Contraband Hospital in Washington, D.C.

“Splendid among the shabby field hands… the sight of his uniform stirred the faintest heart to faith in the new destiny of the race, for Dr Augusta wore the oak leaves of a major on his shoulders.”  -  Anderson R. Abbott, M.D., African-Canadian Surgeon, c. 1863 (“Binding Wounds, Pushing Boundaries,” National Library of Medicine)

 

I attended a presentation yesterday by Jill L. Newmark at the National Archives.  The program was titled:  Within These Walls: Contraband Hospital and the African Americans Who Served There.

Newmark is with the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, where she has curated several exhibitions and speaks on African-American Civil War surgeons and nurses.   Her lecture covered the Contraband Hospital in D.C. during the Civil War, also known as Camp Barker.  

Newmark began by noting this part of the Civil War has been neglected by historians.  The lack of oral histories by the patients themselves presented an obstacle she overcame by using pension applications and diaries.   A few photographs helped, although labeling is sometimes suspect or not given.

Emancipated slaves in Washington needed medical treatment.   A church or two provided some minimal care, but the only hospital for freed blacks in the city was the Contraband Hospital.  

The first facility was located at Duff Green’s Row near the Capitol.  The hospital then moved to the block of R, S, 12th and 13^th NW.   The facility was walled off with a wooden fence.  Supplies were few, conditions were poor, and patients and even staff contacted diseases.   The makeshift hospital contained 100 beds.   Two surgeons treated smallpox.  

Rising above all these challenges, Major Alexander T. Augusta arrived in 1863 and became the first black surgeon with a commission.   He distinguished himself not only as Surgeon-in-Charge, but also as a pioneer for Civil Rights.   As noted by the “Binding Wounds” brochure Newmark made available, Augusta was kicked off a streetcar in August 1864.   With leadership from United States Senator Charles Sumner, Congress passed a resolution that desegregated the streetcars in the city.      

William P. Powell Jr. also tried to improve conditions but was denied funding.   Collectively, the African-American surgeons served as role models, and fought back against prejudice.

Nurses endured long hours.    Some friendships between caretaker and patient formed, including one with Maria Page.

In 1864, the hospital moved to Vermont and Massachusetts, and then to Campbell Army Hospital near 7^th and Boundary (Florida).   In 1868, a final move was made to Howard University.

All in all, one of the best presentations I have seen.

I spoke with a representative with the Cultural Tourism DC.  She indicated they are in the planning stages for the R and S site, which currently has no commemorative markers.

 

Additional Reading

"Binding Wounds" at the National Library of Medicine

 

 

 

Comments

[Jill Newmark]

Thanks so much for this lovely post and for attending the lecture at the National Archives. I encourage everyone to visit the Binding Wounds, Pushing Boundaries: African Americans in Civil War Medicine exhibition web site for more information at: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/bindingwounds