Camp Greene Base Hospital photographs

The United States government established Camp Greene upon entering World War I in 1917. Initial construction began on July 23, with completion on August 28; expansion continued throughout the war. Located on farmland near Sloan's Ferry and Tuckaseegee roads southwest of Charlotte, the camp took its name from the Revolutionary War hero Nathanael Greene and served a primary role in mobilizing and training troops. Expansion took the site from an initial 2,340 acres to over 6,000. Almost 2,000 buildings housed between 30,000 and 60,000 soldiers during its eighteen months of operation. The base hospital was one of the largest units attached to Camp Greene, covering sixty acres with accommodations for up to 1,000 patients. Demobilization began following the declaration of peace in November, 1918, and the camp officially closed in March, 1919. [For additional information, see Miriam Grace Mitchell and Edward Spaulding Perzel, The Echo of the Bugle Call: Charlotte's Role in World War I (1979); the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission's survey and research report on the James C. Dowd House; and the file on Camp Greene in the UNC Charlotte Special Collections Vertical File.]