Pushing for Cushing in War and Peace

By: Frederic A. Wallace

During World War II, many hospitals were built for the U.S. Army throughout the United States. This book chronicles the history of one such hospital, built in the town of Framingham, Massachusetts. These hospitals were designed to receive wounded from the various theatres of war, and often specialized in one or another form of injury. This one, named Cushing General Hospital after the famed neurosurgeon and World War I medical officer, Dr. Harvey Cushing, was to specialize in neurosugery. When the war ended in 1945, it was turned over to the Veterans' Administration and continued its work in this field until 1953, when the doors closed. In 1954 it was acquired by the State of Massachusetts, and reopened in 1957, as a geriatric care center (hospital) with a full staff, including medical doctors. The heart of the story is about the people of Framingham, and surrounding towns, and how they embraced the facility, giving it their full support for almost fifty years. In the late 1980's plans were developed to build a new diversified geriatric care center and elder housing complex on the site. Why that did not come to pass is a story unto itself.