William Crawford Gorgas

Biography

William Crawford Gorgas applied medical science to public health challenges, first deploying mosquito-control strategies that curbed yellow fever outbreaks in Cuba during the Spanish-American War and proved vital to the well-being of American troops. His clarity of vision linked sanitation with operational readiness, earning him wide esteem among military and civilian leaders alike.

Later tasked with overseeing the Panama Canal Zone, Gorgas implemented rigorous sanitation and mosquito eradication measures, transforming a deadly tropical environment into a stable setting in which the great engineering project could be completed, a feat remembered by his interment at Arlington.