Where is the hospital I was born at? (in Brooklyn, NY)

February 4, 2008 11:18 AM

Where is the hospital I was born at? (in Brooklyn, NY) I am trying to figure out what has become of the hospital I was born at. I was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1969. The hospital on my Birth Certificate says "Brooklyn Jewish Medical Center". My family moved to Queens a few years after I was born and then I moved out of New York altogether when I was 27. I never really knew Brooklyn that well, although I have been trying to visit there more over the years.

When I Google "Brooklyn Jewish Medical Center" I don't get much in the way of results. From my research it seems like it is most likely one of two places.

The Brooklyn Jewish Hospital mentioned here:
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/SUBWAYS/Franklin%20Ave%20station/franklin.html
If the information on that page is correct, it went bankrupt in 1979 and then merged with St. John's Episcopal Hospital in 1982 to form Interfaith Medical Center. In 2000 Interfaith relocated its entire facility to the former St. John's facility across the street. The old building is now being renovated for other uses, possibly as a nursing home.

or

Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center:
http://www.kingsbrook.org/
I consider this one, because I first lived in Flatbush and this one is nearby.

The first one, Brooklyn Jewish Hospital, seems to be the best possibility. I would like to figure it out for sure and then visit the building, whether there is a hospital there or not. Any Brooklynites out there familiar with this or possibly also have "Brooklyn Jewish Medical Center" on there birth certificate and born around that time?

posted by fx3000 to Society & Culture (3 answers total)

Ask A Librarian in Brooklyn. A note of caution that is most likely unwarranted, but sometimes searching for the "hospital I was born in" is taken by some as a covert means for an adoptee attempting to find birth parent information, and some people are tetchy and reticent to help with those requests. (I mention this from personal experience in helping an adoptee with medical history research). You may wish to express that you're attempting to settle a question, or something equally benign. Good luck and let us know if you find it!
posted by kuppajava at 11:43 AM on February 4, 2008

Brooklyn Jewish is definitely Interfaith Medical. My grandmother worked there very briefly in the early 70s before transfering to Brookdale, where I was born.
posted by notjustfoxybrown at 12:18 PM on February 4, 2008

The Brooklyn Jewish Hospital mentioned in the Forgotten NY link has been turned into apartments. I live about a block from there.

The exterior of the building has been left largely the same, though, so you see people dressed for a day at the office or a night out on the town coming in and out of doors marked "Nursing School."
posted by DeWalt_Russ at 9:22 AM on February 5, 2008