New Haven Hospital

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New Haven Hospital
Established 1826
Opened 1833
Current Status Active
Building Style Pre-1854 Plans
Architect(s) Ithiel Town
Location New Haven, CT
Alternate Names
  • General Hospital Society of Connecticut
  • Grace-New Haven Hospital
  • Yale-New Haven Psychiatric Hospital
  • Yale–New Haven Hospital (Current)



History[edit]

When it opened in 1826 as the General Hospital Society of Connecticut, Yale-New Haven was the first hospital in Connecticut and the fourth voluntary hospital in the nation. The first hospital building was opened in 1833 on seven-and-a-half acres of land between Cedar Street and Howard Avenue, and Davenport and Congress Avenues. The original 13-bed hospital, called the State Hospital, was designed by prominent New Haven architect Ithiel Town and cost $13,000.

Since it opened in 1826, the hospital was affiliated with the Medical Institution of Yale College, which had been founded in 1810. In 1884, the hospital's name was changed to New Haven Hospital. In 1917, the Yale School of Medicine and New Haven Hospital signed their first formal affiliation agreement, which marked the beginning of the modern medical center. In 1945, an affiliation with nearby Grace Hospital led to a name change: Grace-New Haven Hospital. In 1965, a more formal agreement with Yale officially created Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Founded as a charitable institution for the care of the poor, the role of the hospital soon expanded to include care for the entire community. In its early days, sailors from New Haven's busy seaport came to the hospital for care. During the Civil War, more than 25,000 U.S. Army soldiers were brought to the hospital, which temporarily changed its name to the Knight U.S. Army General Hospital. In subsequent wars, Yale-New Haven was on alert as a designated military hospital. The Yale-New Haven Psychiatric Hospital was opened in 2000, after the purchase of the Yale Psychiatric Institute. Before that time, the hospital operated a separate "Insane Ward" at the hospital.

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