Mothers and Children outside CHOP in 1890s Mothers and children waiting outside CHOP’s 22nd and Locust streets location in the 1890s A physician conducting a diphtheria clinic in 1925. A horse-drawn carriage transporting patients from the train station to Children’s Seashore House in Atlantic City. Kids hoisting barbells in a 1918 calisthenics class. These are among the more than 200 poignant vintage photographs in a recently published book authored by CHOP’s president and chief executive officer, Madeline Bell.

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Book The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, which chronicles CHOP’s history, features never-before-published images and stories Bell unearthed from the Hospital’s extensive collection archived at the Historical Medical Library at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. “So many interesting stories remained under wraps, hidden for years,” says Bell. “I want others, including current and future generations of employees and families touched by The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, to learn about the struggles we endured through the Civil War, World War I, the Great Depression and World War II. Time and time again, through incredible adversity, we continued to provide exceptional patient care, conduct breakthrough research and educate tomorrow’s doctors and nurses.”

CHOP opened its doors as the nation’s first hospital for children, in 1855, during a turbulent time. Francis West Lewis, MD, a prominent Philadelphia physician, was appalled by his city’s high child mortality rate, a result of the poor sanitary conditions in the
urban slums that arose during the Industrial Revolution. The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is available at Philadelphia-area bookstores, from independent and online retailers (Amazon, Barns & Noble), or through Arcadia Publishing.

Bell will donate all royalties from sales of the book to Patient and Family Services at CHOP.