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Hunter Holmes McGuire (October 11, 1835 – September 19, 1900) was an American soldier, physician, teacher, and orator. McGuire was a surgeon in the Confederate Army attached to Stonewall Jackson's command, and he continued serving with the Army of Northern Virginia after Jackson's death. He started several schools and hospitals which later became part of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. McGuire was later president of the American Medical Association. His statue sits prominently on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol. Nearby, the McGuire Veterans Administration Medical Center was named in his honor until 2023 when the Veterans Administration changed the name to Richmond VA Medical Center.
McGuire was captured at the Battle of Waynesboro in March 1865, but was released and rejoined the Army of Northern Virginia. He was present at the surrender at Appomattox Court House.]] In May 1862, Jackson's army captured Winchester, Virginia. Among their captured prisoners were seven U.S. army physicians (then called "surgeons"). McGuire wished to see medical personnel treated as non-combatants, so he convinced Jackson to set a precedent by releasing the captured surgeons. With Jackson's approval, McGuire drafted an agreement (known afterwards as the "Winchester Accord", which the Federal surgeons signed, saying: "We surgeons and assistant surgeons, United States Army, now prisoners of war, do give our parole of honor on being unconditionally released to report in person, singly or collectively to the Secretary of War in Washington City as such and that we will use our best efforts that the same number of medical officers of the Confederate States Army now prisoners or may hereafter be taken be released on the same terms. And furthermore we will on our honor use our best efforts to have this principle established – the unconditional release of all medical officers taken prisoners of war hereafter." The released surgeons honored their agreement to take the message to Washington and almost immediately it had the desired effect. On June 6, 1862, the United States immediately and unconditionally released all Confederate surgeons being held as prisoners of war. Thereafter, for the remainder of the war, all captured medical personnel were immediately released so as not to impede their live-saving work, saving an untold number of lives. As the National Museum of Civil War Medicine puts it on its website: "Thanks to Dr. Hunter McGuire's idea…the safety of medical personnel drastically improved. With the safety and quick release of doctors, assistants, and nurses ensured, care of the wounded progressed. It could be argued (that) Dr. McGuire revolutionized American battlefield medicine by humanizing the battlefield and giving injured men a better chance to receive the care they needed to survive."
McGuire served as president of the American Medical Association. (1988). 9780517662045, Fairfax Press. ISBN 9780517662045 McGuire married Mary Stuart of Staunton. Her father, Alexander Hugh Holmes Stuart, was a U.S. Congressman and Secretary of the Interior before the Civil War. Mary was a cousin of General Jeb Stuart. She and Hunter had nine children.He lived at 5th and Grace St. in downtown Richmond, had a summer residence in Bon Air, Virginia, and a house in Henrico County. Notable Bon Air Residents - Bon Air Historical Society Retrieved 2018-05-02. A statue of McGuire sits behind the Virginia State Capitol.
McGuire wrote the introduction of the 1901 book The Old Plantation: How We Lived in Great House and Cabin before the War, written by James Battle Avirett. He remained a pro-slavery advocate his entire life. In the introduction cited above he lamented the freeing and enfranchisement of former slaves, and lauded the supremacy of the Caucasian race. His name has been consequently slated for removal from the medical school he founded.
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Categories: 1835 Births, 1900 Deaths, Burials At Hollywood Cemetery, Deaths From Pneumonia In The United States, Confederate States Army Surgeons, People From Winchester, Virginia, People Of Virginia In The American Civil War, Virginia Commonwealth University People, Physicians From Virginia, Tulane University Faculty, People From Bon Air, Virginia, Winchester Medical College, Presidents Of The American Medical Association
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