Walking Tour of Medical Heritage Sites: Downtown

Starting near NYU’s newest hospital building, the walking tour will head south to view numerous sites along a section of the historic “bedpan alley” neighborhood, including the former Lying in Hospital (now the Rutherford Building), beautifully restored New Deal murals in Bellevue hospital, a horse-drawn ambulance from the 1890s, and the German Dispensary. For the hardy, an optional extension will continue to the West Village to see NYC’s oldest surviving medical building, the Northern Dispensary.

Participants will be on their feet for approximately 90 minutes, should wear sturdy close-toed shoes and are required to bring an active metrocard. Participants may also wish to bring a bottle of water. The tour group will meet in front of the NYU Medical Center, 550 1^st Avenue, mid-way between 30^th and 33^rd streets.

An additional tour of uptown sites will take place on June 17. 

About the Speaker

Bert Hansen, Professor Emeritus of History at Baruch College of CUNY, has been teaching the history of science and medicine since 1974. He holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Columbia and a Ph.D. in history of science from Princeton. His 2009 book Picturing Medical Progress from Pasteur to Polio: A History of Mass Media Images and Popular Attitudes in America was honored by the American Library Association and the Popular Culture Association.  His recent articles explore the connections between Louis Pasteur and the art world of 19th-century Paris. 

Professor Hansen is a long-time Friend of the Rare Book Room of The New York Academy of Medicine Library and a member of the Library Advisory Committee.