page_title: Balboa Park (San Diego)
section_title: World wars
hierarchical_section_title: Balboa Park (San Diego) / History / World wars
caption_attribution_description: English: To their "blues" and "whites" members of the US Navy Nurse Corps have added "grays." The new gray uniform is worn here by Lt. (jg) Julia Anna Muraresku (center), of Philadelphia. Ens. Kathleen Litty (left), of Brainard, Neb., wears the blue uniform and the nurse in the white is Ens. Leona McKibbin, of Hayes Center, Neb. Image location: behind the House of Hospitality (nurse quarters), Casa del Rey Moro Garden, Balboa Park, San Diego, California ca. 1944. Image from the LCDR Julia Anna Muraresku (Bricker) Collection, USN Nurse Corps (1941-46).
context_page_description: Balboa Park is a 1,200-acre historic urban cultural park in San Diego, California, United States. In addition to open space areas, natural vegetation zones, green belts, gardens, and walking paths, it contains museums, several theaters, and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. There are also many recreational facilities and several gift shops and restaurants within the boundaries of the park. Placed in reserve in 1835, the park's site is one of the oldest in the United States dedicated to public recreational use. Balboa Park is managed and maintained by the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of San Diego.
  Balboa Park hosted the 1915–16 Panama–California Exposition and 1935–36 California Pacific International Exposition, both of which left architectural landmarks. The park and its historic Exposition buildings were declared a National Historic Landmark and National Historic Landmark District in 1977, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
context_section_description: During both the Great War and World War II, the park was handed over to the Department of the Navy to be used as a barracks and training ground and was an extension of Naval Medical Center San Diego. By 1917, after $30,000 in repairs and modifications were made to the original buildings, over 5,000 U.S. troops were using the park for training.
  Coinciding with the Panama–California Exposition, the Commandant of the Marine Corps instructed 2nd Battalion of the newly established 4th Marines to represent the Marine Corps at the event. On December 19, 1914, Marine Barracks, Balboa Park, was established as the second, and during its period, and only Marine base in San Diego. It was established by Marines under the command of Colonel Pendleton. It remained in place until 1921, when a more permanent base was established in Dutch Flats, itself a predecessor of Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego. Under the conditions of usage, upon closing, the Marine Corps returned the buildings they had used in the exact condition that they had received them. Although some buildings were scheduled to be demolished due to disrepair, several San Diego groups organized to ensure the buildings were kept.  Donated funds allowed for improvements to the buildings' integrity and interiors.
  During World War II, the park was renamed Camp Kidd, after Rear Admiral Isaac Kidd. Buildings within the park were used for multiple purposes, including hospital wards, training facilities, and barracks. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, many of the wounded were transported to Camp Kidd's hospital wards. Camp Kidd also served as a Reception Center for sailors until 1944, when those activities were transferred to Camp Elliott; this allowed for additional hospital expansion. It was returned to civilian authority in 1946, and repair costs to return the buildings and infrastructure to their pre-war status totaled $840,000, with the majority reimbursed by the Navy. In 1948, the funds were used to restore seven buildings that were deemed unsafe.
caption: Navy Nurse quarters, House of Hospitality, Balboa Park 1944
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