Then and Now: Baxter General Hospital

As World War II began in earnest, the wounded returning from war overwhelmed the military hospital system and new hospitals were planned. In 1942, city of Spokane donated 160 acres and and the county donated 80 more in northwest Spokane for a hospital.

Section:Gallery

Mon., Aug. 13, 2018

1943 - Baxter General Hospital, one of several regional military hospitals built quickly during the war, prepares to open its 1500 beds to wounded veterans returning from World War II. The facility was made up of dozens of frame buildings, it operated less than three years, but served 14,000 military personnel recovering from wounds ranging from minor to severe. The current VA Hospital stands there now.

Spokesman-Review Photo Archive Sr
The Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Northwest Spokane sits on some of the property that was once Baxter General Hospital, built and used during World War II, then torn down and sold off. The VA hospital was built there shortly after WWII. Baxter covered all the land that includes Albi Stadium and parking lot, Dwight Merkel Sports Complex and a small U.S. Navy facility.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review