Smallpox Hospital

Smallpox Hospital. Roosevelt Island, New York. , The Building , The Smallpox Hospital is a Gothic Revival structure designed by renowned architect James Renwick, Jr. which opened to the public on December 18, 1856. It was the first hospital in the country dedicated to treating smallpox, a highly contagious and deadly viral disease., The Architect , James Renwick, Jr. was a prolific architect whose first commission, at the age of 23, was Grace Church in New York City. He went on to complete St. Patrick's Cathedral on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue and the Smithsonian Institution building in Washington, DC. He was also the supervising architect of the lighthouse located on the northern tip of Roosevelt Island., Importance as a Structure , The structure is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the New York State Register of Historic Places. The ruin is also designated a New York City Landmark by the Landmarks Preservation Commission., From a Hospital to a Ruin , The original footprint of the Smallpox Hospital was the rectangular central bay, which measured roughly 100 feet by 40 feet and was three stories in height. The building was constructed of granite quarried on the island and was built by prison labor. In 1875, the hospital was renamed Riverside Hospital and in 1886, the building was converted to a nursing school called the Home for the Nurses of the Maternity and Charity Hospital Training School. The northern and southern wings were completed in the early 1900s in order to provide additional space for classrooms, laboratories, and dormitories., In the 1950s, the nursing school closed and the building was abandoned. It was stripped of floor planes, stairwells, and windows. The Gothic ruin has been empty ever since. What exists today is largely its shell., For More Information , Find a full history of the Smallpox Hospital, available in partnership with the Roosevelt Island Historical Society, at www.TheRuin.org.