Then and Now: The Rush Hospital, 33rd St. and Lancaster Avenue, Philadelphia

1931-2008

The Rush Hospital for Consumptives and Allied Diseases, completed in 1909, was designed by the firm of Brockie & Hastings, whose work consists mostly of estates in surburban Philadelphia. The Colonial Revival hospital building was purchased by Drexel University in 1961, and soon afterwards converted to classroom use. Today, the Rush building houses Drexel's College of Information Science and Technology.

As can be seen in today's view, the University is also in the midst of several building projects on or around 33rd and 34th Streets. Visible on the left side of the photo is the blue fencing for the expansion of the Daskalakis Athletic Center at 33rd and Market Street, which will push the building wall up to the sidewalk of Market Street, eliminating dead green space and vastly improving the pedestrian experience around it. Drexel's master plan also includes a new western wing to the Rush building, though whether or not this will materialize as anticipated in the current economic climate remains to be seen.

University Master Plan [Drexel Planning, Design, & Construction]

Sources: Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
"Drexel University - PDC: Rush Building Info." Planning, Design, and Construction Department of Drexel University. 23 Dec. 2008. http://www.drexel.edu/depts/pdc/pages/buildings.asp?BID=10
Original Photo: Hess, Wenzel J. "Public Works-32150-0." 1931. Philadelphia City Archives. PhillyHistory.org. Philadelphia Department of Records. 19 Dec. 2008. http://www.phillyhistory.org/PhotoArchive/MediaStream.ashx?mediaId=31501