On This Site

The Pine Building rose in stages although it was designed as one total structure, and when it was completed in 1804 it stood in part as a monument to the architectural and building skills of Samuel Rhoads. In the Center unit, a system of beams frames the floors in a manner similar to ship framing, and it is thought that ship-builders were employed, or at least their techniques used, to construct this portion of the building, one of the largest in the city at the time. When the Pine Building was completed, the East and West Wings housed patients and the Center unit became the administrative center, providing room for the apothecary shop, living quarters for some of the staff, and the library. The Center unit now houses administrative offices, the historical library, and the oldest existing surgical amphitheatre in North America, while an adjacent room that was once the recovery room is devoted to historical and health education exhibits.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · United States