World War I Physicians from Galveston

The marker names doctors; the war gave them particular jobs. Allen Heard, an adjunct professor of pediatrics, was attached to British forces, wounded twice and cited twice for conspicuous bravery. Herbert McNeil, a clinical pathologist, ran a hospital of 4,000 patients before going to the front. Estill Rice, aboard the USS Nicholson, led a rescue of sailors hurt in a German U-boat attack, and Jess Flautt joined the Navy Medical Corps the day after war was declared. In 1918 Ethel Lyon Heard took a three-year-old orphan, found in a shelled French house, to her hospital.

What the plaque says

World War I Physicians from Galveston When the United States entered World War I in 1917, people across the nation quickly signed up to serve in the military. While the Council of National Defense advised medical students and faculty to continue their education and teaching on the homefront, faculty, staff and students at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) put country before self to provide medical expertise during the war. Stationed across the U.S. and Europe, UTMB facilty, including Drs. Scott Stuart Fay (1882-1980), Jess Autry Flautt (1884-1937), Allen George Heard (1881-1926), Ethel Lyon Heard (1876-1933), Herbert Lee McNeil (1890-1950) and Estill Lee Rice (1892-1963), served in various medical capacities. The doctors treated wounded soldiers and helped care for victims of the 1918 influenza pandemic, or "Spanish Flu." Drs. Faym Flautt, Allen Heard, Reading, McNeil, Rice and Smith enlisted in the Medical Corps in 1917, many of them achieving higher ranks and receiving military honors for their service. McNeil, serving in France, died of influenza in 1918. Ethel Heard joined the Red Cross and worked at a maternity hospital in Chalons-Sur-Marne, France. At home, UTMB formed the Student Army Training Corps in 1918. Among the thousands of Americans who served in World War I, UTMB faculty, staff and students risked their lives to contribute to the war effort, illustrating their selfless dedication to their profession and country. (2018)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

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More markers nearby

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• Galveston Seawall — 0.3 mi
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