Existing comment:
Capital Care:
As casualties mounted during the war, the city of Washington quickly transformed into a major medical center. At first, the unexpected flood of sick and wounded soldiers was housed in temporary shelters and government offices, including the US Capitol building. By 1865, the capital region had more than 50 new military hospitals featuring the latest improvements in sanitation and patient care. These included individual ward buildings, enhanced ventilation systems, and bathrooms with running water.
"The Hospital, I do not find it, the repulsive place of sores and fevers, nor the place of querulousness, nor the bad results of morbid years which one avoids like bad smells -- at least not so is it under the circumstances here..."
-- Walt Whitman, 1862 |