New owner takes over Bronzeville’s Mercy Hospital, agrees with the city to run it as full-service hospital until at least 2029

Mercy has a long history in Chicago. The hospital, which opened more than 150 years ago, was the first chartered hospital in the city — starting in an old rooming house near present-day Rush Street and the Chicago River in 1852 before moving to the South Side during the Civil War, according to the hospital.