who assassinated James A. Garfield, president of the United States, on July 2, 1881. Guiteau falsely believed he had played a major role in Garfield's election vic ...

, who assassinated

President Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 4, 1881 until his death six months latertwo months after he was shot by an assassin. A lawyer and Civil War gene ...

. Medical instruments include a wooden stethoscope and

Marie Curie Marie Salomea Skłodowska–Curie ( , , ; born Maria Salomea Skłodowska, ; 7 November 1867 – 4 July 1934) was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first ...

's quartz-piezo electrometer

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

Giambattista Morgagni Giovanni Battista Morgagni (25 February 1682 – 6 December 1771) was an Italian anatomist, generally regarded as the father of modern anatomical pathology, who taught thousands of medical students from many countries during his 56 years as Prof ...

was one of the first acquisitions of the library. This book, published in Venice in 1761, was given by Morgagni to John Morgan, a founding fellow of the College. The library's collection includes over 400 editions printed before 1500, known as ''incunabula'', which is the second-largest collection of medical incunabula in the United States. Over 12,000 other rare books including ''

De motu cordis ''Exercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus'' (Latin, 'An Anatomical Exercise on the Motion of the Heart and Blood in Living Beings'), commonly called ''De Motu Cordis'', is the best-known work of the physician William Harv ...

'' (On the Motion of the Heart) (1628) by

William Harvey William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions in anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, the systemic circulation and proper ...

and ''

De humani corporis fabrica ''De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem'' (Latin, lit. "On the fabric of the human body in seven books") is a set of books on human anatomy written by Andreas Vesalius (1514–1564) and published in 1543. It was a major advance in the history ...

'' (On the Fabric of the Human Body) (1543) by

Andreas Vesalius Andreas Vesalius (Latinized from Andries van Wezel) () was a 16th-century anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, ''De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem'' (''On the fabric of the human body'' ' ...

are in the collection. 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. The library is open to the public three days per week by appointment only. As members of the

Medical Heritage Library The Medical Heritage Library (MHL) is a digital curation collaborative among several medical libraries which promotes free and open access to quality historical resources in medicine. The MHL is currently digitizing books and journals and is worki ...

and th
Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries (PACSCL)
the Library'

an
state medical journals
have been digitized. Visitors can also view digital exhibitions created by the Library: https://www.cppdigitallibrary.org/.

History of the college

Because of the

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

tradition of philanthropy, Philadelphia became a leader in the development of medicine in the 18th century. America's first public hospital, founded 1752, and first medical school, founded 1765, were in Philadelphia, as were some of the earliest public health measures, including America's first public water supply in the 1790s. By 1783

Benjamin Rush Benjamin Rush (April 19, 1813) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and a civic leader in Philadelphia, where he was a physician, politician, ...

, a signer of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...

, proposed a society similar to Royal College of Physicians in London. The first meeting was held on January 2, 1787. Within weeks the fellows were organizing a library and starting to produce a

pharmacopoeia A pharmacopoeia, pharmacopeia, or pharmacopoea (from the obsolete typography ''pharmacopœia'', meaning "drug-making"), in its modern technical sense, is a book containing directions for the identification of compound medicines, and published by ...

; within a year a series of scientific papers were being presented, which were collected in the ''Transactions of the College of Physicians'' starting in 1793.''National Historic Landmark Nomination'', pp. 12–14 The College's public health activism began in 1787 with statement on

temperance Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture *Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...

sent to the Pennsylvania Legislature. In 1793, a yellow fever epidemic broke out in Philadelphia and the College proposed eleven public health measures to the mayor. When the epidemic returned in 1794 and 1797, the College organized the municipal response, proposing a city health law and a Board of Health with the authority to enforce quarantine. In 1841 the College encouraged the city to buy land along the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...

, to guarantee the purity of the city's drinking water, leading to the establishment of

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, with ...

, the nation's largest urban park. The College of Physicians’ humanitarian activism was reflected in its efforts to prevent the mentally ill from being executed. 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 The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

’s new hall at Fifth and Chestnut Streets, in the group of public buildings surrounding

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Fa ...

. 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. 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 Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

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.

Building

College of Physicians of Philadelphia 1909

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 The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

, designed by

Robert Hooke Robert Hooke FRS (; 18 July 16353 March 1703) was an English polymath active as a scientist, natural philosopher and architect, who is credited to be one of two scientists to discover microorganisms in 1665 using a compound microscope that ...

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. 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. The interior is an opulent example of the

Beaux-Arts architecture Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorpora ...

. A octagonal rotunda, the main hall, and a rich formal marble stair form the central axis, with the main rooms branching off this axis. The stair, which dominates the first story, has a bronze railing and a niche holding a sculpture of Aesculapius, the god of healing. Mitchell Hall, originally called the Hall of Portraits, is a grand ceremonial hall measuring 71 by . It holds much of the College's art collection, including works by

Robert Vonnoh Robert William Vonnoh (September 17, 1858 – 28 December 1933) was an American Impressionist painter known for his portraits and landscapes. He traveled extensively between the American East Coast and France, more specifically the artists c ...

and

William Merritt Chase William Merritt Chase (November 1, 1849October 25, 1916) was an American painter, known as an exponent of Impressionism and as a teacher. He is also responsible for establishing the Chase School, which later would become Parsons School of Design. ...

. The Norris Room contains an unusual carved stone Gothic fireplace designed by

Theophilus Parsons Chandler, Jr. Theophilus Parsons Chandler Jr. (September 7, 1845 – August 16, 1928) was an American architect of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He spent his career at Philadelphia, and is best remembered for his churches and country houses. He fou ...

The fireplace was donated in 1885 by

George William Childs George William Childs (1829–1894) was an American publisher who co-owned the '' Public Ledger'' newspaper in Philadelphia with financier Anthony Joseph Drexel. Early life Childs was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on May 12, 1829, the illegitim ...

, publisher of the ''

Philadelphia Public Ledger The ''Public Ledger'' was a daily newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, published from March 25, 1836, to January 1942. Its motto was "Virtue Liberty and Independence". For a time, it was Philadelphia's most popular newspaper, but circulation de ...

'', and originally built in the College's old Locust Street building. The Mütter Museum is a two-storied space surrounded by a gallery in the northeast corner of the building,

Notable fellows

Founders

Among the 24 founding fellows were: *William Currie * John Morris * Benjamin Duffield *

Adam Kuhn Adam Kuhn (28 November 1741 – 5 July 1817) was an American physician and naturalist, and one of the earliest professors of medicine in a North American university. Formative years Kuhn was born in Germantown, Province of Pennsylvania, a son ...

* John Redman, first president of the College *

, signer of the

* John Morgan, founder of America's first medical school *

Benjamin Say Benjamin Say (August 28, 1755 – April 23, 1813) was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Benjamin Say was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Thomas (1709–1796) and Rebekah Atkinson Budd Say (1716–1795), He m ...

* 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 Franklin Bache ( – ) was an American physician, chemist, professor and writer from Pennsylvania. He taught chemistry at West Point Academy, the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Jefferson Medical College. He published s ...

Arthur Caplan Arthur L. Caplan (born 1950) is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor of Bioethics at New York University Grossman School of Medicine and the founding director of the Division of Medical Ethics. Caplan has made many contribut ...

Samuel D. Gross Samuel David Gross (July 8, 1805 – May 6, 1884) was an American academic trauma surgeon. Surgeon biographer Isaac Minis Hays called Gross "The Nestor of American Surgery." He is immortalized in Thomas Eakins' ''The Gross Clinic'' (1875), a ...

Joseph Leidy Joseph Mellick Leidy (September 9, 1823 – April 30, 1891) was an American paleontologist, parasitologist and anatomist. Leidy was professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania, later was a professor of natural history at Swarthmore ...

Joseph Lister Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister, (5 April 182710 February 1912) was a British surgeon, medical scientist, experimental pathologist and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery and preventative medicine. Joseph Lister revolutionised the craft of s ...

, foreign fellow * Silas Weir Mitchell, America's first neurologist *

Jane M. Oppenheimer Jane Marion Oppenheimer (1911–1996) was an American embryologist and historian of science. Early life, interests, and education Oppenheimer was born in Philadelphia, the only child of James H. Oppenheimer and Sylvia Stern. Her father, a phys ...

Stephen G. Post Stephen Garrard Post (1951-; PhD University of Chicago, 1983) has served on the Board of the John Templeton Foundation (2008-2014), which focuses on virtue and public life. He is a researcher, opinion leader, medical school professor, and best-sell ...

William Ruschenberger William Samuel Waithman Ruschenberger (4 September 1807 in Cumberland County, New Jersey – 24 March 1895 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a surgeon for the United States Navy, a naturalist, and an author. Biography After attending schools in P ...

, naval surgeon *

John Anderson Strong John Anderson Strong (18 February 1915 – 15 December 2012) was a Scottish physician/internist and academic, who served as Professor of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh and the President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburg ...

Caspar Wistar Caspar Wistar may refer to: * Caspar Wistar (glassmaker) (1696–1752), Pennsylvania glassmaker and landowner * Caspar Wistar (physician) Caspar Wistar (September 13, 1761January 22, 1818) was an American physician and anatomist. He is sometim ...

Former Surgeon General * Elaine Zackai

References

Sources

* * *

External links

official website
{{Authority control Organizations based in Philadelphia Libraries in Philadelphia Landmarks in Philadelphia School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania 1787 establishments in Pennsylvania Neoclassical architecture in Pennsylvania Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia