Salk Hall - Where the Polio Vaccine Was BornStop on University of Pittsburgh Campus Walk, a free self-guided tour.In the early 1950s, polio frightened American parents every summer. The answer came from this building.It opened in 1941 as the Municipal Hospital for Contagious Diseases, an Art Deco hospital built with federal Public Works Administration money on land donated by Pitt. Jonas Salk came to the university in 1947 to run its Virus Research Laboratory, housed here, and from 1948 to 1955 his team worked on a polio vaccine. A nationwide trial followed, involving more than 1.8 million children. On April 12, 1955, the vaccine was announced safe and effective, and it was licensed for use the same day.Pitt bought the hospital in 1957 and renamed it for Salk. Since the early 1960s it has been home to the Schools of Dental Medicine and Pharmacy, which even keep small dental and pharmacy museums inside. It's a working academic building, so admire it from outside.Did you know?: Asked in a 1955 television interview who owned the patent on his vaccine, Salk replied, 'Could you patent the sun?'Photo op: From across Terrace Street, frame the building's Art Deco brick front.Accessibility: Sidewalks along Terrace Street are paved but sloped. This is an exterior-only stop.Stops on this tourCathedral of Learning - A 42-Story ClassroomStephen Foster Memorial - Pittsburgh's SongwriterHeinz Memorial Chapel - The Ketchup King's TributeSoldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall - A Temple for VeteransAllen Hall - Mellon's Lab and Marie CuriePetersen Events Center - Home of the Oakland ZooSalk Hall - Where the Polio Vaccine Was BornScaife Hall - Pittsburgh, Transplant CapitalLitchfield Towers - Freshman CentralWilliam Pitt Union - A Hotel for Presidents and BallplayersHillman Library - Pitt's Big Study HallForbes Field Wall - Maz's Home RunSchenley Plaza - From Parking Lot to Front Lawn