William C. Gorgas
22nd Surgeon General of the United States Army / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about William Gorgas?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
William Crawford Gorgas KCMG (October 3, 1854 – July 3, 1920) was a United States Army physician and 22nd Surgeon General of the U.S. Army (1914–1918). He is best known for his work in Florida, Havana and at the Panama Canal in abating the transmission of yellow fever and malaria by controlling the mosquitoes that carry these diseases, for which he used the discoverments made by the cuban doctor Carlos J. Finlay. At first, Finlay's strategy was greeted with considerable skepticism and opposition to such hygiene measures. However, the measures Gorgas put into practice as the head of the Panama Canal Zone Sanitation Commission saved thousands of lives and contributed to the success of the Canal's construction.
William Crawford Gorgas | |
---|---|
Born | (1854-10-03)October 3, 1854 Toulminville, Alabama, US |
Died | July 3, 1920(1920-07-03) (aged 65) London, England |
Place of burial | |
Allegiance | United States of America |
Service/ | United States Army |
Years of service | 1880–1918 |
Rank | Major General |
Commands held | Surgeon General of the US Army |
Awards | Distinguished Service Medal Public Welfare Medal (1914) |
Relations | Josiah Gorgas (father) Amelia Gayle Gorgas (mother) John Gayle (grandfather) |
He was a Georgist and argued that adopting Henry George's popular 'Single Tax' would be a way to bring about sanitary living conditions, especially for the poor.[1]