Founded in 1929, we are the oldest academic department of the History of Medicine in the English-speaking world. We are dedicated to scholarship on the histories of medicine, disease, the health sciences, and their relationships to society.
Upcoming Events
July 1, 2025
July 1, 2025 to December 19, 2025All working days 9:00am – 5:00am
Eyes on Wilmer: 100 Years of Ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins
A new exhibit, “Eyes on Wilmer: 100 Years of Ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins,” invites visitors to explore centuries of discovery and innovation that have shaped the way we understand and treat diseases of the eye.
The exhibit traces the evolution of ophthalmology from Renaissance surgical manuals to the pioneering research conducted at Wilmer, with a focus on Dr. Wilmer and the founding of the Institute.
This exhibit was designed to coincide with the new permanent exhibit, “A Century of Wilmer Illustrations: The Legacy of Annette Burgess” on the 4th floor of the Maumenee building at the Wilmer Eye Institute.
Eyes on Wilmer is viewable in the 2nd floor gallery of the Welch Medical Library until December 19th.
Read MoreDecember 9, 2025
2:00pm – 3:00pm
OPHOM Open House – MA/Certificate Application
The deadline to apply for Online Program in the History of Medicine's MA or Post-Baccalaureate Tracks are fast approaching on December 15th.
If you have any questions on your eligibility, the application, and more, join us at our virtual open house on 12/9 at 2pm EST to ask questions to OPHOM co-director Dr. Julia Cummiskey.
Click here to join the virtual open house.
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We are committed to exploring the history of medicine in its broadest sense, both geographically and chronologically; we offer a range of graduate and undergraduate courses on topics such as the History of Chinese Medicine; Colonial Knowledge; Health and Healing in Early Modern England; Darwin, Freud, and Pasteur; and Disease Control in Historical Perspective.
About us
The Institute of the History of Medicine is located in the William H. Welch Medical Library, named after the first Chair of the Department of the History of Medicine. In establishing the first Department of the History of Medicine in the English-speaking world, Welch sought to provide a humanistic component to medical education and public health.
Library
The departmental library of the Institute, the Historical Collection is also the resource center for the history of medicine for the Hopkins community, and hosts visiting scholars from the United States and abroad. A research collection covering all aspects of the history of medicine, public health and allied sciences, it contains over 70,000 volumes. A large, comprehensive library of secondary sources accompanies a smaller, but choice collection of rare books, manuscripts, prints, photographs, medals, stamps and objects.
BHM
The Bulletin of the History of Medicine is the official publication of the Johns Hopkins Institute of the History of Medicine and the American Association for the History of Medicine (AAHM) and is published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. A leading journal in its field for more than three quarters of a century, the Bulletin spans the social, cultural, and scientific aspects of the history of medicine worldwide.
