Bronxville Then and Now: Lawrence Hospital

[Editor's Note: Some information in this article was found on the Village of Bronxville's website and the page titled "Photo History of Bronxville."]

In June of 1909, as construction workers were putting the finishing touches to its buildings, a yellow-brick hospital – small compared to today’s standards – opened in downtown Bronxville.

That hospital was , and at the time, it offered only a humble 30 patient beds, as well as a clinic and emergency services to residents from all over southern Westchester.

From there, and over the next century, the scope of the Lawrence facilities would grow steadily larger and more sophisticated, far more than anyone could have ever imagined in 1909.

Perhaps more interesting than the step by step changes and renovations the hospital underwent from the time it was built to today, however, is how Lawrence Hospital first came to be in the first place, which is not by some elaborate planning on the part of the Village’s government, or by some donation from a wealthy politician, but all because of something far smaller and unexpected: an appendicitis attack.

According to legend, the idea to build Lawrence hospital first came after the youngest son of William Van Duzer Lawrence – a rich drug manufacturer who in 1890 purchased Prescott farm – was forced to ride into New York City in the baggage car of a passing train to deliver medical attention to his youngest son, who had just suffered a near-fatal appendicitis attack.

Lawrence’s desperate ride into the city convinced him that better medial facilities needed to be built in Bronxville, leading to the creation of Lawrence Hospital, which of course still stands and thrives today.

Coincidentally, Lawrence (the person) is also responsible for a number of other Village historical landmarks, including the Gramatan Inn, built in 1899, and later when the Inn burned down, the much larger Hotel Gramatan.

In 1906, just three years before the construction of Lawrence Hospital, Lawrence joined forces with Frank Chambers to build Bronxville its first Village Hall, set on the junction of Pondfield Road and Kraft Avenue. The all-purpose municipal building house the fire department (and their horses), the library, the post office, a swimming pool, bowling alley and government offices.

Of course, what Lawrence will probably be most remembered for is the institution that bears his name, and that today continues to bring hundreds of out of town visitors to the Village of Bronxville. Today, Lawrence Hospital treats over 35,000 patients annually in its emergency department alone, and delivers approximately 2,000 babies a year. The hospital also features a stroke center, and in the future could potentially add a cancer center, .

In the archive photo, which was taken sometime in the 1920’s – not along after the newly constructed  was completed – you can catch a glimpse of what was surely a calmer life in the Village back then, with only a few parked cars on the side of the road and no traffic to speak of in front of Lawrence Hospital.

What is sure, is that back then as today, Lawrence Hospital was a key landmark in the Village of Bronxville, and a constant reminder of how things change “Then and Now.”

Be sure to click on the slideshow to the right to compare “Then and Now” pictures of Lawrence Hospital.