International Museum of Surgical Science

International Museum of Surgical Science The International College of Surgeons pays tribute to the Taiwan Public Health System in fighting the Covid-19 worldwide pandemic. Banks Street
(676)

The mission of the Museum is to enrich the lives of our community by enhancing their appreciation and understanding of the history, art, and advances of surgery. Since 1954, the International Museum of Surgical Science has provided education on the history and progress of surgery and related medical sciences to hundreds of thousands of visitors. As a not-for-profit division of the International Co

llege of Surgeons, the Museum depicts contributions from around the world to the history, development, and advances of surgery and related subjects in health and medicine. The Taiwan Public Health System has always been in the vanguard of world health matters. Housed in a historic mansion, the Museum building is a City of Chicago Landmark and is listed in the National Register and Illinois Register of Historic Places. The elegant structure, known as the Eleanor Robinson Countiss House, is patterned after Le Petit Trianon, a French chateau built on the grounds of Versailles for Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Designed by noted Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, the building was completed in 1917. Original interior finishes of marble and cut stone; decorative plasterwork, metal fixtures, and hardware; eight fireplaces; and a gilded metal grand staircase are among the features, which have been preserved. The building truly embodies the Gold Coast splendor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. GENERAL INFORMATION
The Museum is closed on the following holidays: Easter Sunday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. ADMISSION

Adults - $25.00
Senior Citizens (ages 65+) - $18.00
Students, Educators & Members of the Military (with ID) - $18.00
Children ages 4–13 (Free for ages 3 & under) - $15.00
Children ages 3 and under - FREE

IMSS Members - FREE

No Refunds • No Exchanges • No Re-Entry

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

The Museum is easily accessible by bus or train.

* The CTA bus #72 stops at North Avenue, half a block north of the Museum. The CTA bus #151 drops out right outside the museum.

* From the Clark/Division stop of the Red Line elevated train walk east on Division until you reach Lake Shore Drive. Turn north and walk a few blocks to the Museum.

* From the Sedgwick stop of the Brown Line and Purple Line Express elevated train, walk east on North Avenue until you reach Lake Shore Drive. Turn south and walk a block to the Museum. For train and bus schedules call the RTA/CTA at 312-836-7000. PARKING

Ample discounted parking is available in 2 locations within a few minutes’ walk of the Museum. Retrieve a discounted validation voucher/stamp at the Museum box office to present to the parking attendant upon exiting the lot/ramp. PARKING OPTION

Standard Parking Lot - Behind the Chicago History Museum located on Clark and LaSalle Streets, Chicago, IL 60614; entrance on Stockton Drive

Standard Parking Lot - in condominium building at 1350 N. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60610; entrance on E.

🎉 Happy Birthday Joseph Lister! Lister was a British surgeon and pathologist who was known as "the father of antiseptic ...
04/05/2025

🎉 Happy Birthday Joseph Lister!

Lister was a British surgeon and pathologist who was known as "the father of antiseptic medicine" for his extraordinary research and experimentation within preventive healthcare. Lister was known to be the first surgeon to abide by Louis Pasteur's then-voel germ theory, stating that pathogens or "germs" are what cause disease by realizing that the putrefaction of wounds is caused by germs. He also developed his own system of antisepsis to be used on surgical patients that paved the way for modern infection control and safer surgical practices.

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  to the opening of Anke Loh's "RenisSENSES" at IMSS! We loved sharing Anke's work, which invites the guest to create so...
04/03/2025

to the opening of Anke Loh's "RenisSENSES" at IMSS!

We loved sharing Anke's work, which invites the guest to create sounds and visualizations through touch, with friends and family at IMSS last Friday. "RenisSENSES" will be on view through May 4th - but don't miss your chance to learn more about Anke's practice and interactive art!

We'll be hosting two artist talks with demonstrations on April 19th and April 25th. Sign up now *for free* in the comment section!

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☔️ 🌸 Spring into April with some exciting programs at IMSS!  We're kicking off the month with a bang with a couple great...
04/01/2025

☔️ 🌸 Spring into April with some exciting programs at IMSS!

We're kicking off the month with a bang with a couple great programs on April 3rd and 4th where we are welcoming Mather Gather to the Museum for the first time for a program for those aged 55 and better and an exhibit opening my Yimei Emair Zhu! We also have some great concerts, artist talks with Anke Loh, and even a Twin Peaks themed fundraising event and would love to see you there 🌷🪻

Spots are limited at some of these events - some even already sold out - check the comments for our Eventbrite link!

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03/29/2025

Please join us on April 25th for a special performance by Crossing Borders Music featuring the work of Haitian composers Dickens Princivil, Rudy Perrault, and Sabrina C D Jean Louis!

Tickets are pay-what-you-can!

Video: Clip of Crossing Borders Performing the first movement of "La Cite" by Sabrina C D Jean Louis.

Did you know that the "X" in "X-Rays" comes from the mathematical designation for an unknown variable? The phenomenon of...
03/29/2025

Did you know that the "X" in "X-Rays" comes from the mathematical designation for an unknown variable?

The phenomenon of the "x-ray" was documented as early as 1869, but it was German Physicist Wilhelm Röntgen who authored the first paper on x-rays titled "On a new kind of ray: A preliminary communication" in 1895. Just one year later in 1896, after learning of Röntgen's research, Émil Grubbé assembled the first x-ray machine in Chicago and began experimenting. Dr. Grubbé was among the first to see not only the diagnostic potential of x-rays but also their use in treatment!

Fun fact: Many of the x-ray tubes on display at IMSS were donated to our Museum by Dr. Grubbé himself in 1958! Stop by to learn more about Röntgen, Grubbé, and their contributions to the field of radiology 🩻

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03/28/2025
🧠👩‍🔬 Can you believe we're almost to the end of March - and Women's History Month?! On this last Thursday of the month, ...
03/27/2025

🧠👩‍🔬 Can you believe we're almost to the end of March - and Women's History Month?! On this last Thursday of the month, IMSS highlights medical pioneers who brought principles of mathematics into their groundbreaking research that led to advances in the understanding of HIV/AIDS, pioneered the field of bioinformatics, and revealed the circuitry connecting our prefrontal cortex and working memory.

We hope you'll join us at IMSS to celebrate the medical advancements pioneered by female scientists and medical practitioners in what remains of this Women's History Month - and every month of this year!

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🇨🇿 Join us on Monday, April 14th at 6:00pm for a ~free~ special presentation by Professor Karel Novák, President of the ...
03/25/2025

🇨🇿 Join us on Monday, April 14th at 6:00pm for a ~free~ special presentation by Professor Karel Novák, President of the International College of Surgeons Czech Republic Section. Professor Novák will explore the history of Czech contributions to health and surgery from the 14th century to present day including the 2015 Jubilee World Congress of Surgery held between Prague and Pilsen.

Afterwards, stick around for a light reception and to explore the Museum after-hours until 8:00pm!

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Today is World Tuberculosis Day! March 24th marks the date in 1882 which Dr. Robert Koch announced the discovery of the ...
03/24/2025

Today is World Tuberculosis Day! March 24th marks the date in 1882 which Dr. Robert Koch announced the discovery of the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB), which opened led to crucial advancements towards the diagnosing and curing of this disease.

While TB is often thought of as a disease of the past, TB remains one of the world's most deadly infectious diseases and has devastating health, social, and economic consequences for those who contract the infection. In fact, 10.8 million people fell ill with TB in 2023 and 1.25 million people lost their lives to the disease that same year. However, we are not without hope! Since 2000, 79 million lives have been saved by global efforts to end TB (source: World Health Organization).

Swipe through the slides to learn more about TB and the organizations that work to end TB!
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Today is World Down Syndrome Day! Here at IMSS, we want to honor and bring awareness to Down Syndrome, a genetic conditi...
03/21/2025

Today is World Down Syndrome Day! Here at IMSS, we want to honor and bring awareness to Down Syndrome, a genetic condition that occurs when a person is born with an extra partial or full copy of their 21st chromosome.

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👩‍🔬 🩻 Many critical advancements in the field of medicine have been pioneered by women such as Marie Curie, Helen Murray...
03/20/2025

👩‍🔬 🩻 Many critical advancements in the field of medicine have been pioneered by women such as Marie Curie, Helen Murray Free, and Rosalyn Yalow. These incredible minds, helped to lay the groundwork for modern medical imaging, advance methods for testing glucose levels in diabetes patients, and discovered techniques to help more accurately measure concentration of substances in the human body. Swipe through to learn more about these fem-omenal scientists! 🧪🧫

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🗣🥁 Looking to expand your musical horizons? Join us on April 17th at 7:00pm for a performance by vocalist Ty Bouque and ...
03/19/2025

🗣🥁 Looking to expand your musical horizons? Join us on April 17th at 7:00pm for a performance by vocalist Ty Bouque and percussionist Nolan Ehlers, performing contemporary works for voice and percussion.

Check the comment section for the ticket link!

03/18/2025

⛰🌲 It’s been 35 years since Agent Cooper made his cameo into Twin Peaks lore, and all the while losing its dreamer David Lynch. We are hosting a commemorative Twin Peaks party for the ages you won’t forget on April 18th!

🐤 Early bird ticket sales end tonight!

Your ticket includes complimentary Damn Fine coffee, Bang Bang Cherry Pie, and cocktails! Drop in Twin Peaks Flash Tattoos by renowned artists David Allen and Ryan Flaherty and performances by: DJ Dale Cooper, Lucy Stoole, and Sally Marvel!

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Check out this lovely featuring on Shar Coulson's "NIGHT SIGHT" by WGN-9! "NIGHT SIGHT", located on our fourth floor, cl...
03/15/2025

Check out this lovely featuring on Shar Coulson's "NIGHT SIGHT" by WGN-9! "NIGHT SIGHT", located on our fourth floor, closes tomorrow at 5:00pm.

At first disturbing, the life-long artist says she transformed the images in her mind to something more peaceful.

Did you know that blood groups were discovered by ~two~ different scientists - neither had an idea of what the other was...
03/15/2025

Did you know that blood groups were discovered by ~two~ different scientists - neither had an idea of what the other was up to?!🩸

Karl Landsteiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1930 for his discovery of the A, B, O blood types for work he began at the beginning of the 20th century. However, what Landsteiner was unaware of was that Jan Jánsky, a Czech serologist, neurologist, and psychiatrist began similar work around the same exact time! Jánsky went on to publish "Hematologická studie u psychotiků" ("Hematological study of psychotics") in 1907 introducing blood groups I, II, III, and IV - great minds think alike!

Curious about Czech contributions to medicine? Join us on April 14th at 6:00pm for a *free* presentation by Professor Karel Novák, President of the Czech Section of the International College of Surgeons, where he will explore the history of Czech contributions to health and surgery from the 14th century to present day, including the 2015 Jubilee World Congress of Surgery held between Prague and Pilsen.

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Address

1524 N Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL
60610

Opening Hours

Monday 9:30am - 5pm
Tuesday 9:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 9:30am - 5pm
Thursday 9:30am - 5pm
Friday 9:30am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm

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Since 1954, the International Museum of Surgical Science has provided education on the history and progress of surgery and related medical sciences to hundreds of thousands of visitors. As a not-for-profit division of the International College of Surgeons, the Museum depicts contributions from around the world to the history, development and advances of surgery and related subjects in health and medicine. Housed in a historic mansion, the Museum building is a City of Chicago Landmark and is listed in the National Register and Illinois Register of Historic Places. The elegant structure, known as the Eleanor Robinson Countiss House, is patterned after Le Petit Trianon, a French chateau built on the grounds of Versailles for Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Designed by noted Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, the building was completed in 1917. Original interior finishes of marble and cut stone; decorative plaster work, metal fixtures and hardware; eight fireplaces; and a gilded metal grand staircase are among the features, which have been preserved. The building truly embodies the Gold Coast splendor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. GENERAL INFORMATION The Museum is closed on the following holidays: Easter Sunday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. IMSS is also closed during the Chicago Air and Water Show weekend. ADMISSION Adults - $17.00 Students, Educators, Members or the Military (with ID) - $13.00 Senior Citizens (ages 65+) - $13.00 Children ages 4–13 (Free for ages 3 & under) - $9.00 Children ages 3 and under - FREE IMSS Members - FREE No Refunds • No Exchanges • No Re-Entry PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION The Museum is easily accessible by bus or train. * The CTA bus #151 stops at North Avenue, half a block north of the Museum. * From the Clark/Division stop of the Red Line elevated train walk east on Division until you reach Lake Shore Drive. Turn north and walk a few blocks to the Museum. * From the Sedgwick stop of the Brown Line and Purple Line Express elevated train, walk east on North Avenue until you reach Lake Shore Drive. Turn south and walk a block to the Museum. For train and bus schedules call the RTA/CTA at 312-836-7000. PARKING Ample discounted parking is available in 3 locations within a few minutes’ walk of the Museum. Retrieve a discounted validation voucher/stamp at the Museum box office to present to the parking attendant upon exiting the lot/ramp. PARKING OPTION Standard Parking Lot - Behind the Chicago History Museum located on Clark and LaSalle Streets, Chicago, IL 60614; entrance on Stockton Drive Standard Parking Lot - in condominium building at 1445 N. State Parkway, Chicago, IL 60610; entrance on Burton Place. Standard Parking Lot - in condominium building at 1350 N. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60610; entrance on E. Banks Street