The Post Chapel

Built in 1942, the post chapel replaced the small temporary structure from the 1918 U.S. Army General Hospital No. 21. As an interdenominational chapel, the Post Chapel is used for Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish services. The chapel’s character windows are stained glass emblazoned with the apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, two angels Gabriel and Michael, and four prophets Jeremiah, Isaiah, Daniel and Ezekiel. The stained glass’s symbolism harmonizes Judaism and Christianity, and the windows also showcase the branches of the army and the divisions of the medical service. 

Jodie Gibson Stewart 

As the first chaplain at No. 21’s temporary chapel, Jodie Gibson Stewart finished his training at the Training School for Chaplains in Kentucky November 6, 1918 and was honorably discharged October 19, 1919 from his enlistment to accept the position as Chaplain in the United States Army. Jodie G. Stewart married E. Heartz Davidson January 1926 in Denver and served as the U.S. Army chaplain until his relief in 1939. 

The Post Chapel 1942 

Completed in 1942, the Post Chapel ordained its first wedding between Captain Paul Lundell and Peggy McCaw in December of the same year. A decade later, President Dwight D. Eisenhower stayed at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in 1954 for seven weeks following a heart attack he sustained while visiting Colorado. In appreciation for the care he received, first lady Mamie Eisenhower’s mother Mrs. John S. Doud “presented Fitzsimons Army Hospital with the new Conn electronic organ.” The organ was first used at the Republican National Convention in San Francisco during President Eisenhower’s second nomination. Catholic masses were held Sundays at 6 am, 8:30 am, and noon. The chapel’s New-England style architecture held its last service June 1996 and remains stalwart against the developing Anschutz Medical Campus.  

Architecture 

With the emblematic stucco exterior walls supporting the overhanging eaves and red shingled roof, the Post Chapel mirrors other Mission Revival architecture at the former Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. The interior of the chapel boasts vaulted ceilings with exposed wooden rafters as the donated stained-glass windows let in natural light. The alter can be easily changed for Jewish, Christian, and Catholic services. The Post Chapel’s pews once held 400 persons with the choir loft set in the upper level at the back of the chapel.  

1. “Mrs. Doud Presents Organ at Dedication Ceremonies.” The Stethoscope. Friday November 26, 1954 Vol. 10 No. 47 
2. “Fitzsimons’ Army Medical Center’s 65th Birthday Celebration.” Aurora Historical Society’s Fifth Annual Walking Tour, October 16, 1983 
3. Kelly, Sean. “Base Chapel to be Preserved.” The Denver Post. April 24, 2015 
4. War Department: The Adjutant General's Office Washington; September 20, 1920; CIV; Special Delivery Letter 
5. Training School for Chaplains and Approved Chaplain Candidates; Camp Zachary Taylor, KY., November 6, 1918 
6. Aurora History Museum; Fitzsimons Box 1 of 2; Folder 21; Series III: Personnel; Subseries B: Chaplain Jodie Gibson Stewart 1916-1977 
7. (Image) Historic American Buildings Survey, Creator, Thomas H Simmons, and R Laurie Simmons, Whitacre, Roger, photographer. Fitzsimons General Hospital, Chapel, West Harlow Avenue & North Hisckey Street, Northwest Corner, Aurora, Adams County, CO. Adams County Aurora Colorado, 1933. Documentation Compiled After. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/co0800/.