Evening star., 1945-03-04

Spanish-American War in 1898 that the
post hospital at the Washington Bar
racks was established by a general Or
der as the Army General Hospital Soon
afterward company Of instruction"
for training recruits for the Hospital
Corps was transferred to the control of
the hospital, and the Army Medical
School was opened in connection with
the hospital in 1901.
Present Site
In 1905 Congress appropriated funds
for more adequate hospital, and it was
then that the present site was acquired,
and the name of the Army General
Hospital changed to Walter Reed Cen
eral Hospital after DR.. Walter Reed.
DR.. Reed was born in Gloucester
County, Va, on September 49, 1851, and
was graduated from the medical de-
partment of the University of Virginia
and from the Bellevue Hospital Med
ical College, New York City, where
he received his medical degree in 1870.
In 1875, he entered the United States
the rank of first lieutenant. In 1880
his rank was changed to captain, and
In 1893, to that of surgeon, with rank
of major, and he became professor of
bacteriology in the newly organized
Army Medical School He was also Gu
rator of the Army Medical Museum, and
upon several occasions addressed the
Medical Society of the District of Co.
lumbia.
DR.. Reeds great work was done during
the Spanish american War, when at the
beginning of that conflict in 1898, he was
appointed chairman of committee to
investigate the causation and mode of
propagation of typhoid fever, an epi-
demic which had broken out among the
soldiers, being especially severe in Cuba.
Here his observation of many cases led
him to prove the fact that yellow fever
was conveyed by certain variety of
mosquito and introduced into the blood
of nonimmunes by the bite, and since
the disease was not taken by animals,
there was no method of proof except by
experimenting upon human beings.
This wasf done, though one of DR..
Reeds co-%orkers sacrificed his life,
and his own life was considerably Short
ened.
His Washington Residence
Dr. Reed resided much of his time in
Washington, at one time, in the '90s,
at No. 5 Cook Row, now 1921 @ street
NV, where, according to Mrs. Grace
Dunlop Ecker, he once gave Valen-
tine party for his son, which she had
the pleasure of attending
Maj. Reed died in Washington on
November %, 1902.
Since the opening of the hospital
many notable persons have been treated
there and Gen. John j. Pershing has
resided there for several years. One of
the saddest deaths to take place within
its walls was that of Calvin Coolidge,
.:r., the Presidents son, on the morning
of July 7, 1924. His fatal illness was
due to blood poisoning, brought on by
a blister on the foot, which became
infected. His funeral took place from
the east room of the White House. and
between 1000 and 5000 mourners stood
in the grounds while the services were
being conducted.
In the early days of the District the
grounds of the Army Medical Center
belonged to Capt. Thomas Carbury,
Mayor of Washington from 1922 to
1923. 1t was quite large farm, called
Norway, which included not only the
hospital grounds but extended north
along Georgia avenue for quite dis
.tance. A part of this tract. containing
30 acres called Maple Grove Farm, was
bought by John SAUL pioneer of that
family in the District, in 1854, and a
MIR. Cameron later bought part of the
Carbery property. At the time of the
attack on Washington by the Confed-
crate forces, July IL and IL, 1864, part
also belonged to Thomas Lay, and on
the first day of the engagement the
Union forces fired 80 shots from Fort
Stevens, one being aimed at the Lay
house, which had formerly been occu-
pied by Mayor Carbery. The next day
80 shots were fired at the same house,
and 1t was finally set on fire by shots
from a mortar.