Enid A. Haupt Glass Garden

The Enid A. Haupt Glass Garden once stood as a revolutionary sanctuary for healing in the Kips Bay neighborhood. Opened in 1959 as part of the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, it functioned as the first greenhouse in the country designed to be fully accessible to patients in wheelchairs. Its creation stemmed from a partnership between philanthropist Enid A. Haupt and Dr. Howard Rusk, a pioneer in disability medicine who recognized the restorative power of nature for veterans and patients recovering from polio. The facility offered more than just a place to sit, as it integrated formal horticultural therapy into medical treatment, allowing patients to work directly with trained therapists to cultivate plants and regain physical dexterity.