Syracuse Area Hospitals - A History

The Hospital of the Good Shepherd was originally known as the House of the Good Shepherd. It was founded in 1872 by Bishop Frederic Dan Huntington and the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York. The first location for the hospital was on 90 East Fayette Street and was later moved to 80 Hawley Avenue. It was moved to its final location at the corner of Marshall Street and University Ave. in 1875. At that time it included space for 45 beds. By 1897, it had been enlarged to 64 beds. It housed four large charity wards and around 1900 a new wing was added with a modern operating room (including an amphitheater). Other additions included a new nurses’ home, nurses’ alumnae organization, Women’s Auxiliary, and a horse-drawn ambulance. Its training school for nurses was established in 1887, making it the first in Central New York.

                The hospital was used for teaching students from the Syracuse University College of Medicine right from the beginning. Early on, teaching was mostly done through clinics and fourth year students were assigned as clinical clerks in the hospital. In 1915, the hospital was struggling financially and the board of trustees suggested that Syracuse University should officially take over the hospital and make it a part of its medical education program. The university bought the hospital from the Episcopal Diocese for $76,000. The education program mostly focused on teaching general medicine and surgery. In 1933, the hospital closed its obstetrical and pediatric units to concentrate more on the areas of surgery and general medicine.

                When Syracuse University sold the medical school to SUNY in 1950, this agreement did not also include the hospital as it was realized that a new hospital was needed, but SU agreed to maintain the Hospital of the Good Shepherd until the new hospital could be built. Once University Hospital was completed, patients were transferred in 1965 and the Hospital of the Good Shepherd ceased operations in 196​​​​​​​6. Syracuse University still owns the building on Marshall Street, and it became Huntington Hall on campus.

Resources from Upstate Archives & Special Collections:

• Hospital of Good Shepherd Collection
• Image Collection on New York Heritage
• The John H. Ferguson MD Collection (Chronological Calendar)

Other Resources:

• Onondaga County Medical Society, Syracuse 1906-1956, 1956, pg. 59-60, 70-71
• SUNY Upstate Medical University: A Pictorial History, Eric v.d. Luft., pg. 57, 71, 82-86, 120-121, 135