Rochester, N.Y. — Rochester General Hospital is marking 70 years at its site on Portland Avenue.
The hospital celebrated Wednesday by turning the clock back to 1956, the year the campus opened.
That was also the year Dr. Gerald Holzwasser started his internship at the hospital.
“When they opened up here, I was the first intern to work the emergency room,” Holzwasser said. “The emergency room had one intern run the whole show.”
A timeline of Rochester General Hospital’s history is displayed during a 70th anniversary celebration at its Portland Avenue campus Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. (Photo by Mark Schuman/WHAM)
Holzswasser said he served as a resident at the hospital for another three years and later worked there for 10 years as a radiologist.
“Wonderful people were here at the time to make us a great place,” he said.
Holzwasser said the hospital has come a long way in the last 70 years.
“It’s amazing,” he said. “The world is so different now.”