Mount Sinai Queens traces its roots to 1892. Astoria Hospital was originally located on Astoria Boulevard, where local residents made their way around town in horse-drawn carriages. Doctors petitioned the Hospital Board of Managers for more space, and funds were raised through a public fair and the generous donations of local philanthropists. On May 4, 1896, a gala opening heralded Astoria Hospital’s new Tudor Building on Crescent Street between 30th Avenue and 30th Road, with sweeping views of Manhattan. 

Its doors were open to all patients, without regard to gender, creed, or nationality. The hospital’s goal was to be “a model of completeness and comfort.” The new facility included two operating rooms, separate wards for men and women, a dining room, a training school, apartments for nurses, and even a horse stable and ambulance in the rear. 

Two years after moving to its new location, the hospital was forced to close due to the lack of city funding. In the ensuing years, doctors made unsuccessful attempts to revive the hospital. Then Marie Daly bought the hospital and opened Daly’s Astoria Sanatorium in 1925 as a maternity hospital and a place where patients could recuperate from long illnesses. Her husband, Dr. John F. Daly, served as medical director during the sanatorium’s early years, and in 1932, the incorporation was approved by the state under the name Daly’s Astoria Sanatorium. 

A Name Change

A group of physicians purchased the hospital in 1949 and changed its name to Astoria General Hospital. The new owners embarked on an expansion to meet the growing needs of the local postwar community. In 1952, a new three-story building was constructed on 30th Avenue, where Mount Sinai Queens stands today, connected to the original building. In 1964, three additional floors were added to the building, bringing the total number of hospital beds to 235. The hospital thrived throughout the 1960s. In 1965, Astoria General served more patients and delivered more babies than any other private hospital in Queens. 

In 1972, a group of investors bought the hospital and took over its operation. The hospital continued to expand during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1985, the ambulatory surgery center was built at 25-25 30th Road, and four years later the hospital opened a center for laser vascular surgery–the first such facility in Queens, Brooklyn, or Long Island. 

An Affiliation with The Mount Sinai Hospital

The changing economics of health care made survival as a stand-alone hospital increasingly difficult. In 1993, the hospital became an affiliate of The Mount Sinai Hospital and changed its name to Western Queens Community Hospital the following year. In 1999, Mount Sinai purchased the hospital. It became the first community hospital to bear the Mount Sinai name. 

Since joining Mount Sinai, hospital management has worked consistently to modernize the facility, introduce state-of-the-art technology, and attract high-caliber physicians and nurses who are among the best in their fields. Bringing physicians, resources, and knowledge from the Mount Sinai Health System has been integral to our efforts to improve the quality of health care in Queens.