Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-12-30
By John McKeIwoy

For 10 years-years filled with
disappointment, argument. revi-
sion and compromise-som ebody
has been trying to start the bull
dozer. It sputtered and coughed
and several times was stored
away and almost forgotten.
But now it's running.
The Hospital Center Corp. an
nounced today work has started
and the first construction con-
tract of $224,97O for surface
grading. construction of roads
and clearing of the site for the
hospital.
That's what the bulldozer is
up to. And sometime in the
summer of 1857. the people Of
Washington will find on the
grounds of Soldiers Home an
812-bed hospital built at a. total
cost Of SPIT million incorporat-
ing facilities of Emergency. Gar
field and Episcopal Hospitals.
Hard Hit BY War.
Back in the early 1940s Wash
ington was at war. A rushed
and tense city, the District was
er-crowded. Hit hard by the
change were local hospitals.
Many of their doctors and nurses
had gone to war and facilities,
old and worn. were taxed to the
limit.
Frequently there was talk of
rebuilding some hospitals or re-
modelling certain quarters. But
always there was the talk that
the hospitals of Washington had
seen their better days. They
were old. it was said, run down
and potential fire traps.
Into these conditions came a
group Of women who sought to
help the hospitals shortage of
nursing care. They volunteered
as nurses aides.
Two of these women were Mrs,
Willard Tydings, wife Of the then
Senator from Maryland and Mrs.
William L. Welsh of 1882 Reser-
voir road NV. Both were
struck by what they described as
"inhuman conditions" in the
hospitals. At first hand, among
other things, they saw reaches
and rats and too many patients
in one room. They decided to do
something about it.
Dream Is Born.
Enlisting the aid of Mrs. Ed
ward w. Fay, a member of a
number of hospital boards. they
began to talk up their idea of a
new hospital center which would
combine the facilities of the older
hospitals.
While nothing was in black
and white. the dream Of a hos
pital was born.
The three women later took
their story to Congress, armed
with the so-called Munger report
of 1945 which bluntly described
the pitiful conditions on the local
hospital scene.
The critical hospital situation
had been eased somewhat in
1914 when George Washington
and Georgetown Medical Schools
received funds under the Lam
ham Act. The two medical
schools set about to build their
own hospitals-apart from the
idea of a hospital center.
Civic leaders, the three women
and Senator Tydings pushed
passage in 1916 of Public Law
648-the first big step to better
hospitals.
The law provided that: I'm
order to provide more adequate
hospital facilities in the District
the Federal Works Agency
(now the General Services Adj
ministration) is authorized to
acquire land and construct hos
1ital facilities. " The law
also authorized an appropria-
ton of $35 million to carry out
the steps.
Still, no master plan had been
arrived at. No local hospitals
were named in the bill and the
idea of a hospital center did not
sit well with all hospital boards.
The hospital center idea came
down o~earth when board men,
bers of Garfield Hospital (started
in 1866. Episcopal (started in
1910 and Emergency (started in
1879 came up with plan. They
would merge their facilities into
one center. Other non-prof1t
hospitals were only lukewarm
to the idea and finally pulled
out all together. Eventually.
they will receive grants under
the original authorization Of
1916.
Taking their plan to archi-
tects of the GSA. officials of the
three hospitals got an estimate
of the cost of such a center, $21. z
million. The Hospital Center was
incorporated and in 1947. Con-
gress appropriated SIT million
out of the 1916 authorization Of
$35 million for the purpose of
making architectural plans and
specifications.
Later Appropriation.
Under the plan. the three hos
pitfalls would turn over their
facilities to the Government on
/ completion of the center. A
second appropriation was made
~, 1OA7 for e. yni11inn onA in