The Loop District in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Bertha Van Hoosen, M.D.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, December 5, 2023

1. Bertha Van Hoosen, M.D. Marker

Inscription.
At this site on November 18, 1915, was founded the American Medical Women's Assoc., dedicated to the support of women physicians and women's health. As its founder and first president, Bertha Van Hoosen, M.D., demonstrated her dedication to the women's medical movement and her lifetime commitment to humanity as a physician whose compassion for people equalled her comprehension of science.

Always at the forefront of medical knowledge, Dr. Van Hoosen's involvement in medical technology included the development of "twilight sleep," a procedure used in natural child-birth. During her 58 years of practice in Chicago she was a lifetime learner and dedicated teacher. Her students are a tribute to her ultimate commitment to the patients and physicians in the medical profession.

Erected 1992 by Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy; The Illinois State Historical Society.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Science & Medicine • Women. In addition, it is included in the Illinois State Historical Society series list. A significant historical date for this entry is November 18, 1915.

Location. 41° 52.582′ N, 87° 37.473′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in The Loop District. Marker can be

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reached from South Michigan Avenue north of East Ida B. Wells Drive, on the right when traveling south. The marker is inside the south entryway of the Fine Arts Building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 410 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago IL 60605, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Fine Arts Building (here, next to this marker); Auditorium Building (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Auditorium Building (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Historic Michigan Boulevard (about 500 feet away); Leiter II Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); Steger Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); Harold Washington (approx. 0.2 miles away); The DePaul Center (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chicago.

More about this marker. When the Van Hoosen marker was visited in December 2023, it was visible through the doors of the southern entrance of the Fine Arts Building, however those doors were chained shut. The marker was accessed by entering the building through the building's north entrance and then walking through the lobby and elevator bank (past the Fine Arts Building's Chicago Landmark plaque) to the south entryway, whose interior doors were unlocked.

Regarding Bertha Van Hoosen, M.D.. Bertha Van Hoosen (1863-1952)

Photographed By Sean Flynn, December 5, 2023

2. Bertha Van Hoosen, M.D. Marker

A view of the marker inside the south entryway of the Fine Arts Building

was raised in Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1888 as one of its first woman graduates. After doing her residency at the New England Hospital for Women and Children in Boston, she opened a private clinic in Chicago, where she practiced medicine in Chicago for most of the rest of her life. Among her many accolades and leadership roles, Van Hoosen—nicknamed the "Petticoat Surgeon"—was appointed head of gynecological staff at Cook County Hospital in 1913. Five years later she left to become head of obstetrics at Loyola University Medical School in Chicago, becoming the first woman to lead a medical division at a coed university.

Van Hoosen died near her childhood home. She is buried in Old Stoney Creek Cemetery in Rochester Hills, Michigan, what today is a far northern suburb of Detroit. Nearby, about 16 acres of the farm that Van Hoosen grew up on in Michigan comprises the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm. Her name also adorns one of the houses at the University of Michigan's Bursley Hall dormitory. The American Medical Women's Association, now headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois, about 27 miles northwest of this building, annually honors a physician with the Bertha Van Hoosen Award.

The Fine Arts Building was a center for the women’s suffrage movement during the 1910s. In addition to the AMWA, this building was

Fine Arts Building image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, December 5, 2023

3. Fine Arts Building

The Van Hoosen marker is inside this entryway; it was chained closed when visited, but the entryway was accessible via the northern lobby, which is just off camera to the right.

the headquarters for the Illinois Equal Suffrage Association from 1910 until 1919 — the year that Illinois became the first state to ratify the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote.

Also see . . .
1. Dr. Bertha Van Hoosen (American Medical Women's Association). (Submitted on December 14, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
2. The Petticoat Surgeon. Bertha Van Hoosen's autobiography, from the Library of Congress website. (Submitted on December 14, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Additional commentary.
1. About the marker
While this marker is indoors, it has been included in the database as part of the Illinois State Historical Society series.

— Submitted December 18, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.

Bertha Van Hoosen image. Click for full size.

Bertha Van Hoosen papers, Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan

4. Bertha Van Hoosen

Credits. This page was last revised on December 18, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 6, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 55 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on December 6, 2023, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.