A Vision of Hope: The 200-Year History of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary 1820 - 2020

New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai (NYEE), a national leader in ophthalmological and otolaryngological research, education and patient care, is celebrating its 200th Year Anniversary in 2020. The hospital traces its origins to two idealistic physicians, Edward Delafield, and John Kearny Rodgers, who established the Infirmary to lead in the noble mission to serve the poor and educate the next generation of healers.

To commemorate the 200th Anniversary, the hospital will publish A Vision of Hope: The 200-Year History of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary 1820 - 2020. Featuring full-color photographs, the book details the founding of the first specialty hospital in America, its formative years and its growth to prominence. Publishing a detailed account of NYEE’s impressive 200-year history was a passion of Richard Rosen, MD, Deputy Chair for Clinical Affairs in the Department of Ophthalmology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and The Belinda Bingham Pierce & Gerald G. Pierce, MD, Distinguished Chair of Ophthalmology at NYEE and the late Joseph B. Walsh, MD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology for both NYEE and New York Medical College.

Dr. Rosen’s short article called In Search of Lost Infirmary Histories, published in the 2019 Department of Ophthalmology Chair Report, highlights the inspiration behind the chronicling of Infirmary’s place in American history, providing a small window into the people and events that shaped the institution and its lasting impact on the fields of ophthalmology and otolaryngology.

Please enjoy the Flipbook version of our history book. We hope you will consider supporting NYEE and its 200-year mission to develop outstanding educational programs and power groundbreaking research initiatives.

Writer: Laurie Levin

Before Laurie Levin became an author of commercial non-fiction books and institutional histories, she explored the worlds of archaeology in the Peruvian Andes, ethnography in a Mayan village in Guatemala, and screenplay research in the production offices of Hollywood for six major-release films. She holds advanced degrees in Anthropology from Harvard University and UCLA.

www.laurielevin.net

Designer: Larry Zempel, Zempelworks

Larry Zempel passed away in 2023. NYEE is grateful for the his superb graphic design skills and stylistic contributions to the look and feel of the book. A warm and generous spirit, Larry pursued a decades-long career in graphic design, product design, and architectural/interior design. He owned or co-owned his own firm, Zempelworks, for most of that history, consistently turning out award-winning work focused on publication design, websites, brands, and other graphics, in print and digital media. A graduate of Stanford University, he taught design at UCLA and USC.