The Post Hospital

The Post Hospital. In 1904, the U.S. Army built a new Post Hospital at Vancouver Barracks as a part of a nationwide effort to modernize its forces. Unlike the previous one, the hospital was constructed with brick to enhance sanitation and boasted a spacious floor plan with open verandas to provide light and fresh air to ailing soldiers. Until the end of World War I, the Post Hospital was considered one of the most modern and efficient military hospitals in the nation. . . During World War I, the hospital staff was faced with wounded soldiers, sick and injured workers from nearby lumber camps and mills, and an influenza epidemic. Several temporary structures were built and tents erected to house patients. At the peak of the crisis, over 2,550 patients were treated a month, though the Post Hospital had less than 400 beds. . . In the 1930s, the hospital was opened to enrollees in the Civilian Conservation Corps, many suffering from ailments caused by poverty and malnutrition. During this time, the verandas along the north and south wings were enclosed with glass to create sun porches. The Post Hospital continued to operate through the 1940s, until it was superseded by Barnes General Hospital, built within the current Veteran’s Administration Complex.