Mower General Hospital

Mower Hospital, in an 1863 lithograph. Note passenger train in foreground.

The Mower U.S. Army General Hospital was one of the largest Federal military hospitals during the American Civil War. Located in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, it operated from January 1863 through May 1865,^[1] when it was closed with the cessation of the war.

The hospital complex was designed by architect John McArthur, Jr.. It was built in 1862.^[1] It was named in honor of Thomas Mower, an early Army surgeon. The hospital was constructed on 27 acres (11 ha) between Willow Grove and Springfield Avenues, the Reading Railroad line and Stenton Avenue. The central compound was surrounded by a ring of 47 radiating wards and other buildings. Commanded by Dr. Andrew Hopkins, it had some 3,600 beds and treated over 20,000 patients, the majority being wounded and ill Union soldiers from the Army of the Potomac. The hospital featured many amenities for the patients and staff, including plumbing to provide hot water, special medical wards that could be isolated for patients with infections, centralized storage for supplies, flush toilets, band music, etc.

The wounded were brought directly from Southern battlefields by railroad—a journey known as going from the seven circles of hell to heaven.

Wyndmoor Station, Market Square Shopping Center, apartment buildings and townhouses now occupy the site.

References

1 2 "Mower U.S.A. General Hospital, Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia". The Library Company of Philadelphia. World Digital Library. Retrieved 4 January 2014.

Pennsylvania in the American Civil War

Category Commons category American Civil War

Campaigns and battles	Gettysburg Campaign (template) Fairfield Gettysburg (template) Hanover Hunterstown

Fights and skirmishes	Carlisle Chambersburg Monterey Pass Greencastle skirmishes

Cities and counties	Harrisburg Philadelphia Pittsburgh Franklin County

Units and people	Monongahela department Susquehanna department Regiments

Posts and hospitals	Camp Letterman Fort Mifflin Camp Curtin Camp Scott Camp Union Camp William Penn Carlisle Barracks Mower General Hospital Satterlee General Hospital York General Hospital

Manufacturers	Frankford Arsenal Phoenix Iron Works

Civil War museums and historic sites	Civil War Museum of Philadelphia National Civil War Museum Gettysburg Battlefield Gettysburg National Cemetery Gettysburg Address Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center

Monuments and memorials	North Carolina Monument The Pennsylvania State Memorial Smith Memorial Arch 72nd Pennsylvania Infantry Monument

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Mower General Hospital

See also

References