Ben Franklin's world. The

podcast dedicated to helping you learn more about how the people and events of

our early American past have shaped the present day world we live in.

And I'm your host, Liz Kovart.

How did Americans learn to establish philanthropic institutions.

The United States history doesn't often celebrate people who

teach us how to found organizations.

But founding public institutions is really important in vital work. If you think about it, public institutions are critical

to vibrant life in American communities. So today, we're going to learn about the life and

work of Dr. David Husick,

who not only helped further the field of medicine in the early United States

with all of his research into the medicinal uses of plants,

Husick also helped found or co-found more than a dozen different philanthropic

organizations in early New York City. Now to help us explore the life and work of

David Husick, we'll be joined by Victoria Johnson, an associate professor of Urban Policy and

and Planning at Hunter College in New York City, and the author of American Eden,

David Husick, Botany, and Medicine in the Garden of the Early Republic.

Now as Victoria introduces... and Medicine in the Garden of the Early Republic.

Now, as Victoria introduces us to David Husick, she reveals who David Husick was and information about his training as a medical doctor.

Why Husick worked to build a botanical garden in New York City, which was the first of its

kind in the United States.

And how did that Husick's personal relationships with the likes of Duit Clinton, Alexander Hamilton, and Aaron Burr, helped

...