{"id":240435,"date":"2026-07-10T18:58:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T18:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/240435\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T18:58:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T18:58:11","slug":"americas-oldest-hospital-becomes-philadelphias-newest-museum-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/240435\/","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s oldest hospital becomes Philadelphia\u2019s newest museum"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Pennsylvania<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation\u2019s first chartered hospital, celebrated its 275th anniversary by opening the Pennsylvania Hospital Museum in May 2026. Timed to coincide with Philadelphia\u2019s America250 celebrations, the exhibits showcase the institution\u2019s profound impact on the history of American medicine and highlight Penn Medicine\u2019s ongoing leadership in scientific discovery and patient care.<\/p>\n

Visitors to the museum\u2019s eight galleries will experience preserved historic spaces \u2014 including the original library, surgical amphitheater, and a newly restored apothecary \u2014 alongside modern, interactive exhibits that illuminate the hospital\u2019s long tradition of groundbreaking medical \u201cfirsts.\u201d Additional galleries highlight Pennsylvania Hospital\u2019s service during major national crises from wars to pandemics like the 1918 Spanish Flu and COVID 19.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom its founding, Pennsylvania Hospital has embraced the idea that everyone is welcome,\u201d says Stacey Peeples, lead archivist at Pennsylvania Hospital. \u201cThe sense of community is woven into the very fabric of the institution\u2014you can feel it the moment you walk through our doors. No one is ever a stranger here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania Hospital was founded in 1751 by Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Thomas Bond to provide free care to vulnerable residents. Hospital leaders emphasize its mission of inclusivity, innovation, and service \u2014 values that have shaped its legacy for nearly three centuries and continue to guide its future.<\/p>\n

LEARN MORE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation\u2019s first chartered hospital, celebrated its 275th anniversary by opening the Pennsylvania Hospital Museum in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":240436,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-240435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240435"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240435\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/240436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}