USA > Nebraska > Douglas County > Omaha > Omaha: the Gate city, and Douglas County, Nebraska, a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume I > Part 46
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in connection with the college. There were 251 students enrolled during the school year of 1914-15.
The John A. Creighton Medical College, the Medical Department of the Creighton University, was founded on May 30, 1892, and opened with the following physicians as members of the first faculty: A. W. Riley, Paul Gross- mann, W. J. Galbraith, B. F. Crummer, P. G. Keogh, H. P. Jensen, J. P. Lord, J. H. Peabody, D. C. Bryant, H. L. Burrell, S. K. Spaulding, W. R. Martin, Charles Rosewater, F. E. Coulter, W. M. Barritt, J. D. Peabody, A. Johnson and G. H. Brash. W. S. Robinson was the first lecturer on medical jurisprudence.
On September 27, 1892, the school opened in temporary quarters with a limited number of students in attendance. The intention was to erect a college building in 1893, but the financial depression of that year caused a postponement and the new college was not ready for occupancy until the fall of 1896. It is located on the northwest corner of Fourteenth and Davenport streets, within easy walking distance of the business district of the city, and is equipped with all the accessories of the modern medical college. The school opened with a three years' course, but in 1894 the course was extended to four years. This college claims to be the first school west of the Missouri River to require four years of study as a condition to a medical degree.
According to the August, 1916, Bulletin of the College, the faculty then consisted of the following: Dr. James R. Clemens, professor of pediatrics and dean of the faculty; Dr. Charles Rosewater, emeritus professor of obstetrics ; Dr. Arthur D. Dunn, vice dean and professor of medicine and clinical medicine ; Dr. James S. Foote, pathology and bacteriology ; Dr. Charles F. Crowley, chemistry and toxicology; Dr. Charles C. Allison, principles and practice of surgery and clinical surgery ; Dr. Millard Langfeld, medicine and clinical medicine ; Dr. Archi- bald Muirhead, physiology and pharmacology; Dr. Rudolph Rix, gynecology and clinical gynecology; Dr. Bryan M. Riley, medicine and clinical medicine; Dr. Alonzo E. Mack, obstetrics; Dr. George A. Young, mental and nervous diseases ; Dr. James M. Barstow, therapeutics; Dr. Henry L. Akin, gastro-enterology ; Dr. Charles McMartin, dermatology and genito-urinary diseases; Dr. Harry L. Arnold, ophthalmology and oto-laryngology; Dr. Augustus K. Detweiler, clinical therapeutics and director of tuberculosis clinic; Dr. Hugo W. Wightman, surgery; William P. Whelan, lecturer on medical ethics; Paul L. Martin, lecturer on medical law. The chair of anatomy was vacant at the time the bulletin was published. There are also thirty-three associate professors and instructors in the various subjects of the course of study. During the school year of 1915-16 there were 127 students enrolled.
HOMEOPATHY
The medical school of homeopathy was founded by Hahnemann in the latter part of the Eighteenth century. Hahnemann taught that for every disease there is, or should be, a specific remedy and that the custom of mixing several drugs together in compounding prescriptions is a mistake. He also taught that any drug which would cause certain symptoms when introduced into the human body was the proper remedy for the removal of such symptoms when produced by other causes. Hence the motto of the homeopath: "Similia Similibus Curantur," or
WISE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, TWENTY-FIFTH AND HARNEY STREETS, OMAHA
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ST. JOSEPH'S HOSPITAL, OMAHA
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"like cures like." The homcopath likewise believes in medicines of the most concentrated form, so that small doses are sufficient.
Dr. A. S. Wright was the first homeopathic physician to locate in Omaha. He was a graduate of the Pulte Medical College of Cincinnati, Ohio, and had practice for a short time in Indiana before coming to Omaha in 1862. For some six years he was the only homeopath in the State of Nebraska. During that time he built up a paying practice and bought property. Later he went to Santa Rosa, Cal., where he practiced for many years before his death.
In 1868 Dr. W. H. H. Sisson came to Omaha from New Bedford, Mass., and was the second homeopathic physician in the city. He was also a good surgeon. Doctor Sisson practiced in Omaha until his death jin 1873. In that year the Nebraska State Homeopathic Medical Society was organized, with Doctor Sisson as one of the charter members, but he did not live long after the formation of the society.
Dr. O. S. Wood, another homeopath, came to Omaha in 1868. He was born at Binghamton, N. Y., in January, 1832. After the death of his father in 1838, he went with his mother to Michigan and later to Pennsylvania. In the spring of 1857 he began the study of homeopathy with Dr. Joseph E. Jones, of West Chester, Penn., and in March, 1860, he was graduated at the Homeopathic Medical College of Philadelphia. He then practiced in Pennsylvania and New York for about six years, when he entered the Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia and received the degree of M. D. from that institution in the spring of 1868. In July of that year he located in Omaha. Doctor Wood was one of the charter members of the Nebraska State Homeopathic Medical Society in 1873, and was the last survivor of those who organized the society.
Dr. John Ahmanson, another homeopath, came to Omaha a few months after Doctor Wood. He was a member of the Legislature of 1871 and enjoyed a lucrative practice until his death in 1891.
During the ten years following the advent of Doctors Wood and Ahmanson, several homeopathic physicians came to the city. Among them were Doctors Earhart and Manden, who came from Philadelphia and practiced in partnership until Doctor Earhart removed to Fremont; Dr. F. Saxenberger, who came in 1871 and practiced for about four years, when he went west on account of his health ; Dr. E. F. Hoyt, who came from Grand Rapids, Mich., and was for a time in partnership with Doctor Wood; Dr. J. M. Borglum, who studied under Doctor Sisson and graduated at the St. Louis Homeopathic Medical College in 1874; Dr. H. C. Jesson and Dr. H. A. Worley, both of whom located in Omaha in 1875, the former coming from Chicago and the latter from Davenport, Iowa.
Dr. Charles M. Dinsmore was born in Windsor County, Vt., August 1, 1828. At an early age he took up the study of medicine; graduated at the Vermont Medical College, an allopathic institution; next received a degree from the New York Eclectic Medical College ; then entered the Hahnemann Medical College of Chicago and graduated in homeopathy. He was therefore a graduate physician in the three leading schools of medicine, but adhered closely to the homeopathic methods of treating diseases. In 1878 he located in Omaha and established a sanitarium. At one time he was president of the Nebraska Homeopathic Medical Society. His death occurred on December 8, 1800.
Two homeopathic physicians settled in Omaha in 1880, viz .: Dr. Miles B.
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Gifford and Dr. C. L. Hart. Doctor Gifford came from New York and formed a partnership with Doctor Dinsmore, but about a year later returned to New York
. Dr. C. L. Hart was born in Rochester, N. Y., August 25, 1836, but went with his parents to Milwaukee, Wis., when he was about a year old. After attending the public schools of Milwaukee, he was a student in the University of Wisconsin at Madison until he completed his junior year, when he began the study of homeopathy with Doctor Bowen, of Madison. Subsequently he attended medical college at Cleveland, Ohio, and in New York City, graduating in 1872. After coming to Nebraska he held the chair of materia medica in the medical depart- ment of the University of Nebraska for a short time, and later held the office of vice president of the Nebraska Homeopathic Medical Society.
Other homeopathic physicians who came to Omaha during the 'Sos and early 'gos were: E. L. Alexander, E. T. Allen, J. W. Barnsdall, Mary J. Breckenridge, Amelia Burroughs, C. M. Campbell, R. W. Connell, Emma J. and Mrs. H. B. Davies,'D. A. Foote, W. H. Hanchett, C. W. Hayes, H. P. Holmes, W. A. Humphrey, H. S. Knowles, Freda M. Lankton, G. H. Parsell, W. H. Parsons, B. Spencer, C. G. Sprague, E. Stillman, W. B. Willard and G. W. Williams.
Dr. E. T. Allen was appointed the homeopathic member of the state board of medical examiners under the law of 1891, and he was made physician-in-chief of the Provident Dispensary, which was established by the Omalia City Mission in 1892. Dr. C. G. Sprague was treasurer of the Douglas County Medico-Legal Association, which was organized in the summer of 1891 to see that the new law was enforced, and Dr. W. H. Hanchett was for a time on the staff of visiting physicians to the Douglas County Hospital, as well as a member of the medical staff of the Methodist and Presbyterian hospitals. There are now ( 1916) about a dozen homeopathic physicians in Douglas County.
CHAPTER XXV
BENEVOLENT INSTITUTIONS
HOW CHARITY WAS DISPENSED AMONG THE PIONEERS-THE POOR FARM-DOUGLAS COUNTY HOSPITAL-ITS UNFORTUNATE HISTORY-DEAF AND DUMB INSTITUTE- HOSPITALS AND ASYLUMS-BRIEF HISTORICAL SKETCH OF EACH-ASSOCIATED CHARITIES-CEMETERIES.
For about five years after the first actual settlements were made in Douglas County, the care of the poor was a subject of slight concern. A majority of the pioneers were people of rugged constitutions, blessed with good health and endowed with industrious habits. They came to the frontier with a full under- standing that a life of hard work and inconveniences confronted them. If a settler was unfortunate, through failure of health or crops, he was assisted by his neighbors, so that it was several years before any official action on the part of the county authorities, toward caring for the unfortunate poor, was necessary.
THE POOR FARM
Early in the year 1859 the board of county commissioners, then composed of Harrison Johnson, Sylvanus Dodge and James H. McArdle, first discussed the question of establishing a poor farm and each member of the board was instructed to examine such sites as might be available, obtain prices thereon, and report at a subsequent meeting. At a meeting of the board held on March 1, 1859, H. Z. Chapman appeared and offered to sell to Douglas County the northeast quarter of Section 29, Township 15, Range 13, for the sum of $6,000, payments to be made as follows : $1,000 in cash, $1,100 in one year, $1,200 in two years, $1,300 in three years, and $1,400 in four years. After taking the proposition under consideration for three days, the board accepted Mr. Chapman's offer, giving him $2,000 in county warrants at fifty cents on the dollar as the first payment, and their personal notes for $4,000, due in one, two, three and four years, drawing interest at the rate of 10 per cent per annum. To secure the payment of these notes they executed a mortgage upon the land, thus giving Mr. Chapman the first lien.
The subsequent history of this transaction is not a pleasing one, nor does it reflect any great degree of credit upon the commissioners of Douglas County. When the first note fell due and Mr. Chapman presented it for redemption, the commissioners reminded him that the note was not worth the revenue stamps upon the mortgage, owing to a law of Nebraska Territory that forbade county commissioners from mortgaging the property of the county. After vain attempts to persuade the board of commissioners to reconsider the matter, Mr. Chapman
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appealed to the courts, where he was defeated in his efforts to collect the note, the judge deciding that the commissioners had exceeded their authority in execut- ing, and that the county was in no way liable for the payment of, the notes. In this case Experience Estabrook represented the county and won his suit. Chap- man took an appeal to the Supreme Court, which sustained the decision of the lower court. Mr. Chapman then gave up the contest and soon afterward left the territory.
Thus matters stood until about 1878, when an attorney named Bonney, of Chicago, representing the Chapman heirs, presented a claim for the payment of the notes, with accrued interest, amounting to more than twelve thousand dollars. Feeling secure in the court decisions rendered nearly twenty years before, the commissioners suggested to Mr. Bonney that, if he thought he could collect, he try a suit in the courts. Suit was accordingly filed in the United States Circuit Court, in which the county was again the victor. But Mr. Bonney was not inclined to accept that decision as final and appealed to the United States Supreme Court. J. C. Cowin, then county attorney, was assisted in the case by James M. Wool- worth, but Bonney won his suit and in November, 1885, the highest tribunal in the land held that the County of Douglas was liable for the principal and interest, amounting to $14.732.07. The final payment was made in July, 1886. It would have been both more economical and more honorable had the county paid the notes when they fell duc.
DOUGLAS COUNTY HOSPITAL
A little while before the above suit was finally decided, the county commis- sioners-George W. Timme, Richard O'Keefe and F. W. Corliss-reached the conclusion that the old Hascall House, which had been occupied as the poor house, was entirely too small to meet the demands of the county, and took the preliminary steps for the erection of a county hospital. The county treasury was by no means plethoric, and the payment of the judgment obtained by the Chapman heirs left the amount of money for such a purpose distressingly small. But the establishment of the Union Stock Yards and the platting of South Omaha, only a short time before, had started a boom in real estate in the vicinity of the poor farm and the commissioners conceived the idea of platting fifty acres of the poor farm and selling the lots to raise the necessary funds. The resolution to this effect was offered by Commissioner Corliss and was adopted by the board.
The county surveyor, George Smith, was employed to plat the "east fifty acres of the poor farm," and at the election held on November 3, 1886, the proposition to sell the lots was submitted to the voters of the county. On February 26, 1887, County Judge J. H. McCulloch appointed John L. McCague, John Rush and Chris Hartman to appraise the lots. M. McCague was absent and William Gibson was appointed in his place. The appraisers made a report on April 13, 1887, that the lots were worth an average price of $878.51, or a total of $206.450. Upon the acceptance of this report the board of commissioners adopted a resolution "that the proceeds arising from the sale of said lots shall be appro- priated to the erection of a suitable building for the care and protection of the county poor and insane."
From this time on the history of the Douglas County Hospital is a record of
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unfortunate events. Immediately after the report of the appraisers was filed with the board, a sale of lots was advertised. On the appointed day, in the latter part of April, 1887, a large crowd of people, led by a brass band, moved out to the poor farm. Thomas Riley, the auctioneer, mounted a stand and offered for sale the first lot, which was purchased by W. I. Kierstead for $2,650, after some spirited bidding. Altogether, 235 lots were sold and the commissioners reported a hospital fund of $330,480, of which $191,035 was in cash and the balance in notes secured by mortgages on the lots sold. E. E. Myers, an architect of Detroit, Mich., was employed to prepare plans and specifications for a hospital. When these plans and specifications were completed bids were advertised for and the general contract was awarded to Ryan & Walsh for $106,937.34, and the steam heating contract to J. S. Pope & Company for $25,519, making a total of $132,456.34 as the cost of the hospital building complete.
Work on the building was commenced under the superintendency of D. L. Shane, who had been employed by the commissioners to oversee the construction. About the time the walls were up to the water tables, Mr. Shane ordered the work stopped because the contractors were using materials that would not pass inspec- tion. A little later Mr. Shane was removed and a man named Ross was appointed in his place. The work was resumed, but it soon became apparent that Mr. Shane's charges were not without foundation. During the construction of the building the newspapers frequently called attention to the character of the material and the poor workmanship that was being done. Subsequent develop- ments showed that the criticism was justifiable. Soon after the roof was raised the corridor arches of the north wing fell, causing considerable damage to that part of the structure. A section of the south wing also fell, owing to the inferior material and workmanship.
Early on the morning of May 12, 1892, after the building was completed and occupied, J. J. Mahoney, superintendent of the poor, came to the courthouse and reported that the building was settling to such an extent as to cause alarm. The greatest trouble was in the north wing, which was 160 feet long and three stories high. Mr. Mahoney stated that about midnight a loud noise was heard, which he compared to the report of a cannon. He arose, dressed himself, and went on a tour of inspection, but could not discover the cause of the noise. A more thorough examination the next morning brought to light the fact that the north wing, which had not yet been brought into use, had settled during the night and that the walls were cracked from foundation to roof. James F. Tilly, building inspector for the City of Omaha, went out and made a hurried inspection and ordered that all the inmates be kept out of that part of the building. He estimated that it would cost $25,000 to place that wing in a safe condition. Later in the day Mr. Tilly, accompanied by Richard Smith, a contractor employed by the com- missioners, returned to the hospital for a more thorough investigation. What followed was thus told in the Omaha Bee of May 13, 1892:
"The commissioners instructed Inspector Tilly to employ an expert to ascertain what was needed to save the building. Acting under these instructions, Con- tractor Dick Smith's services were secured and together the two men journeyed to the hospital. They had inspected the exterior walls and gone through the basement, first and second story corridors. They were about to go into the garret, under the roof, along the center to the north end, but, on account of the lack
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of- light, an attendant was sent after a lantern, when, a moment later, and without any warning, the corridors fell with a loud crash, filling the place they occupied with dust and debris. A second later there was another crash, as the floor below was too weak to stand the strain. The whole mass fell to the main floor and for a moment it sustained its load, but finally broke and the whole mass of brick, mortar, wood and iron went into the basement. The corridor walls swayed back and forth, but at last they straightened up and are now standing, although bulged and twisted out of shape.
"Inspector Tilly states that the entire wing will have to be torn down. To do this, it will be necessary to prop all of the partition walls to hold them from falling. Then the outer walls will have to be braced, in order to prevent the roof from dropping in. After this is done, the roof will have to be taken apart and the entire wall pulled down, brick by brick.
"This is not the worst thing that is liable to happen. The walls of the south wing have commenced to crack, a crack extending from the main building to the south end. An attempt will be made to save the south wing. Contractor Smith has been instructed to employ a force of men and work night and day until this portion of the building is in a safe condition. He stated that he would put iron rods through the building at intervals of ten feet, and if this could be accomplished before an accident occurred the structure could be saved. If the south wing should fall without a moment's warning, as did the corridors of the north wing, the loss of life would be great, as the administration rooms, the insane and sick wards are all in that portion of the building.
"The falling walls this morning nearly resulted in a panic among the inmates, but by the coolness and presence of mind of Mrs. Mahoney several serious acci- (lents were prevented. When the arches went down, all the steam pipes in that portion of the building were broken and great clouds of steam hissed through the south corridor, where the insane congregated. As this steam enveloped them, they made a wild dash for the south windows, preparatory to jumping to the ground, twenty feet below. Mrs. Mahoney, although frightened nearly to death, rushed down the corridor and was the first person to reach the windows. There she held them back, and, by her nerve and coolness, held them at bay until the steam was shut off and assistance arrived."
The repairs on the south wing were hurried forward by Contractor Smith and the north wing was practically rebuilt. Such is the county hospital of the present day. About the time Mr. Smith finished his work, the original con- tractors, Ryan & Walsh, presented a bill of $50,612.49 for extra work, over and above the price at which they agreed to erect the building. The superintendents, J. F. Coots and D. L. Shane, after a careful examination, rejected all except $7,852.82. The commissioners also refused payment of the rejected claims and the contractors brought suit in the District Court to collect the amount. A verdict was rendered in favor of the county, whereupon the contractors took an appeal to the Supreme Court, where the decision of the lower court was set aside. The Douglas County commissioners were ordered by the Supreme Court to pay to Ryan & Walsh the sum of $37,000. In the meantime the commissioners had brought suit against Ryan & Walsh and their bondsmen to recover damages caused by the use of inferior material and doing poor work in the construction of the hospital. On July 23, 1892, a warrant was drawn upon the county treasury for
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$32,818.33 in favor of Ryan & Walsh, in settlement of their claim as allowed by the Supreme Court, some deductions having been agreed upon by the parties interested in the transaction. The warrant was paid on August 3, 1893, at which time the accumulated interest amounted to $3,341.94, so that the total amount received by the contractors in settlement of their claim was $35,160.27. The suit brought by the county against the contractors and their bondsmen was "dismissed at plaintiff's cost" on February 26, 1894.
In the sale of lots in the "Douglas Addition," in April, 1887, each purchaser made a cash payment and gave notes, secured by mortgage upon the lots, for the remainder. Before the last of the notes fell due the boom in real estate in that section collapsed, some of the purchasers grew dissatisfied, and the question was raised that the sale of the lots was illegal, for the reason that the proposition to sell did not receive a majority of all the votes cast at the clection in November, 1886. The total number of votes cast at that election was 9,304, of which 2,930 were in favor of the sale of part of the poor farm and 761 were opposed. To correct this condition of affairs the commissioners ordered a special election for June 16, 1892, at which the proposition was again submitted to the voters and was carried by an overwhelming majority.
About that time Charles B. Keller and others presented a claim to the com- missioners for the money they had paid for lots in the addition, claiming that the sale had not been in accordance with the law. The commissioners refused to refund the money and Keller and his associates then appealed to the District Court, where Judge Herbert J. Davis rendered judgment in their favor. The commissioners then carried the question to the Supreme Court. When the case came up for hearing in that court, the attorneys for the purchasers set up the claim that the special election was not authorized by law. The Supreme Court sttstained that view, holding that "The law makes no provision for submitting to the electors of the county the question of ratifying the unauthorized acts of its officers." The judgment of the lower court was affirmed.
Subsequently the commissioners obtained a rehearing in the Supreme Court, but the result was the same. The aftermath of this whole unpleasant business was that the commissioners authorized a bond issue of $180,000, "to be used exclusively in payment of judgments against said county, accruing from the county's failing to give a clear title to lots sold in Douglas Addition, being the east fifty acres of the poor farm." The bonds were dated January 1, 1898, and fall due on January 1, 1918.
DEAF AND DUMB INSTITUTE
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