Fitzsimons Army Medical Center (Tour) - Clio

Entries on This Tour

1. Guard Houses

Donated by The Denver Building Trades Union in 1919, the Guard Houses reflect the Mission Revival architectural style of other Fitzsimons Army Medical Center structures built in the early 20th century. The Guard Houses command the corner of Colfax Avenue and Peoria Street once admitting entrance to an evolving military medical institution which treated active and veteran military men and women from 1918 until its closure in 1999. The Guard Houses gained landmark status in 1999 as part of Fitzsimons’ historic past.

2. Generals Park/ Waterfowl Preserve

Alfred Henry Gutheil of Gutheil Park Investment Company constructed Gutheil Park and Gutheil Gardens in 1888. The small pond currently at Generals Park was first constructed in 1900 as part of Gutheil Park Nurseries, and by 1927 Col. Paul C. Hutton established the pond as a wildfowl preserve after he was given a few mallard ducks. The one-acre sanctuary stocks the pond with trout and the federal permit No. 29756 protects the birds.

3. Colonels Row

Built in 1921, Colonels Row housed the commanding officers at Fitzsimons until the post permanently closed in 1999. The stucco exterior and wide overhanging eaves with red clay tiles reflect the Mission Revival architectural style indicative of the original Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. In 1937, Commanding Officer Colonel Carroll D. Buck (commander 1931-1941) oversaw the completion of the permanent hospital, Building 500, as Fitzsimons entered a new era of medicine. Colonels Row's connection to military medicine continued when Anschutz Medical Campus completed the Colonels Row project in January 2020 which restored and converted one of the duplex structures as a single living space for veteran patients receiving treatment at the Marcus Institute for Brain Health.

4. Building 400s (S-400, S-401, T-402, T-406, T-407)

Five stucco two-story rectangular buildings S-400, S-401, T-402, T-406, and T-407 constitute the 400s buildings that face the open parade grounds across from Colonels Row. Throughout Fitzsimons Army Medical Center’s history, the roles of the five buildings have changed over time once housing nurses, the receiving headquarters for Tuberculosis patients, the Service Club, Scouting Activities, and currently the University Police for the Anschutz Medical Campus. The practicality and diverse purpose the buildings served contributed to the self-sufficiency of Fitzsimons. The 400s buildings have transitioned with the Anschutz Medical Campus and remain across from the parade grounds.

5. Denver Fisher House

Built in 1992, the Denver Fisher House housed veteran families suffering from illness as part of The Fisher House Foundation started by Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher. The old Denver Fisher House remains but is not functional, the new Fisher House moved to the opposite side of Anschutz Medical Campus and is managed by the Denver Veterans Administration Center. The new Denver Fisher House changed its name to Rocky Mountain Fisher House Denver and is located at 1700 N. Wheeling St. Aurora, CO 80045, but continues to support military families.

6. 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.

7. Red Cross Building and Beehive Memorial

Once located in the heart of Fitzsimons Army Medical Center, the Red Cross Building finished construction October 5, 1918, and opened as a recreational and social service center for patients able and semi-able to walk. The characteristic cross shaped Mission-Revival style building with stucco exterior walls, over-hanging eaves, and red shingled roof occupied the space behind the Beehive Memorial. The Beehive Memorial, erected July 1923, honors officers, nurses, and military personnel of the medical department lost during World War I and gained funding through one-dollar donations from enlisted medical personnel who survived WWI. Armed with Gray Ladies as Red Cross volunteers, the Red Cross building remained operational until Fitzsimons’ closure in 1996. Although the building was landmarked in 1999 it was demolished in 2015, The Beehive Memorial remains, continuing to honor those medical military personnel lost.

8. Building 500/ Fitzsimons Building

Formally dedicated December 3, 1941, Building 500 also referred to as the Main Hospital Building and the Fitzsimons Building became the catalyst for modern medicine and surgery at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. Building 500 was dedicated four days before Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, and its 608 beds in conjunction with Fitzsimons other medical services buildings gave the post a 2,252-bed capacity making the hospital the largest structure in Colorado and the largest Army general hospital in the country. The permanent hospital building expanded on Fitzsimons’ dedication to treating Tuberculosis and pioneered military medical practices through modern technology and professional education. Building 500 shifted away from the traditional Mission Revival architecture reflecting Art Deco and Art Moderne elements with the exterior built from “seven colors of brick, Colorado Yule marble, Texas sandstone, and green sand-rubbed stone panels."1

This Tour is a Virtual Museum or Site Tour.

Fitzsimons Army Medical Center

Created by Aurora History Museum & Historic Sites on October 23rd 2021, 11:54:07 pm.

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Description

Fitzsimons Army Medical Center acted as a U.S. medical post in Aurora, CO for military personnel beginning in 1918. The medical center operated as a self-sustaining institution with a permanent hospital erected in 1937, Red Cross building, and with a staff of about 5000 civilian, military, physician, and nurse personnel. While most of the Mission Revival styled buildings were torn down to make room for Anschutz Medical Campus, the army center is remembered by the Fitzsimons building hospital, the Post Chapel, guard houses, Generals Park, Colonels Row, police force in building 400s, the Fisher House, and Beehive memorial. Fitzsimons' legacy as a military teaching hospital continues with research in the Fitzsimons Hospital and the modern Anschutz Medical Campus is educating and graduating future physicians and researchers. Fitzsimons Army Medical Center officially closed in 1996 and ended as the nations' prominent military medical post during World War 1 and 2, and the Vietnam War.

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