Sources:
- History of the Winthrop Community Hospital, Inc.
from the beginning of its predecessor, the Metcalf Hospital, 1904 to January 1, 1967, Sidvin F. Tucker
- The History of Winthrop, Massaschusetts Winthrop - 1630-1952, William H. Clark, 1952 (Winthrop Public Library)
- Benjamin Hicks Metcalf (1871-1935), The Ulf Family Media Archive by David Ulf (retrieved from Internet Archive)
- A Father Injured, and a Son Lost, An Inherited Purple Heart Leads to Two Stories of Courage, New York Times, November 10, 2014
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Dr. Ben Hicks Metcalf (1871-1935), born in Pennsylvania, attended and then graduated from the Harvard Medical School in 1894. While serving an internship at the Boston City Hospital, and acting as assistant port physician for Boston Harbor, Dr. Metcalf became a resident of Winthrop. The same year, 1897, he married Maud R. Fossett.
In 1906, Dr. Metcalf founded the Winthrop Hospital in one of twin Colonial Revival buildings at 170 and 174 Winthrop Street. The other serving as his residence.
The Metcalf's had two children, Richard (b. 1898) and Carolyn (b. 1900) during their marriage. When the United States entered the war in 1917, Ben Hicks Metcalf was 46 and a lieutenant in the medical reserve corps at nearby Fort Banks. He was called to active duty in January 1918, joining the war just six months after his son had left his studies at Harvard to volunteer.
Dr. Metcalf was gassed during the war, and tragically his son was killed (see memorial for Richard F. Metcalf). After the war he returned to Winthrop to continue his practice. But by 1922 complications from his injuries forced him to retire. He first moved to Colorado, then Arizona, and finally Florida. He and his wife are buried in the Winthrop Cemetery.
The Metcalf Hospital remained in operation until 1932 when the new Winthrop Community Hospital opened.
Location: 170, 174 Winthrop Street
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