New England Baptist Hospital history

Located in a house at 47 Bellevue Street in the Longwood section of Brookline—on the site of the former New England Deaconess Hospital—the doors of the newly incorporated Boston Baptist Hospital were first opened to patients in June 1894.

The Hospital purchased the Parker Mansion on Parker Hill in Roxbury, and by 1896 relocated to its present site atop Mission Hill.

In 1897, the Hospital changed its name to New England Baptist Hospital to reflect its growing constituency.

In the 1920’s, as one of the world’s most eminent surgeons, Doctor Frank H. Lahey revolutionized thyroid surgery.

In 1925, Doctor Lahey became Surgeon-in-Chief at New England Baptist Hospital.

Since 1958, the single red rose has stood as a flourishing symbol of the Hospital’s personal care.

Doctor Otto E. Aufranc was the architect of the Hospital’s first Orthopedic Department in 1968, bringing to the Baptist his talented team of young physicians from Massachusetts General Hospital.

As a lasting tribute to his skills as a surgeon, teacher, and scientist, the Aufranc Fellowship was formed in 1970.

Although the Hospital’s affiliation with the Lahey Clinic ended in 1980 when the clinic moved to Burlington, the spirit of caring that Doctor Lahey bestowed on his patients lives on today at the Hospital.

The formation of the Hospital’s Sports Medicine division in 1986 continued NEBH’s commitment to our patients’ health and well-being.

In 1995 the Hospital established the New England Baptist Bone & Joint Institute.