An inside look at the renovation of the Presidio's Civil War-era hospital

""So this is one of the only porches on building two that has remained open air for its entire history. And as a result, it needed a lot of work," Thompson said. "In particular, these spindles, which we had hand turned, by a local craftsman. And we actually found some of the original spindles elsewhere in the building. So we had those restored and then the columns themselves.""

"Watching crews put the finishing touches on a Presidio building renovation, you might not realize the bulldozers are working directly beneath one of the oldest operating rooms in the Bay Area. An octagon-shaped tower, attached to an early military hospital, is still standing in San Francisco's Presidio. To help us find our way to the O.R., archaeologist and Presidio preservation officer Rob Thomson first agreed to walk us through more than 150 years of history."

An octagon-shaped operating-room tower attached to the Civil War–era Wright General Hospital (Building-2, Old Post Hospital) still stands in the Presidio. Construction contract was signed November 20, 1863, one day after the Gettysburg Address. Renovation work is preparing the site for lease to a private elementary school while preserving historic features such as coal-burning fireplaces and raised exterior facades. Craftsmen have restored original porch spindles and columns. Engineers are reinforcing concrete, masonry, original wood framing, and windows to meet modern safety standards. Approximately 40% of the above-ground wood framing has been replaced or substantially added with new timber.

Read at ABC7 San Francisco