ST. ELIZABETHS HOSPITAL A HISTORY THOMAS OTTO U.S. GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION This history was researched and written by Thomas J. Otto under contract for the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) under the auspices of the Campus Development Team in the National Capital Region of the Public Buildings Service. It fulfills one of the stipulations of a programmatic agreement executed by GSA pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 on December 9, 2008 for the development of the west campus of St. Elizabeths Hospital. St. Elizabeths Hospital is a National Historic Landmark and a D.C. Historic Landmark in southeast Washington, D.C. May 2013 United States General Services Administration, National Capital Region Washington, DC This publication is a United States Government Work under 17 USC 105, the Copyright Act of 1976. Acknowledgements I wish to thank the many people who helped make this history of St. Elizabeths possible. First and foremost, Shapour Ebadi, Frank Palermo, Bonnie Echoles, and Harry Debes ensured that the project had the resources it needed to get off the ground and stuck with it until it was completed. Beth Savage and Nancy Witherell provided crucial support and guidance along the way. Nancy was particularly helpful throughout the research and writing process with thoughtful feedback and encouragement to keep it moving in the right direction. Tim Dennée in the D.C. Historic Preservation Office went above and beyond with thorough comments that were always spot on. Frances McMillen was a helpful comrade-in-arms who offered many useful tips and perhaps one of the most important citations in the text. The helpful feedback of Drs. Suryabala Kanhouwa and Jogues Prandoni was informed not only by their medical expertise and their decades of professional experience at St. Elizabeths, but also by their avid enthusiasm for the history of the hospital. Carter Wormeley and Bill Willis are equally enthusiastic about the St. Elizabeths story and made helpful comments on my drafts, as did George Siekkinen. Danielle Breaux and Melissa Cohen, my colleagues and friends on the St. Elizabeths historic preservation team at GSA have provided much support over the years and much gratitude goes to them and to Teresa Preston who provided invaluable editing assistance. Thanks are also due to Velora Jernigan- Pedrick, librarian at St. Elizabeths Hospital, as well as to Deborah Slaton, Tim Penich, Mike Ford, Kenneth Itle, Stephen Kelley, Alan Dreyfuss, Judith Robinson, Tim Kerr, and Patricia O’Donnell. Finally, I would like to thank James S. Kane for having the forethought to initiate projects to preserve primary source material and document historic resources. The results of his efforts continue to be, almost ten years later, indispensible to GSA’s stewardship of the history of St. Elizabeths. Table of Contents Preface................................................................................................................... i Chapter 1: The Origins of an Institution ...............................................................1 Chapter 2: Dr. Nichols Builds .............................................................................21 Chapter 3: The Civil War Comes to St. Elizabeths ............................................73 Chapter 4: Dr. Godding Makes Do .....................................................................89 Chapter 5: Dr. Godding Innovates ....................................................................111 Chapter 6: Dr. Richardson Modernizes ............................................................163 Chapter 7: Dr. White Follows Through ............................................................199 Chapter 8: Dr. Overholser Manages Change ....................................................263 Epilogue ............................................................................................................305 Index .................................................................................................................317 St. Elizabeths: A History U.S. General Services Administration List of Figures Figure 1.1. Dorothea Dix .............................................................................................................................. 4 Figure 1.2. Dr. Charles Nichols ..................................................................................................................... 9 Figure 1.3. Map of St. Elizabeths tract, 1839 ............................................................................................... 12 Figure 1.4. Plan of hospital grounds, 1856 ................................................................................................... 12 Figure 2.1. Site plan, 1860 ........................................................................................................................... 23 Figure 2.2. Center Building .......................................................................................................................... 24 Figure 2.3. Cherry ward (Center Building) .................................................................................................. 25 Figure 2.4. Cherry ward (Center Building) .................................................................................................. 25 Figure 2.5. Poplar ward (Center Building) ................................................................................................... 26 Figure 2.6. Poplar ward (Center Building) ................................................................................................... 26 Figure 2.7. Poplar ward (Center Building) ................................................................................................... 27 Figure 2.8. Poplar ward (Center Building) ................................................................................................... 27 Figure 2.9. Gray Ash Ward (Center Building) ............................................................................................. 28 Figure 2.10. West Lodge .............................................................................................................................. 37 Figure 2.11. Hospital staff ............................................................................................................................ 40 Figure 2.12. Chapel (Center Building) ......................................................................................................... 44 Figure 2.13. Chapel (Center Building) ......................................................................................................... 45 Figure 2.14. Site plan, 1860 ......................................................................................................................... 49 Figure 2.15. Site plan, 1873 ......................................................................................................................... 50 Figure 2.16. Stables ...................................................................................................................................... 52 Figure 2.17. Hospital wagon ........................................................................................................................ 53 Figure 2.18. Tailor shop ............................................................................................................................... 54 Figure 2.19. Gatehouse No. 1 ....................................................................................................................... 56 Figure 3.1. General Joseph Hooker .............................................................................................................. 76 Figure 3.2. Giesborough Cavalry Depot ...................................................................................................... 78 Figure 3.3. Center Building .......................................................................................................................... 80 Figure 3.4. Cemetery .................................................................................................................................... 83 Figure 4.1. Dr. William Godding ................................................................................................................. 90 Figure 4.2. Atkins Hall ................................................................................................................................. 91 Figure 4.3. Atkins Hall ................................................................................................................................. 92 Figure 4.4. Atkins Hall ................................................................................................................................. 92 Figure 4.5. Atkins Hall ................................................................................................................................. 93 Figure 4.6. Relief Building........................................................................................................................... 94 Figure 4.7. Relief Building........................................................................................................................... 94 Figure 4.8. Relief Building........................................................................................................................... 95 Figure 4.9. Relief Building and Home Building .......................................................................................... 97 Figure 4.10. Home