The hotel briefly reopened for the 1942 season, but was soon commandeered by the U.S. Army for use as a hospital. The Army paid $3.3 million for the property, which had been valued at $5.4 million, and took over control of the property on September 1, 1942. They converted the resort to a 2000-bed hospital, known as Ashford General Hospital, named for Bailey Ashford, a noted Army doctor. The hospital opened on October 16, 1943. The hospital treated nearly 25,000 patients before closing on June 30, 1946. The property was sold back to the C&O railroad for just under the $3.3 million they had been paid in 1942.