Brooke Army Medical Center has its roots in a tiny 12-bed hospital constructed, from board and batten in 1879, barely larger than a school classroom. It wasn't until 1886 that a permanent 12-bed brick hospital was built, and not until 1908 when the hospital could house 72 more beds.


In the general preparation for an expected world war, a new 418-bed hospital was built in 1938, under the direction Brig. Gen. Roger Brooke. The new hospital was finished just in time to take care of the WWII war casualties. It was renamed Brooke General Hospital, to honor the General, who died in 1940.


In 1946 Fort Sam Houston was picked as the new site of the Army Medical Field Service School, which prompted the hospital to be renamed to Brooke Army Medical Center. In 1996, a new hospital was finally completed and opened, replacing the vintage building. The medical facilities in BAMC are the Center for the Intrepid, Fort Sam Houston Clinic, McWethy Troop Medical Center, Taylor Burk Clinic at Camp Bullis, and the Schertz Medical Home. These facilities were consolidated in Joint Base San Antonio in 2011 as part of the 2005 BRAC, and the installation renamed the San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), but is still generally called Brooke.