Weiss Memorial Hospital is named after Louis A. Weiss, a successful Chicago businessman who wanted to give back to the neighborhoods in which he flourished.
Born in 1897 and later described as a “quiet giver,” Weiss was more concerned with the tangible benefits of helping people than with attaining personal recognition. His philanthropic focus centered on the neighborhood where he grew up and marked his business successes. When he died in 1949, Weiss left a will that set aside, through the L.A. Weiss Foundation, a generous sum for charity with the specification that the funds benefit Chicago’s North Side.
In 1950, noted political and civic leader Col. Jacob M. Arvey was instrumental in bringing together members of the Weiss family with members of the Strauss Surgical Group, widely known for innovative surgical techniques, particularly in the field of cancer. Three Strauss brothers, physicians Alfred, Herman and Siegfried, co-founded the hospital with the Weiss family. The hospital was intended as a fitting and lasting memorial to the man whose generosity provided the initial seeding gift.
Weiss Memorial Hospital broke ground in 1952 and opened the following year, with comedian Jimmy Durante as its first registered patient. The Strauss Cancer Center, named after the Strauss family, started 25 years ago as a unique entity in a community hospital to promote the research and treatment of cancer care. The Arvey Clinic, a teaching facility at Weiss specifically focused on internal medicine, is named for Col. Jacob M. Arvey.
In 1987, Weiss merged with the University of Chicago Hospitals (now Medical Center), with the belief that the integration of hospitals would produce a highly productive medical establishment for the betterment of health and medical education in Chicago and its surroundings. The union combined the personalized care of a smaller community hospital with the advancements of a major academic medical center, incorporating technology, medical education programs and research, resulting in the highest quality medical treatment available.
A second affiliation agreement in 1992 connected Weiss with the University of Chicago Division of Biological Sciences for the primary purpose of enriching the academic programs at the University of Chicago by increasing the breadth of clinical and academic experience for its medical staff.
In 2002, Vanguard Health Systems and the University of Chicago Medical Center formed a joint venture, in which Vanguard has an 80 percent ownership and the University of Chicago Medical Center retains a 20 percent stake. This agreement continues today, with many University of Chicago faculty members practicing at Weiss.
View a Pictorial History about Weiss.