A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 91

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188

USA > New York > A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time > Part 91

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the State required all practising physicians and Surgeons to connect themselves with the society in the county in which they resided. Thus, the statute of the State in 1827 required the President of the County Medical Society to serve personally a written notice on every physician and surgeon residing in the county, not a member of the Society, directing him to apply for and receive a certificate of member- ship within sixty days after the service of such notice.

The history of old Brooklyn records many physicians whose standing was open to ques- tion. As it was necessary for the protection of the public at large, as well as that of the reputation of the medical profession, it may be readily understood that the officers and mem- bers of the Society had sufficient work in en- forcing the law of the State during the first thirty odd years of its existence. The first historian of the Society was Theodore L. Ma- son, M. D., who recorded the above facts in a short sketch of the Society published in 1858, at which times the meetings were held at the Brooklyn Lyceum, better known as the Brook- · lyn Institute, on Washington street, near Con- cord, 1837-1866.

Although so occupied by the business of enforcing the law, the Society found time as a society to aid the poor as early as 1835, when Isaac J. Rapelye, M. D., President of the So- ciety, recommended that a committee be ap-

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THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF COUNTY OF KINGS.

pointed to prepare a memorial to the Common Council proposing the establishment of a City Hospital for the care of the sick poor. It would be well to notice here that a dispensary had been organized by individuals in 1833 at the corner of Jay and Sands streets. This was the first Brooklyn Dispensary. The at- tending physicians were Doctors J. Sullivan Thorne and W. A. Clark. The consulting phy- sician was Matthew Wendell.

To return to the hospital project, the Com- mittee named below were appointed, and their efforts resulted in the organization of the City Hospital in 1839, then located in Adams street, near Jolinson. Committee: Theodore L. Ma- son, M. D., Isaac J. Rapelye, M. D., John C. Fanning, M. D., Matthew Wendell, M. D., George Marvin, M. D., Samuel Boyd, M. D. The staff at this time included: Theodore F. King. M. D., President from 1840 to 1842; John Sullivan Thorne, .M. D., Secretary ; and the attending physicians were Purcell Cooke, M. D., George Marvin, M. D., and Samuel Boyd, M. D.

The Brooklyn City Hospital may, there- fore, be considered the nucleus of the great hospital system which is one of the crowning glories of our city. Our hospitals are estab- lished for the relief of suffering, rich and poor are alike benefited, and it is a question which derives the greater good from these institu- tions. The Long Island College Hospital, as well as the Brooklyn City Hospital, owes its inception to members of the Society, Drs. Dan- iel Ayres, Louis Bauer, and John Byrne, to- gether with the first council, and all but three of the first faculty were members of the Soci- ety. Owing to the fact that during the first thirty years of its organization the Society was obliged to expend its efforts in the en- forcement of the law, there was little or no time left for scientific work. As a result, the Brooklyn Medico-Chirurgical Society was formed on November 10, 1856, with Andrew Otterson as President. The members of the society were, with few exceptions, members

of the County Society. During the ten years of its existence the society was a most active body. Here for the first time in the medical history of the city of Brooklyn was the op- portunity offered to present papers on the ad- vancement made in medicine and surgery, the discussion of which tended not alone to benefit the members, but the community at large.

In 1858, by a revision of the State statutes, the County Medical Society was relieved from its work of regulating the practice of medicine and began the publication of its transactions. This was simply the beginning of the great work accomplished here on behalf of the peo- ple of this city. At this time the society was made up of men who were ready to give not only their services but their lives when the opportunity came. For example, during the yellow fever epidemic in 1856 at New Utrecht Doctors John L. Crane and James E. Du Bois gave their lives in their endeavor to save those who were stricken with the disease. A few years before, in 1854, Joseph C. Hutchison, M. D., took charge of the Brooklyn Cholera Hospital, retaining its management for some years. Later, during the epidemic of 1866, William Henry Thayer, M. D., also a mem- ber of the society, devoted his energies to the Hamilton Avenue Cholera Hospital. William J. Swalm took charge of the Cholera Hospital in the City Park, called the City Park Hos- pital, near the Navy Yard. Besides this, var- ious members of the society gave what leisure time they had to the improvement of the Brooklyn public schools. Doctor J. Sullivan Thorne was president of the Brooklyn Board of Education from 1868 to 1871. From the beginning of the school system in the town of Brooklyn to the present day there have been physicians connected with the Board, ever ready to give their advice on matters pertain- ing to the public health and to better the con- dition of the children.

The first Health Officer of Brooklyn was Dr. J. G. T. Hunt, who went into office in 1825. He was one of the organizers and sec-

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

ond President of the Society, and from his time until the present, with three exceptions, every Health Officer or Commissioner has been connected with the County Society. No one can estimate what a vast amount of work these men, whose lives are devoted to the heal- ing art, have accomplished for the people in the city of Brooklyn. The monumental work performed in this direction by Dr. A. N. Bell is sufficient of itself to test the sincerity of the Society's members in behalf of the public good. It has been said that the physicians have not received the recognition which is their due. As a matter of fact, however, the records show that many of our physicians liave been called upon to fill places of honor, both in the State and National Societies. These positions liave been such as to com- mand the highest integrity and intellectual development. Dr. Joseph C. Hutchison, as well as three members of the Society who are still living, have held the presidency of the New York State Medical Society. Two of its specialists have been President of the New York Obstetrical Society, one of whom has also been President of the American Gynecological Society. Dr. Joseph C. Hutch- ison held the office of President of the New York Pathological Society. Another of the members has been President of the New York Neurological Society. Still another of the American Dermatological Society, and two more have been Presidents of the American Association for the. Cure of Inebriates. These few examples show that the ability of Brook- lyn men has not been entirely disregarded, and proves conclusively that the members of the County Society have been active in both State and National Societies, while eight of the members have received the degree of LL. D.

The first offspring of the Society was the above-mentioned Medico-Chirurgical So- ciety. The second was the Brooklyn Patho- logical Society, organized as a section of the County Medical Society in 1870, under the

direction of Richard Cresson Styles, Presi- dent of the Society at that time. To-day it is an active body, independent of membership in the County Society, though, with a few ex- ceptions, its members are also members of the old County Society. In 1866 the Society changed from quarterly to monthly meetings, securing rooms in the Hamilton Building, at 44 Court street, where it continued to meet until 1875. Then removing to Everett Hall, 398 Fulton street, where they met until 1887, when they purchased the Bridge street build- ing, 365 Bridge street, and remained until Au- gust, 1898. At present the meetings are held at Apollo Hall, 102 Court street. During the past few years the Society has been making efforts to commemorate events connected with its members, and with medical history. The first of these was a dinner to the late Dr. An- drew Otterson, on April 25, 1895, in honor of his completing fifty years of active practice in our city. Next, the Jenner Centennial, commemorating the inauguration of vaccina- tion, May 14, 1896, all the guests receiving bronze medals in commemoration of the occa- sion. Then the 75th Anniversary of the Kings County Medical Society, April 11, 1897. Fi- nally, the laying of the corner-stone of the new building of the Kings County Medical Society, November 10, 1898.

The early history of the Society is so closely identified with the lives of its mem- bers that it is well to give a brief sketch of the biographies of the founders.

Cornelius Low, M. D., the first President of the Society, was born in Albany, New York, about 1750. He was licensed to practice medi- cine in 1782. Served the Society in the ca- pacity of President for three terms, beginning 1822. Little is known of his personal history. He died in Bushwick, Long Island, in 1830.

Dr. Matthew Wendell, M. D., the first Vice- President and sixth President of the Society, was born at Albany, N. Y., July 9, 1777. He came to Brooklyn from his birthplace, Albany, having studied under Dr. Hyde, of that city.

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THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF COUNTY OF KINGS.

He became a licentiate in 1804, and entering into partnership with Dr. Charles Ball in 1805 he opened an office at the corner of Sands and Fulton streets. In 1812 he became sur- geon in the United States Army. From 1815

Dr. John Carpenter, first Treasurer of the Society, was the son of Anthony Carpenter; . his mother was a daughter of the late Rev. John Moffat, a Presbyterian preacher ; also the early tutor of Governor DeWitt Clinton. Dr.

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THE LIBRARY OF THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF THE COUNTY OF KINGS.

to 1816 he was free vaccinator. In 1815 he was President of the Society for the Preven- tion of Vice in the Town of Brooklyn. He was Health Officer of this city during the years 1831 to 1838, and 1851 to 1857, and in hours of pestilence, as well as quiet, showed great executive ability. He died in July. 1865.

Carpenter was born at Goshen, New York, on April 17, 1791. His education was conducted by the Rev. John Moffat; he came, however, to New York about 1807. On his arrival in the city he made his home with Rev. James B. Romeyn, D. D., and found employment in the Governor's office. A few years later he

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

began to study medicine under Dr. Douglas, of New York, as preceptor. He attended the course of lectures at the old College of Physi- cians and Surgeons, and in 1812 was licensed to practice by the New York State Medical Society. It is believed that he obtained the first license granted by the Kings County So- ciety, which was given him in 1822. At the beginning of the war of 1812 he was connected with the United States Army, and continued with the army until 1822, when he commenced private practice in Fort Hamilton and New Utrecht. In the same year he was one of the organizers of the Medical Society. He also organized the first Sunday-school in Fort Hamilton, of which he was Superintendent for thirty-eight years. In fact he might be termed the father of the Brooklyn Sunday-school sys- tem. He died on September 13, 1864.

Dr. Adrian Vandeveer was born in Flat- bush December 21, 1796. He was prepared for Columbia College at Erasmus Hall Acad- emy, and after graduating from there studied medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York. In 1819 he entered upon a practice which finally extended over the whole of Kings county. At the organiza- tion of the Society he was elected First Sec- retary, and became its seventh President, dur- ing the years 1837 to 1838. He and Dr. T. W. Henry were the only members of the So- ciety at its organization who were graduates of medical colleges, all others being licentiates. In the epidemic of Asiatic cholera in 1832 Dr. Vandeveer was appointed Health Officer of Flatbush. He was one of the first physicians to abandon general practice and confine him- self to a special branch of the profession. This aroused opposition from his medical brethren, but he persevered, and eventually accomplished much. He died July 5, 1827, in his sixty-fifth year. Like many of the early physicians, he was closely identified with church work, hav- ing organized the Reformed Church Sabbatlı School of Flatbush in 1825, of which he was Superintendent from 1825 to 1857.

The duties of the Censors were far more onerous, than the general public can realize. It was their duty to examine candidates and license them to practice medicine. The first three men who formed the Board of Censors were Drs. Joseph G. T. Hunt, Thomas W. Henry and Charles Ball.

Dr. Hunt was born in 1783. He studied medicine with Drs. Whitehead, Hicks and Bard, was licensed in 1804 and appointed As- sistant Surgeon in the Navy. After having been promoted to full surgeon, 1806, he served in the Algerian war under Decatur, and was on board the "Chesapeake" when she was cap- tured by the "Leopard." Later on he was sta- tioned at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and in ad- dition to his official duty acquired considerable private practice. In 1820 he resigned from the service. In 1825 he was appointed First Health Officer of Brooklyn, with a salary of $200 a year, and served until 1830. He was also President of the Medical Society from 1825 to 1830. He died in August, 1830, hav- ing held the office of President longer than any other member up to the present time.

Thomas W. Henry was born in the city of New York June 17, 1796. His education was obtained in the private boarding schools of New York. In 1818 he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, receiv- ing the degree of M. D. in 1820. Dr. Henry began the practice of his profession in the vil- lage of Brooklyn, as Brooklyn at that time did not extend much further than the present City Hall, the population being about 5,000. His first office was at Sands and Jay streets, then he removed near the further corner of Henry and Orange streets, and the old direct- ories give his addr. ss as 65 Henry street. The name of this street was chosen by the Trus- tees of the village of Brooklyn, April 8, 1819 According to the custom then in vogue, Dr. Henry conducted for a number of years a drug store at the corner of Sands and Jay streets. In addition to holding the office of Censor in the Society, Dr. Henry was elected to the Vice-

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Presidency in 1827, and to the Presidency in 1831. In 1832 he was elected an honorary member of the Medical Society of the State of New York. The records show that he was preceptor for the late George Gilfillan and Ripley E. W. Adams. It is said of Dr. Henry that he was a man of marked education, stern and conscious in his manner, ever ready to as- sist the sick and needy by his advice and treat- ment.

In comparison with the other two Censors little is known of Dr. Charles C. Ball. He was licensed July 4, 1806, and entered into private practice. In 1824 he and Dr. Wendell had joint offices at Columbia and Cranberry streets. They then moved to 112 Fulton street, corner of Main. He erected the first three-story brick house in Brooklyn, where he lived at the time of his death. This house was surrounded by beautiful grounds, and is pictured in Guy's snow scene of 1820. Besides holding the posi- tion of Censor he was President from 1833 to 1834. He was also a member of the Society for the Prevention of Vice. It is interesting to note that he was the richest physician of his time, owning all of what is now known as Brooklyn Heights ; he was the first to give up horseback for the more luxurious carriage.

Of Dr. Francis Du Bois, like Dr. Ball, little is known. He was the son of John E. Du Bois, of the town of New Utrecht. Was born May 21, 1873. He married Sarah Bergen, and died January 22, 1827.

With Dr. Creed, however, we are more for- tunate. He was born in 1787, in the town of Jamaica. His early education was obtained at Friars' Hall Academy, with the addition of a few years at Columbia College. He began the study of medicine in 1805, under the preceptor- ship of Dr. Comaine, in New York. He also attended medical lectures at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, and was licensed to practice medicine in 1809. He ac- cepted the position of interne in Bellevue Hos- pital during the year 1810, being the second interne in that institution.

In 1811 he began the practice of medicine in the village of Brooklyn. The same year he was Sheriff of Kings, county, and was the only medical man in Kings county to hold that office. In 1812 he was appointed surgeon in Jeremiah Johnson's brigade, stationed at Fort Greene. He resumed the practice of his pro- fession after the close of the war, and in 1822 became one of the organizers of the Medical Society of the County of Kings. When the first board of health was organized in Flat- bush, in 1832, by John B. Zabriskie, M. D., with Dr. Adrian Vandeveer as Health Officer, lis associates were Drs. William D. Creed and Robert Edmond, all members of the Society. Soon after Dr. Creed removed to Jamaica, and connected himself with the Queens County Medical Society, of which he was President during the years 1856 and 1857. He was also a member of the Suffolk County Medical So- ciety. Dr. Creed, like many of the old physi- cians, was interested in the temperance cause, and for a number of years was President of the Queens County Temperance Society. He also organized the First Reformed Church at Queens, Long Island, laying the corner- stone in September, 1858. Dr. Creed died in 1870, aged eighty-three years.

In addition to the biographies of the foun- ders it will be interesting to touch briefly upon the lives of the deceased presidents.

Dr. Isaac J. Rapelye become the fifth Presi- dent of the Society in 1835. He came of a very interesting family, for tradition has it that the first white child born on Long Island was a Rapelye. The date of the Doctor's birth has never been ascertained. In fact, little is known of him up to the date of his gradua- tion from the College of Physicians and Sur- geons in 1820. He practiced in Newtown from 1820 to 1830, and in Brooklyn from 1830 to 1847. He held the position of Health Of- ficer from 1839 to 1840 ; was Censor of the So- ciety during the years 1831, 1832 and 1833. In 1847 he met with a tragic death. While going upstairs a favorite dog jumped upon

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him with such force that he was thrown the full length of the stairs. It was found, upon examination, that his neck was dislocated, thits producing instant death.

Dr. John Barrea Zabriskie was President of the Medical Society of the County of Kings in 1839, being the eighth in line of succession of the preceding officers. He was prepared for college at Millstone, New Jersey. He entered Union, Schenectady, leaving that college in 1823. The following year he began the study of medicine in the office of Mr. William Mc- Keesick, of Millstone, and became a student in the College of Physicians in New York, 1825. In 1826 he was licensed to practice medicine by the Medical Society of the State of New Jersey. Not being satisfied with this legal qualification, he entered the University of Pennsylvania, and received the degree of M. D. in 1827. In 1830, after having practiced for a time in New York, he removed to New Lots, and thence to Flatbush, where he spent the remaining eighteen years of his life in the active practice of medicine. He joined the Medical Society of the County of Kings in 1829. He was Censor and Secretary in 1831-2 and Vice-President in 1833-4-5, and was Presi- dent in 1839. He also represented the county organization in the State Medical Society in 1829-31, where he presented a paper on the medical topography of Kings county, which was published in the transactions of 1832. During that same year he was a member of the Flatbush Board of Health and in 1847 superintendent of the Flatbush School Dis- trict, which included New Lots. Besides these positions he was at one time physi- cian in charge of the Kings County Alms- house, and at another surgeon to the Two Hundred and Forty-first Regiment, New York State Militia. He was also trustee of the Erasmus Hall Academy, and was an elder in the Dutch Reformed Church. In 1848 he died of a contagious disease contracted in his professional career. His son, John L. Zal)- riskie, deceased, was a member, and his two

grandsons are now active members of the So- ciety. .

The date of the birth of Dr. Purcell Cook is not known. He was licensed by the County Medical Society in 1824, and in 1851 received the honorary degree of M. D. from the Regents of the University of the City of New York. He practiced all his life in Brooklyn, and held the following positions in the Society, of which he was a member during the years 1835 to 1860: was Censor in 1835, Vice-President in 1839, President in 1840, 1841 and 1845. He died a bachelor December 24, 1860.

The next in line is Dr. Theodore Lewis Mason. He was born in Cooperstown, New York, September 30, 1803. He was the son of the Rev. David Mason, of Norwich, Connecti- cut, and a direct descendant of the John Mason who came to Boston from England in 1632. The early education of Dr. Mason was re- ceived under the preceptorship of Rev. Isaac Lewis. He began the study of medicine in 1822 at Greenwich, Connecticut, under Darius Meade, M. D. A few years later, after matric- ulating at the College of Physicians and Sur- geons, New York, with David Hosback as his preceptor, he graduated in 1825. In that same year he began the practice of his profession at Milton, Connecticut, where he remained un- til 1832, when he removed to New York city. In 1834 he came to Brooklyn, remaining here until his death, February 12, 1882.

Bradley Parker graduated from the Medi- cal Department of Dartmouth College in 1824. In 1836 he joined the Medical Society of which he remained a member until his death in 1874. He was Censor of the Society during the years 1838, 1840, 1841, 1846 and 1847. Secretary in 1842 and 1843, and President in 1844.

John Sullivan Thorne was born in the city of New York, April 19, 1807. Entered Union College and received the degree of A. M. in 1826, and immediately began the study of med- icine in the offices of Drs. Matthew Wendell and Charles Ball, two of the organizers and ex-Presidents of the Medical Society. Re-

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THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF COUNTY OF KINGS.

ceived the degree of M. D. from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, in the class of 1829, and immediately began the practice of medicine in Brooklyn, at 51 Sands street. In 1830 he assisted in organizing the first dispensary in Brooklyn; when the dis- pensary was discontinued in 1839 he assisted in the organization of the City Hospital, and was one of the attending physicians until 1855. During the years 1844 and 1845 he was Presi- dent of the Hospital. In 1832 he was physi- cian to the Cholera Hospital, and from 1840 to 1880 physician to the Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum. In 1876 he became a mem- ber of the Council of the Long Island College Hospital, and, at the same time, one of the consulting surgeons. In 1879 he was a mem- ber of the Board of Regents. His connection with the Medical Society, county of Kings, dates from1 1834. He became the Vice-Presi- dent in 1844, President in 1846, and Censor in 1851. In 1843 Dr. Thorne became a mem- ber of the Brooklyn Board of Education, re- taining his membership until 1872. In 1868 he was elected President of the board, retain- ing the position until his retirement in 1872, and as far as is known was the only physi- cian who ever held that position. In addition to these various offices of trust he held the po- sition of Trustee of the Brooklyn Female Academy, and was also a director of the Packer Institute of Brooklyn. His life was a record of usefulness.

Lucius Hyde was the son of Isaac Hyde, M. D., of Connecticut. He was born December 13, 1800. Educated at Union College, he studied under his father, Isaac Hyde, in 1823, and in 1825 was licensed by the New York State Medical Society. Practiced in Brooklyn from 1825 to 1862. Joined the Society in 1835. He was Censor during the years 1843, 1846, 1848, and President in 1847. A delegate to the New York State Medical Society 1848-50, and to the American Medical Society 1847, 1849, 1850 and 1851. He died September II, I862.

Chauncey Leeds Mitchell, A. M., M. D., was born at New Canaan, Connecticut, No- vember 13, 1813. He graduated at Union College in 1833, received the degree of A. M. in 1836, and the degree of M. D. in 1836, from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York. He practiced medicine in Brooklyn from 1843 to 1888, was a member of the Coun- cil of Long Island College Hospital from 1860 to 1888; a member of the Board of Regents from 1878 to 1888. Was Professor of Obstet -. rics at Castleton, Vermont, Medical College from 1842 to 1845. Member of the Medical Society of the county, of which he was Presi- dent in 1848, and 1858 to 1859; New York Academy of Medicine from 1847 to 1888. The American Academy of Medicine from 1879 to 1888, and the Brooklyn Pathological So- ciety from 1871 to 1888.

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A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 91

Author: Ross, Peter. cn Publication date: 1902 Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1188

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188