While strolling around Wilmington a few days ago, we stopped by the bustling corner of Ninth and Tatnall streets, where a Civil War Hospital opened on March 6, 1863. The Tilton Hospital was named after Surgeon General James Tilton, a Delaware physician during the Revolutionary War and War of 1812.
During the time it was open, the 380-bed facility treated thousands of injured soldiers. But once peace came, the facility discharged its last soldier. The doors closed in the late fall of 1865.
According to the Morning News, the hastily constructed wooden structures were thrown up in 30 days. It stood at the site of the Diamond State Phone Company building, and there is a wall plaque there noting the history that took place on the site.
At the time, the hospital’s establishment was attributed to Anna Semple, a leader of charity work in the City. After Dorothea Dix called for women to become nurses in military hospitals, Miss Semple was among the first to volunteer.
She was put in charge of the Camden Street Hospital in Baltimore, where she met many wounded Delaware Soldiers. As the closest military hospital for wounded Delawareans was in Chester, PA., Miss Semple appealed to Miss Dix. The successful appeal received approval, and Miss Dix appointed her supervisor of all military hospitals in Delaware.
Sources:
Morning News, Dec. 2, 1961, Anna Semple and Tilton Hospital,” in the Delaware Index at the Wilmington Public Library.
Reflections on Delmarva's Past 