Built in 1909, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center - known as the Walter Reed General hospital until 1951 - was named for Major Walter Reed, a U.S. Army physician and built seven years after his death.
In 1901, Walter Reed lead the team responsible for confirming that yellow fever, an infectious disease common to tropical zones, was spread by mosquito bites and not contact with an infected person. This discovery not only allowed the United States to resume work on the Panama Canal, it also provided credibility to two emerging fields: epidemiology and biomedicine. One year later he would pass away from a ruptured appendix.
Throughout the 1900s, Walter Reed Hospital treated hundreds of thousands of active and retired soldiers that fought in World Wars I and II, and the Korean and Vietnam Wars. In 2016, the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center transferred their 11.85 acres to Children’s National Hospital.
The focus of our work was Building #52, which was originally used by the Army as a medical ward, and more recently used to treat soldiers on an outpatient basis. Building #52 is now the only original medical ward remaining on the campus. Children’s National will use it for pediatric outpatient care.
For Building #52, The Durable Slate Company removed the previous slate and installed a new, brilliant Riverstone slate roof, as well as new 20 oz copper box gutters, downspouts, and chimney vent pipe flashings. On the whole, a magnificent job for a historically significant building and campus.
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