Today in Archbold History: Col. James Lung Bevans, Archbold’s First Director, is Born

April 29, 1869

Col. James Lung Bevans, Archbold’s First Director, is Born

James Lung Bevans served as the first director of John D. Archbold Memorial Hospital. A decorated U.S. Army veteran and close advisor of Archbold’s founder, Colonel Bevans was instrumental in the early days of our hospital. Colonel Bevans was born on April 29, 1869, 156 years ago today. ​

James Bevans was born in Platteville, Wisconsin, and attended the University of Michigan. He attended medical school at Northwestern University and completed post-graduate studies at the University of Edinburgh before beginning to practice in Decatur, Illinois.

Bevans was commissioned as a captain and assistant surgeon in the Illinois National Guard from May to October 1898 during the Spanish-American War. He was appointed to the Medical Corps of the United States Army on November 26, 1901. In the years before World War I, Bevans served on tours of duty in Alaska and Cuba. He took part in the famous Pershing Expedition into Mexico in 1916.

When World War I began, Lieutenant Colonel Bevans traveled to France with the 26th Infantry Division. He was eventually promoted to colonel and assigned to the post of Surgeon of the Third Army Corps. After the Armistice, Colonel Bevans made the March to the Rhine to care for the forces occupying Germany. Back in the States, Bevans was appointed assistant commandant of the Medical Field Service School at Carlisle Barracks. ​

For his service in the war, Colonel Bevans was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal. “He showed marked administrative ability during the final phases of the Argonne-Meuse offensive, when, through his sound judgment and efficient supervision of the medical and sanitation services under his direction, many lives were saved,” read his award citation. ​

A few years after he retired from the army, Colonel Bevans accepted the role of Director of John D. Archbold Memorial Hospital. He brought his war-forged healthcare administration experience to the state-of-the-art facility opening in Thomasville. In the words of Archbold Historian Dr. Chip Bragg, “Bevans was the man who took all the moving parts and made them work together as a cohesive hospital.” Today, his position would be known as Archbold’s president & CEO.

Colonel Bevans was with the hospital from before its opening and throughout the 1920s. “He had his finger on everything from the buttons on the uniforms, to the dishes in the cafeteria, to the tables in the OR, and everything in between,” Dr. Bragg added.

The contributions of Colonel Bevans are woven throughout the foundation of our hospital and its early days. In the opinion of Dr. Bragg, “Except for Jack Archbold, who provided the funding, there is no person more important to the history of the hospital than Colonel Bevans.”

Colonel Bevans retired from Archbold in 1931 and made his home in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Dessie. For his service in defense of Freedom, the French government awarded him the Croix de Guerre with Palm. He was a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the American Medical Association, and a member of the Association of Military Surgeons.

Colonel Bevans died on February 5, 1944, at Walter Reed Hospital and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. ​

To learn more about Colonel Bevans’ career and Archbold’s history, consider purchasing A Century of Healing. This centennial history book compiled by Dr. Chip Bragg represents the most complete history of Archbold ever collected. More information on the book and centennial events is available at www.archbold.org/100.

Information Sourced from the April 1944 edition of “The Military Surgeon”