Wills Eye was established in 1832 through a bequest of Quaker merchant James Wills to the City of Philadelphia. We are a non-profit specialty hospital whose clinical expertise and sophisticated diagnostic and treatment procedures make it a worldwide referral center.

Before Wills Eye was founded in 1832, the care of eye diseases was just one of many general surgical responsibilities. By establishing Wills Eye as a specialty hospital from its inception, we developed momentum early as a pioneer in the prevention and treatment of eye disease and played a vital role in establishing ophthalmology as a separate branch of medicine in the United States.