VINCENT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL FOUNDATION


Our History Since 1891

Early Mission and Support

Early Mission and Support

Vincent Memorial Hospital was founded in 1891 by the friends of Mrs. Mary Ann Vincent, a generous Boston actress who had a great heart for women in need. Dedicated to the care of wage-earning women, the freestanding hospital was originally located at 44 Chambers St. in the West End of Boston, near Massachusetts General Hospital (photo: Eaton Ward in the original hospital). The hospital’s early medical staff consisted of Grace Wolcott, MD, and Lena V. Ingraham, MD, and the hospital’s governance was led by a Board of Trustees. In addition, a Board of Managers, a group of volunteers serving Vincent patients and staff, was initiated, as well as the Vincent Club, a prominent group of donors. All groups are active today. In 2019, Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh proclaimed September 18, the birthday of Mary Ann Vincent, to be Mary Ann Vincent Day in honor of the famed actress and humanitarian, who inspired a legacy of excellence in women’s healthcare.

Growth and Merger with Mass General

Growth and Merger with Mass General

The first hospital quickly outgrew its 12-bed capacity. In 1908, it moved to a new and larger facility on South Huntington Avenue, where it remained until 1941. At that time, the hospital’s Board of Trustees and Joe Vincent Meigs, MD, the noted gynecologic surgeon and Vincent chief of staff, recognized the tremendous potential of merging Vincent Memorial Hospital with the broad resources of Massachusetts General Hospital. As a result, Vincent Memorial Hospital accepted Mass General’s invitation to become its gynecology service while retaining its own hospital identity and staff, and relocated to the Mass General main campus (photo: laying the cornerstone). In 1948, after operating out of temporary quarters during the war years, Vincent Memorial Hospital moved to its permanent home on three floors of the newly completed Vincent Burnham Building.

Unique Foundation for Women’s Healthcare

In 1988, Vincent Memorial Hospital and Mass General revised their agreement. The corporate purpose of Vincent Memorial Hospital was restated as follows: ”The Corporation shall be organized and shall be operated exclusively to support programs for the care and treatment of the diseases of women at The Massachusetts General Hospital.” Vincent Memorial Hospital gave up its hospital license and building, but retained its endowment, and Mass General agreed to formally designate with the name “Vincent” those places and programs associated with and funded by the Vincent Memorial Hospital Corporation. In 2018, the Board of Trustees voted to change the organization’s name. The nonprofit corporation formally became The Vincent Memorial Hospital Foundation to better reflect its role as a funding organization while recognizing its heritage as a hospital. VIEW MAJOR MILESTONES

Ongoing Support Is Essential

Over the years, funding from The Vincent Memorial Hospital Foundation has evolved to focus on the often “non-reimbursable” part of medicine, namely training new physician-scientists and advancing novel research studies. In recent years, the organization has provided more than $900,000 per year in unrestricted funds to be used by the chief of the Vincent Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology to support teaching and investigation in women’s care at Mass General. This unrestricted flexibility is what makes The Vincent Memorial Hospital Foundation distinctive. To ensure this critical work continues, the organization works to replenish its endowment through annual fundraising appeals. Your donation to The Vincent Memorial Hospital Foundation is much appreciated.