For 267 years Pennsylvania Hospital has been treating patients in Philadelphia. Founded in 1751 by Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Bond, it was the first medical hospital in the United States. The center wing of the building was completed in 1804 and features the first surgical amphitheater, made famous by Doctor Philip Syng Physick, the father of American surgery. This ceiling view shows the overhead lights, but in Physick's day they had no electricity. He performed operations only on sunny days between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.

09.20.18