Newark City Hospital School of Nursing Collection

Newark City Hospital was founded in 1882, and was located in an almshouse on the corner of Elizabeth Avenue and Concord Street. In 1884, the hospital moved to Fairmont Avenue, and in 1885, the school of nursing was founded. The nursing students lived in a dormitory called the Nurses Home, and at times lived in the hospital itself. The school only admitted white students until the 1950’s, and the first male student graduated in 1953. Key figures associated with this collection are Miss Mason, the director of Nursing from 1899-1922, John Garside, the hospital superintendent from 1886-1889, Dr. E. Snavely, the medical director in the 1930’s, and Harrison Martland, the Essex County Medical Examiner. The materials in this collection were originally arranged in seven photo albums and one note book which were created by the Alumni Association of the Newark City Hospital School of Nursing, and some of the photos were labeled at the time of their creation. The alumni association is still active and offers scholarships. The hospital underwent renovations and enlargements in the late 1880’s, 1925, and the 1950’s, as well as a series of changes in name and ownership. In 1954 it was renamed The Harrison S. Martland Medical center, after the Essex County Medical Examiner. In 1962, the name was changed back to Newark City Hospital, and in 1968, the College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey bought the hospital, including the School of Nursing, and named it Martland Hospital. A merger between CMDNJ and Rutgers University occurred in 1970, and the School of Nursing was closed in 1971, while the hospital and medical school continued to be operated by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey until 2012. The hospital is now owned by Rutgers University and called University Hospital.