[2] The facility was founded by the United States Army during World War I arising from the need to treat the large number of casualties from chemical weapons in Europe.

[2] Additionally, local business owners raised $150,000 to purchase the property east of Denver that previously belonged to A. H. Gutheil Nursery.

21, as it was first called, had ground breaking in April 1918, was formally dedicated and opened on October 13, 1918, in Aurora, which at the time had a population of less than 1,000.

[2][5] The Army maintained the hospital in the budget for a few years before asking for work-relief funds to rebuild and modernize the facility in 1935.

[2] In 1937, the land needed for construction of a new facility was officially turned over to the federal government, which paved the way for future development.

Property to the south was designated for medical and educational purposes, which is the current day School of Medicine and many hospitals.

The supervising architect for the Army Quartermaster Corps, L. M. Leisenring oversaw the design and construction of the building in a Modernistic Art Deco style.

[2] The grand portico above the main entrance was inscribed with three Latin phrases: Vita Brevis Ars Vero Longa, meaning "Life is short, art is enduring", Salus Virtus et Robur Artubus Scientia et Virtute et Bonis Artibus, meaning "Health, strength and vigor to the sinews (body) with the help of science, virtue and the arts", and Non Sibi Sed Proximo ,"Not for himself but for the next one to him".

[3] Four days after the dedication, Pearl Harbor was attacked and soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines who injured began arriving on December 17.

The facility was used heavily during World War II to treat returning casualties and became one of the Army's premier medical training centers.

In the early morning hours of September 24, 1955, about five weeks into a "work and play" vacation at his in-laws' house in Denver, he suffered a myocardial infarction and was placed in an oxygen tent at the facility.

The toilet seat is now in Eisenhower's family home in Gettysburg, PA. Another room on the eighth floor was designated for Secret Service use.

President Eisenhower's personal physician, Dr. Howard McCrum Snyder, also had a room on the eighth floor in order to be available at all times.

Also on the eighth floor, the Bushnell Auditorium uses converted from hosting medical conferences to a command post and office for Presidential Aide Colonel Robert Schultz, and a theater for Mamie and others to watch westerns, comedies, and other movies popular at the time.

Of the many gifts he received, he frequently used a set of maroon pajamas embroidered with "Much Better Thanks" on the left pocket given to him by the White House Press Corps.

[10] Eisenhower worn these pajamas on his first public appearance on October 25, 1955 on the hospital rooftop, an occasion documented on the cover of Life Magazine (vol.

He talked briefly to the thousands of assembled well-wishers and then proceeded to a huge tent that was set up for his visit with Fitzsimons personnel.

[6] Also viewable from the roof deck on the south side was a golden eagle on top of the flag pole, which signifies Building 500 as one of only seven locations in the United States that served as a seat of government.

Most of the 91C20s ("Ninety-one Charlies") would find themselves working with registered nurses in military hospital settings, but as the Vietnam War was at its height in the late 1960s, certain graduates would move on to Special Forces assignments and such as Medical Civic Action assistance (MEDCAPs) for those Vietnamese living in more remote regions, and so often forced to go without the benefits enjoyed by Vietnamese living near cities.

[2] In 1972, Fitzsimons became the first Army hospital to obtain an Argon Ion Laser Photocoagulator, which was used in treating some eye problems.

At the time of closure, Fitzsimons was one of Aurora's largest employers, with approximately 3,000 employees and $328 million in economic activity.

The projected $5 billion (Economic Contributions of Activities at Fitzsimons Life Science District and the UC Denver Anschutz Medical Campus - Sammons/Dutton LLC, 2008) redevelopment of the facility into civilian use currently includes the construction of the University of Colorado Hospital's $147 million Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion, and the $509-million Children's Hospital.

The garden serves to honor the whole body donors that are part of the Colorado State Anatomical Board and a popular meeting place on campus.

In the hallways of the USAMEOS training facility hung the pictures of graduating BMET classes over decades of operation.

With a small amount of additional course work, USAMEOS graduates could earn an AAS in Biomedical Equipment Maintenance from Regis University in Denver.

Didactic Modules included Anatomy and Physiology, Basic Soldering, AC/DC theory and Ohm's law, electron theory, Transistor Theory, Digital Circuits, Basic Troubleshooting, Dental and Pneumatic Devices, heating and cooling, Sterilizers and Ultrasonic Cleaners, Linear Circuits, Spectrophotometers and Solid State Relays, advanced troubleshooting, cryogenics primer, high and low capacity modules of X-ray, The school culminated in a field problem where students lived in ISOs and temper tents while filling out paperwork in the field environment to include pulling guard duty and setup of mobile sterile operating units and generators.. After graduation from the basic course, students would typically be assigned to an operational unit for practical work between the Basic and Advanced Courses.

Technical training at USAMEOS was accelerated, 8 hours per day in class, it was intensive and provided both engineering theory and hands on learning opportunities in an extensive set of labs.

Fitzsimons was a training center for phase II of the ARMY practical nurse (91C) from —- to the last class graduating 22 March 1996.