ABSTRACT
The Baker Memorial Building, opened in 1931 and demolished in 1992 to make room for the Blake Building, was a 325-bed facility for patients of moderate means. Patients were charged a single fee for all services, adjusted on a sliding scale according to their ability to pay. This payment plan was revolutionary in its day and widely copied by other hospitals. During demolition intact individual bricks were piled outside the White 1 corridor on the Bulfinch patio. A member of the staff could not bear to see the destruction of the venerable building, collected the least damaged bricks, glued on each a brass plaque that read "MGH Baker Building 1931-1991" and distributed them to 40 colleagues. A senior medical staff person, upon receiving one of the bricks, held it to his ear and exclaimed:
