The story of the Fishersville medical, educational, vocational complex

During World War II, a sprawling military hospital was built near Fishersville, a complex that later spawned a world-famous rehabilitation facility, a major Augusta County high school, a vocational school – and a remarkable supportive community.  The story of that complex and those who lived in or remember it is told in a remarkable new book and video called “Hope Reborn Of War.”  The story and video will be presented 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 13, by the Augusta County Historical Society in the Francis Auditorium at Mary Baldwin College.  The event is free and open to the public.

The book and video, written and produced by local historian Nancy Sorrels and producer Connie Doebele was initially presented to hundreds of students, staff and others at the Wilson Workforce and Rehabilitation Center last month. The December 13th event is to bring this remarkable story to a wider Augusta County audience.

The program will present the story of the construction of the Woodrow Wilson General Hospital at Fishersville, and its 70-year evolution into the Wilson Workforce & Rehabilitation Center, the Woodrow Wilson Memorial High School, Wilson Middle School, Wilson Elementary School and the Valley Career & Technical Center.  The story includes dramatic tales of the wartime hospital, and the close community that developed there when the sprawling facility was converted into a major rehabilitation facility and an Augusta County educational complex.

The story is told in interviews with those who shared their lives with the complex, and those who passed through it, all amply illustrated with pictures and memories.  The book was written by Nancy Sorrells, local historian, author and ACHS Board member.  The video was produced by Connie Doebele, a former C-Span Executive Producer who now lives in Staunton.  The book and video were supported by a grant from the Carroll and Grace “Patsy” Guynn Memorial Fund of the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge.

The book and video will be available for purchase at the event.

The ACHS was founded in 1964 to study, collect, preserve, publish, educate about, and promote the history of Augusta County and its communities. More information is available online at www.augustacountyhs.org.