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EMS History
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    Era 1: Municipal & Hospital-Based Ambulance Foundations 1861–1928 Era 2: Fragmentation and the Dark Age of EMS 1929–1965 Era 3: Federal Reform & the Birth of Modern Paramedicine 1966–1980 Era 4: State Regulation & National Standardization 1981–1999 Era 5: Clinical Maturation & System Integration 2000–2019 Era 6: Interstate Regulation & Workforce Mobility 2020–2026
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Visual Archive

EMS Through
the Lens

Nearly 100 historic photographs spanning 160 years of emergency medical services — from Civil War ambulance wagons to autonomous medical transport. Every image links to its full story on the timeline.

98 Photographs
6 Eras
160+ Years
EMS History

The definitive resource for the history and future of Emergency Medical Services in the United States.

By Donnie Woodyard, Jr., MAML, NRP

Naval Postgraduate School
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The Future
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