History of Chittenden County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 29

Author: Rann, W. S. (William S.)
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason & Co.
Number of Pages: 1054

USA > Vermont > Chittenden County > History of Chittenden County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 29

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" By the third Medical Society of the State of Vermont, as by law established : Mr. William At- water, having presented himself to this Society for examination on the anatomy of the human body and the theory and practice of physic and surgery, and being approved by our censors, the Society will- ingly recommend him to the world as a judicious and safe practitioner in the different avocations of the medical profession. In testimony whereof we have hereunto prefixed the signature of our president and seal of the Society at the Medical Hall in Burlington, the 2d Tuesday of June, A. D. 1813. "JOHN PERIGO, Secretary, "JOHN POMEROY, President."

In 1800 the census showed that the population of the county had increased to 9,395. With this rapid increase in this county, and a similar increase in the

I Prepared by Dr. H. 1I. Atwater.

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HISTORY OF CHITTENDEN COUNTY.

other counties in the State, it became evident to thoughtful men that the op- portunities for education in medicine were altogether too limited to supply the needs of the people, or certainly would be in the near future ; and further, that the methods of education were defective to that extent that they did not give promise of furnishing the most complete knowledge and the highest talents to the physicians who were to supply these needs; that these attain- ments could not be acquired in the offices of single individuals ; that centers of medical education should be formed, and thus organized effort be made with its larger and better appliances and greater opportunities for the securing of varied and higher abilities in the teachers, as well as the gathering together of abundant material, from which the students would then obtain all important clinical experience.

Even before this period the men who conceived the idea of a State univer- sity, and had a medical department included in the act of incorporation by the Legislature, of the University of Vermont, and secured its location at Burling- ton, wisely foresaw that such a department would be of advantage to the uni- versity itself and to the State; that it would be of permanent duration by reason of such connection ; and that its location was the best in the State, being near the center of a district, where there was no medical school at that time for a distance in any direction of at least ninety miles. Thus the first medical school incorporated in Vermont was :

The Medical Department of the University of Vermont .- The first step taken by the University of Vermont towards the organization of the medical department was in 1804, at which time John Pomeroy, M. D., was appointed lecturer in anatomy and surgery, although it was authorized to establish such a department, under its charter granted by the Legislature of the State, No- vember 3, 1791. But nothing was done under this appointment until 1809, when he was appointed professor of medicine, anatomy and surgery. He held this chair until 1817 and was then reappointed professor of surgery, and this appointment continued until his retirement in 1823.

From 1809 to 1822 medical students came to Dr. Pomeroy from different portions of the State to receive instruction at his office in Burlington, and clin- ical experience there and in his extensive practice outside. The number of his students became so great that he found it necessary to engage more com- modious quarters than his office afforded, consequently a building on Water street was secured, and the first regular course of lectures upon anatomy and surgery ever given in Chittenden county was by him to a class of twelve stu- dents in the winter of 1814. Other physicians residing in the vicinity were occasionally induced to assist him and give instruction in obstetrics and prac- tice, but he often found himself alone as instructor in several branches of med- icine.

In 1821 the organization of the medical department was completed by the

Malta Carpenter

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THE MEDICAL PROFESSION.

additional appointments of Nathan Ryno Smith, M. D., professor of anatomy and physiology ; William Paddock, M. D., professor of botany and materia medica; and Arthur Livermore Porter, M. D., professor of chemistry and pharmacy. In 1822 Nathan Smith, M. D., was appointed lecturer in medicine and surgery, and in the fall of this year was given the first full and regular course of lectures in this department. Dr. Paddock retired in 1824, and Drs. Nathan Smith, Nathan R. Smith and Porter, in 1825. In 1823 James Kent Platt, M. D., was appointed professor of surgery and held the chair until his death the next year. In 1825 Henry S. Waterhouse, M. D., was appointed professor of surgery ; William Sweetser, M. D., professor of the theory and practice of medicine ; and John Bell, M. D., professor of anatomy and physi- ology. Dr. Bell retired the same year and was succeeded by William Ander- son, M. D. Dr. Waterhouse retired in 1827, Dr. Anderson in 1828, and Dr. Sweetser in 1832. In 1829 Benjamin Lincoln, M. D., was appointed professor of anatomy and surgery and retired in 1834. In 1835 Edward Elisha Phelps, M. D., was appointed professor of anatomy and surgery ; and Joseph Marsh, M. D., professor of the theory and practice of medicine. Dr. Phelps retired in 1837 and Dr. Marsh in 1841. In 1823 the first class of four niembers was graduated. In 1825 the largest class, numbering fifteen, was graduated. In 1829 a building was erected at the south end of college green for the sole use of the medical department, containing commodious lecture rooms and a chem- ical laboratory. In 1836 only one medical student was graduated, and this department was then suspended for want of students. During this early period of its existence one hundred and fourteen students in all had been graduated.

The reasons for this want of medical students and suspension are not diffi- cult to explain. There had been established a medical school in connection with Dartmouth College, near the eastern border of Vermont, and two rival schools in Vermont, one at Castleton and the other at Woodstock. Those at Dartmouth and Woodstock naturally absorbed the material from the eastern portion of the State, and the one at Castleton from the southern, leaving only the limited and sparsely settled northwestern portion for the university. In addition to these obstacles the medical faculty received little or no aid from the parent university, for it maintained its own existence with extreme difficulty. But the faculty selected were well chosen and men of large ability, who were of great advantage to the university. Dr. Pomeroy, the first appointed, had extensive surgical experience, and a pioneer energy of character, as well as a special interest in the university and its medical department, because of his in- timate relation to it as a professor and member of its corporation at different times, and of his local pride, as a citizen of much influence in Burlington and its vicinity. He rendered the institution zealous, active and persevering serv- ice, and important patronage during its birth and early struggles for existence.

Of some of the other medical professors, Rev. John Wheeler, D. D., speak-

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HISTORY OF CHITTENDEN COUNTY.

ing of a period of embarrassment of the university in 1821, when its suspen- sion was decided upon, in an address at its semi-centennial anniversary, says : "To Arthur L. Porter, a young professor of chemistry and pharmacy, more than to any other, it is indebted for its revival at this period. He was a young man of genial feelings, of great activity and an earnest and enthusiastic scholar. He had pursued the study of medicine at Dartmouth College, but finished his studies at Edinburgh." Again the address says : "During the years 1824 to 1826 the influence of the medical school both directly and indirectly, in keep- ing the academical department alive and in a convalescent state, was worthy of great praise. It did not meddle with the law of its life and seek to absorb the academical faculty into itself as the only living power, but it nourished and cherished the university for its own inherent excellence, looking to its final growth for remuneration.

" Great men, good men and earnest men were connected with it. Professor Porter was here, the one who would not suffer instruction in the academical department to stop, though permitted by the corporation and ordered by the faculty. Nathan Ryno Smith was here, giving early promise of what he has since become - one of the first practical surgeons in Maryland, and of high eminence as a professor of surgery. Also Nathan Smith, sr., a man of more surgical experience and of more genuine medical genius, perhaps, than any man of his day in New England. Last, but not least, there came Benjamin Lincoln, who laid down his life on the altar of medical science. He came in 1829 and was about thirty years of age. He was a graduate of Bowdoin Col- lege, in Maine. After coming here he was for one season demonstrator of anatomy in the medical college at Baltimore, and was urged to return there and accept a professor's chair. But he hoped to realize, he cared not on how small a scale, if it were but done, his idea of a medical school, in this university, without the hindrance of incrusted or organic remains from old formations. He pledged his life to it. In moral honesty and in fearless integrity he was an embodied conscience. It was apparent that the intellectual activity and the moral energy of the man would early wear out his physical powers. From being a model of delicate, elegant and manly beauty, he gradually bent under the rigid contraction of muscular rheumatism ; and we held our breath and turned away our eyes in sorrow, as in 1834 we bid him our last farewell." Such men as these, with the able Professors Edward Elisha Phelps, Joseph Marsh and others, could not stem the tide of adverse circumstances, and the medical de- partment suspended in 1836, as stated.

In the ycars 1840 and 1842 strenuous efforts were made by Dr. S. W. Thayer, then a resident of Northfield, Vt., to reorganize the department, but without success. In 1852, however, a proposition to do this was submitted to Dr. Thayer by Rev. Worthington Smith, president of the university, and others; coupled with the request that he should meet the members of the cor-

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poration, to consider the matter. He did so, at several times, and as a result he was authorized to select a medical faculty for their approval. In 1853 the corporation approved the selections he had made, and the following gentlemen were elected : Samual White Thayer, jr., M.D., professor of anatomy and physiology ; Horatio Nelson, M.D., professor of surgery ; Walter Carpenter, M.D., professor of materia medica and therapeutics ; Orrin Smith, M.D., pro- fessor of obstetrics ; Edward Kane, M.D., professor of the theory and practice of medicine, and Henry Erni, M.D., professor of chemistry and pharmacy. The first course of lectures after the reorganization was given in 1854. Dr. Nelson retired from the faculty the same year, after having given but one course of lectures ; Drs. Erni and Kane in 1857, and Dr. Smith in 1858. For the year 1855 Dr. Thayer was professor of surgery, as well as of anatomy and physiology. In 1858 he was appointed professor of anatomy alone, and retired from this chair in 1872. In 1873 he was given the honorary title of professor emeritus of general and special anatomy. In 1880 he was appointed professor of hygiene, and held the chair until his death in 1882. In 1857 Dr. Carpenter was transferred from the chair of materia medica to that of the the- ory and practice of medicine, and held this position until his resignation in 1881. He held also the chair of materia medica in addition to that of the the- ory and practice of medicine from 1858 until 1872. In 1855 David Sloan Conant, M.D., was appointed professor of surgery, and held the chair until his death in 1866. In 1857 Joseph Perkins, M.D., was appointed professor of materia medica and therapeutics; Edward Hungerford, professor of chemistry and pharmacy, and Richard Cresson Stiles, M.D., professor of physiology and pathology. Dr. Perkins was transferred from the chair of materia medica and therapeutics to that of obstetrics in 1858, and retired in 1868. Edward Hun- gerford retired in 1860 and Dr. Stiles in 1865. In 1860 Henry Martyn Seeley, M.D., was appointed professor of chemistry and pharmacy, and retired in 1867. In 1865 John Ordronaux, M.D., was appointed professor of physiology and pathology. He held, in addition, the chair of medical jurisprudence from 1871 until 1873, when he retired, and was given the honorary title of professor emeritus of medical jurisprudence. In 1866 Alpheus Benning Crosby, M.D., was appointed professor of surgery, and retired in 1872. In 1867 Peter Col- lier, M.D., was appointed professor of chemistry, and retired in 1877. In 1868 Edward Swift Dunster, M.D., was appointed professor of obstetrics, and in 187I was succeeded by Albert Freeman Africanus King, M.D. In 1872 Ben- jamin Howard, M.D., was appointed professor of surgery, and William Dar- ling, M.D., professor of general and special anatomy. Dr. Howard held the chair until 1875, and Dr. Darling until his death, in 1884. In 1873 Henry Dwight Holton, M.D., was appointed professor of materia medica and general pathology, and Marshal Calkins, M.D., professor of physiology and microscopic anatomy. Dr. Calkins retired in 1878. In 1875 James Lawrence Little, M.D.,

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HISTORY OF CHITTENDEN COUNTY.

was appointed professor of surgery, and held the chair until his death, in 1884. In 1878 Rudolph August Witthaus, M.D., was appointed professor of chemis- try and toxicology, and Ashbel Parmelee Grinnell, M.D., professor of physiol- ogy and microscopic anatomy. In 1881 Dr. Grinnell was transferred to the chair of the theory and practice of medicine, and John Henry Jackson, M.D., appointed professor of physiology and microscopic anatomy. In 1885 Leroy Monroe Bingham, M.D., was appointed professor of surgery, but resigned in 1886; and William B. Towles, M.D., professor, pro tempore, of general and special anatomy.

In 1886 the faculty of the medical college is as follows: Matthew Henry Buckham, D.D., president ; John Ordronaux, M.D., LL.D., emeritus professor of medical jurisprudence ; Albert Freeman Africanus King, A.M., M.D., pro- fessor of obstetrics and diseases of women ; Henry Dwight Holton, A.M., M.D.,, professor of materia medica and therapeutics ; Ashbel Parmelee Grin- nell, M.D., professor of the theory and practice of medicine, and dean of the faculty ; Rudolph August Witthaus, A.M., M.D, professor of chemistry and toxicology; J. Henry Jackson, A. M., M. D., professor of physiology and microscopic anatomy ; J. Williston Wright, A.M., M.D., professor of the prin- ciples and practice of surgery ; William B. Towles, M.D., professor, pro tem- pore, of general and special anatomy. Professors of special subjects : Robert William Taylor, M.D., of diseases of the skin and venereal diseases ; Stephen Martindale Roberts, A.M., M.D., of diseases of children ; Adrian Theodore Woodward, M.D., of surgical diseases of women ; Ambrose L. Ranney, A.M., M.D., of diseases of the mind and nervous system ; William Oliver Moore, M.D., of diseases of the eye and ear ; Wilder Luke Burnap, A.M., of medical jurisprudence ; Henry Janes, M.D., of military surgery ; J. Hayden Wood- ward, A. M., M. D., of diseases of the throat; A. M. Phelps, M.D., of ortho- pædic surgery and mechanical therapeutics ; Henry Crain Tinkham, demon- strator of anatomy. Board of instructors of the annual winter course of instruction, preliminary to the regular public spring course : Hiram Hayden Atwater, A.M., M.D., in obstetrics and diseases of women and children, and president of the board ; Ashbel Parmelee Grinnell, M.D., in the theory and practice of medicine ; William Brown Lund, A.M., M.D., in materia medica and therapeutics, and secretary of the board ; Andrew Jackson Willard, A. M., M.D., in chemistry and toxicology, and assistant to the chair of chemistry ; John Brooks Wheeler, A. M., M.D., in the principles and practice of surgery, and assistant to the chair of surgery; Jo Hatch Linsley, M.D., in physiology and microscopic anatomy ; Henry Crain Tinkham, M.D., in general anatomy.

There have been graduated from the medical department since its reorganiza- tion 1,034 students, and adding to this number the 114 graduates of the original organization, a total of 1, 148 since the original opening of the school. The largest class ever graduated was 101, in 1884. If the reason given by the faculty for the

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suspension of the school in 1836, "the want of students," was good, then the rea- son for its continuance is equally good, for the number of its students has almost invariably increased from year to year since its reorganization. Soon after its resuscitation its prosperity was so well assured that it became necessary to en- large the medical college to accommodate the increasing number of students ; consequently a subscription was circulated, and fairs held in Burlington for this purpose, and to provide a museum, plates, charts, and apparatus such as a growing institution needed. A considerable sum of money was raised, and the improvements made. Again in 1870 the sum of $2,500 was contributed by the citizens of Burlington to enlarge and refit the college building. The two lecture rooms were enlarged to a seating capacity of about two hundred each. A two-story addition was constructed containing a room conveniently furnished for practical instruction in anatomy, also a laboratory for the students' use in chemical investigation. Water and gas were introduced, and the whole building thoroughly renovated. In 1884 it became evident that, although the old college building had been enlarged from time to time, an entirely new structure would be required to accommodate the constantly increasing number of stu- dents. At this juncture the late John P. Howard, Burlington's generous bene- factor, made the school the munificent gift of a new and commodious college building. The erection of this was commenced in 1884, and entirely finished in readiness for the session of 1885. It is situated on Pearl street, at the north end of College Park, and is provided with an amphitheatre capable of comfort- ably seating three hundred and fifty students. The laboratories for practical chemistry and physiology, and the dissecting room for practical anatomy are ample in size, and supplied with every modern convenience for contributing to the comfort of the students, and facilitating their work. The room for the museum is spacious, well-lighted, and contains a large collection of carefully prepared specimens, illustrating both normal and pathological structures. The entire building is heated by steam, thoroughly ventilated, and in all its ap- pointments well adapted to the work of a medical school.

The annual winter course of instruction begins on the first Thursday of No- vember, and continues until the last of February. The instruction comprises a systematic course of lectures in the seven departments of medicine and sur- gery, viz., anatomy, physiology, chemistry, materia medica, surgery, obstetrics, and the practice of medicine. It includes practical work in the laboratory and dissecting room, and clinical instruction at the hospital. Three lectures, clinical or didactic, occupy the morning hours from nine to twelve, leaving the afternoon and evening of each day free for general study, dissection, and such special work as the student may select. The lecture-room, on the first floor of the college building, has been arranged expressly for this course, and is capable of seating a class of one hundred students. The regular public course of lectures begins on the first Thursday of March and continues twenty weeks, during

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HISTORY OF CHITTENDEN COUNTY.

which time from five to six lectures are given daily in the various departments at the college, and medical and surgical clinics twice a week at the hospital. The plan of instruction comprises a complete course of scholastic lectures upon the seven essential branches of medical science. In addition to this for the last ten years the faculty have selected a number of gentlemen to lecture upon special subjects. Such parts of the regular course as are not taught in detail by the regular professors, thus receive special attention from gentlemen who are acknowledged authorities in their respective specialties, each one giving a short and practical course of lectures. This plan is highly appreciated by the stu- dents, since it enables them to obtain a more exact knowledge of important subjects than they can receive from a general lecture course. These lectures on special subjects are delivered during the regular session without extra expense. It is believed that with this addition to the regular curriculum, and the ample opportunities provided at the Mary Fletcher Hospital for clinical instruction in medicine and surgery, the advantages afforded by this college are unsurpassed by any medical institution outside of our large cities. Yet this medical school, with all its generous gifts of buildings and accessory appliances, its close proximity to a hospital admirably equipped for clinical teaching, its situ- ation in Burlington, a city unsurpassed in the United States for grand and beautiful scenery of river, lake and mountains, and for pure and exhilarating air, and its large extent of territory from which to draw students, would never have attained its present high degree of success and usefulness had not wise and able men controlled and made the most of these agencies in their several capacities as organizers, governors and teachers.

The medical department of the University of Vermont is wholly indebted for its reorganization in 1853 to the late Dr. Samuel W. Thayer, with the aid of a few other friends of medical education whom he enlisted in its behalf. After repeated failures, and against many discouraging obstacles, among others the opposition of two medical schools in the State, he at last succeeded in his persistent efforts, and the school was the second time started upon a sure footing. He planned and organized it wisely, and afterwards gave to its welfare, as an active member of its faculty, the best energies of twenty years of his life. To Dr. Walter Carpenter it is also indebted greatly for its steady growth and suc- cess. He was a member of its faculty twenty-eight years, the longest term of service in its history. He devoted these many years of his vigorous manhood to promote its development, and by his cautious and prudent business manage- ment during its earlier years, often kept it off the shoals of bankruptcy. Of the other members of the faculty now deceased, Drs. Conant, Perkins, Stiles, Crosby, Darling, and Little, with terms of service ranging from six to twelve years, were connected with the college long enough to impress upon it their own marked individuality, and by their wide influence exerted zealously for its best interests, were enabled to extend its popularity and good reputation far

Mary M. Fletcher

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THE MEDICAL PROFESSION.

and wide. They were already distinguished in the several branches which they taught when they were appointed professors here. Drs. Conant, Crosby and Little were brilliant and skillful operators, clear, instructive and ready lecturers, and equal to the most advanced achievements in surgery. Dr. Perkins was learned, and of long experience in obstetrics. Dr. Stiles was a man of deep research in physiology and pathology, and Dr. Darling confessedly stood in the front rank among the teachers of anatomy in this country. Of the present members of the faculty, suffice it to say that they have here and elsewhere proved their capability for the positions they hold, and give promise that in their hands the college will fully sustain its past reputation. Mention has been made of the clinical advantages possessed by the college. These are in part derived from the private patients of the physicians connected with the medical department and their professional friends, but mainly from :

The Mary Fletcher Hospital .- This noble institution for charitable purposes was founded by the late Miss Mary M. Fletcher. In 1876 this true-hearted Christian woman donated to the city of Burlington the munificient sum of $200,000 for the building and endowment of a general hospital. The original corporators, nine in number, were designated by Miss Fletcher, and are named in the act of the Legislature passed on the 18th of November, 1876, as follows : Dr. Walter Carpenter, President Matthew H. Buckham, Rev. L. G. Ware, S. M. Pope, Hon. Torrey E. Wales, of Burlington, Senator Justin S. Morrill, of Strafford, Hon. John W. Stewart, of Middlebury, Hon. Paris Fletcher, of Brid- port, and Dr. George L. Peaslee, of Maine. These gentlemen also constituted the original board of directors, with power to appoint their successors and con- trol the funds and management of the institution. After mature deliberation and consultation with the benevolent donor of the fund, the directors appro- priated $25,000 of this for the purchase of the finest site that could be selected in Burlington, and $50,000 for building purposes, leaving $125,000 for the per- manent endowment of the hospital. The construction of the building was be- gun in the spring of 1877, and the hospital was formally opened for the recep- tion of patients, with impressive ceremonies, January 22, 1879.

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History of Chittenden County, Vermont, with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 29

Author: Rann, W. S. (William S.) Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason & Co. Number of Pages: 1054

Author: Rann, W. S. (William S.)
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason & Co.
Number of Pages: 1054