On top of Mount Scopus: The construction of Hadassah hospital

A rare collection of photographs from the beginning of the 20th century depicts the hospital's early days

Nadav Man, Bitmuna|Published: 06.03.07 , 16:00

A rare collection of photographs from the beginning of the 20th century was recently discovered. The photos, belonging to the Hadassah, Women's Zionist Organization of America (HWZOA), were found in plastic bags in the hospital's archives. The bags were on their way to the dumpster when Professor Yoel Donchin saved them.

Most of the photos had no details recorded on the back, and many of the people in them are unknown. In the next few weeks we'll present a selection of these photos hoping that some of our readers will be able to tell us more. The goal is to include the collection in Haifa University's database.

A rare aerial photo showing Mount Scopus, the buildings of the Hebrew University and the British cemetery, before the construction of the hospital.

On October 16, 1934, the hospital's cornerstone to the hospital was laid. In the center: Henrietta Szold

The last paragraph of the hospital's mission statement signed by Henrietta Szold , Nachum Sokolov, and Dr Chaim Yasky.

Henrietta Szold giving a welcome speech. Nearest to her, sitting: Nachum Sokolov, a Zionist leader and writer and President of the World Zionist Organization; Dr Chaim Yasky, director of the Hadassah hospital who was murdered in April 1948 in the convoy to Mount Scopus.

On October 20, 1936, two years after laying the cornerstone, construction began. In the ceremony celebrating it we identified: Henrietta Szold, David Ben-Gurion, Nachum Sokolov, and Yitzhak Ben-Zvi. Do you recognize anyone else?