Inauguration of temporary hospital 7 avril 1946 (≈ 1946)
Irish Red Cross Hospital in wood.
1947
Start of US collection
Start of US collection 1947 (≈ 1947)
Funding for the new modern hospital.
19 juillet 1948
Laying the first stone
Laying the first stone 19 juillet 1948 (≈ 1948)
Presence of the US Ambassador.
10 mai 1956
Official Inauguration
Official Inauguration 10 mai 1956 (≈ 1956)
Opening of the current building.
24 septembre 2008
Historical monument classification
Historical monument classification 24 septembre 2008 (≈ 2008)
Protection of facades and works of art.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The facades and roofs of the original hospital, excluding the posterior extensions, the entrance hall, the two traffic corridors with the interior patios, the operating room of the first floor (maternity); the mosaic of Fernand Léger; façades and roofs of the entrance pavilion (cad. CD 3): classification by decree of 24 September 2008
Key figures
Paul Nelson - Architect
Designer of the modern building.
Fernand Léger - Artist
Author of the symbolic mosaic.
Samuel Beckett - Shopkeeper and interpreter
Worked at the Irish temporary hospital.
Origin and history
The France-United States memorial hospital in Saint-Lô was built after World War II to replace the former hotel-God destroyed during the bombings. The Irish Red Cross installed a temporary hospital in 1946, consisting of 25 wooden buildings, which operated until 1956. Samuel Beckett worked there as a shopkeeper and interpreter.
The United States, responsible for the bombing, financed the construction of a new modern hospital from 1947. Designed by architect Paul Nelson, a specialist in hospitals, the building was inaugurated on 10 May 1956. It includes a mosaic by Fernand Léger, symbol of Franco-American peace and friendship, as well as a polychrome ceramic called La Fleur qui Marche.
Ranked a historic monument in 2008, the hospital is now the second largest department of the English Channel and the first employer in Saint-Lô. Its protected elements include facades, entrance hall, corridors with patios, and the historic operating room. The settlement embodies post-war reconstruction and international cooperation.
