Ground was broken on the John B. Murphy Memorial Auditorium in 1923, and construction was completed in 1926. The Auditorium was built to serve as a tangible memorial to the great Dr. John B. Murphy. Shortly following Dr. Murphy's death, his friends sought to honor him by forming the John B. Murphy Memorial Association. The Auditorium was built on the property of the American College of Surgeons ("ACS"), with the agreement that ACS would maintain the building as a memorial to Dr. Murphy. The Auditorium was designed to host ACS meetings and serve as a center for education in surgery.