John T. Howell, M.D.
A perusal of the older records reveal many interesting customs and practices of the physicians of those days. Travel was generally on horseback and the distances were often so great that meal hour or nightfall compelled the weary doctor to accept the proffered hospitality of his patients. Saddle bags were made to hold a veritable armamentum and the doctor must tarry long enough to put up his own prescriptions. Bloodletting, blistering and emetics were remedies often employed and were, perhaps, as potent for good as some other extreme measures which were later substituted with greater confidence and found after all to have but a limited field of usefulness. The average physician has but little time for public affairs, but a number of the Orange County doctors have held public offices both in the County and as representatives in the State and National legislatures. In times of war, too, our doctors names are found enrolled in the military lists and their records there have been most creditable. Other physicians seem to have found time for literary pursuits; but these efforts have been mostly along medical lines. The patriotic gift of the Minisink Monument by one of their number is a matter of great pride and satisfaction to the physicians of this county.
The records of theOrange County Medical Society,although abbreviated, present the local history of medicine more fully than it is to be found elsewhere. Even here we may search in vain for data which the busy physicians who have acted as secretaries have failed to record. However, extending as they do over nearly the whole of the last century we can find many facts of interest, especially in the earlier years of its existence. No county society was formed until after the passage of an act of the Legislature, April 4, 1806. This law, under which the Orange County and twelve other county societies were soon incorporated, permitted each licensed physician in the county to become a charter member and each society to elect a representative to the State society, which was to be composed of such delegates. The county society had the right to examine both physicians desiring to practice in the county and students of medicine who applied for licenses.
Upon the first pages of the minutes is found a concise report of the organization of the Medical Society of the County of Orange, with the names of the founders and officers elected. It reads in part as follows:
"Agreeable to a law of the State of New York, passed the fourth day of April, 1806, entitled 'An Act to incorporate Medical Societies for the purpose of regulating the practice of Physic and Surgery in this State,' the physicians and surgeons of Orange County met at the Court House in Goshen on Tuesday, the first day of July, 1806.
"Drs. Jonathan Swezy, Chairman (pro tem), Thomas Wickham, Clerk (pro tem), Elijah Randall, William Elmer, William Elliott, Samuel S. Seward, Benjamin S. Hoyt, Nathaniel Elmer, Elisha Du Bois, Charles Fowler, David R. Arnell, Samuel Warner, William McCoppin, Aaron M. Smith, William Gourley, Elihu Hedges, Eleazer Gedney, Ethan Watson, Cornelius Roosa, James Bradner, Henry I. Hornbeck and Elijah Welch were present and produced their several licenses to practice physic. The Society then proceeded to organize and elect officers when the following gentlemen were elected for the ensuing year: Dr. Jonathan Swezy, President; Dr. Samuel S. Seward, Vice-President; Dr. Nathaniel Elmer, Secretary; and Dr. Thomas Wickham, Treasurer.
"Drs. Anthony Davis, Joseph Houston, Joseph Whelan and Jonathan Hedges were, upon examination, licensed to practice physic and surgery in this State and admitted members to this Society. Dr. David R. Arnell was elected delegate to the Medical Society of the State of New York.
"Drs. Anthony Davis, Elisha Du Bois, Charles Fowler, Joseph Whelan and Cornelius Davis were appointed censors."
The minutes of the earlier meetings were admirably kept and are still in an excellent state of preservation.
The autographs of the founders and other members who signed the by-laws form an interesting and valuable collection. The by-laws were carefully drawn and consisted of twenty-six articles. Meetings were held semi-annually or quarterly, and, as indicated by the titles, the papers read and discussed were of a high order. Notwithstanding such evidences of proficiency I find that these physicians were very poorly paid. In a rate list adopted by the society in 1807, the charge for a visit of less than one mile was but twenty-five cents, with a corresponding low charge for medicines furnished, and, the largest fee asked for any operation was one hundred dollars.
Dr. Arnell, who may be called the father of the Orange County Medical Society, was elected president of the society eight times and was a charter member of the State Society. In 1818 he presented a library to the society. It contained fifty volumes, which, with five of the best medical periodicals, were circulated among the members throughout the county. This collection formed a nucleus for subsequent additions and a valuable and useful library was maintained for many years.
In 1830 the membership of the society numbered sixty, of whom twenty-five attended the annual meeting.
Among notable resolutions passed was one in 1830 endorsing the American Temperance Society and the tenets of temperance in general; in 1832 the formation of health boards in each town; and in 1839 a resolution recommending a change in the method of examining and licensing students of medicine, the whole to be placed in the hands of the Regents, was forwarded to the State Medical Society. Such efforts were highly creditable and progressive, as is shown by the fact that the law providing for the last named recommendation was not passed until 1893.
An important amendment to the by-laws adopted at a meeting in 1840 marks the beginning of a prolonged and troublesome epoch of controversy over medical ethics, especially in regard to sectarian forms of practice, including homeopathy, then being introduced in this vicinity.
The status of practice among the members of the society having always been regular (i. e.,belonging to the general school of scientific medicine and not restricted by any sect or pathy), much criticism was aroused by the attempt of some of the local physicians to practice according to Hahnemann's Laws of "Like cures like." "Medicinal potency increased by dilution," etc.
An application for membership to the society from a physician who practiced that system was promptly rejected at the next meeting and much discussion ensued. The subject was frequently referred to in the minutes of the meetings for a number of subsequent years, and in 1851 several members were expelled from the society for practicing homeopathy. Rules forbidding members to consult with homeopathic physicians were passed, and in 1856 there was prepared and printed for public information a system of popular ethics, explaining fully the position of the society regarding the whole subject of ethics. Feeling ran high over the matter for a long time, as is shown by the lengthy discussions and resolutions devoted to the subject in the minutes, year after year. Gradually, as it became evident that there was an increasing abandonment of sectarian practice, a reaction came; but it was not until 1883 that this society, following the lead of the State Society, adopted a new code which permitted, under reasonable restrictions, consultations between regular and sectarian practitioners.
Dr. Merritt H. Cash, by his will in 1861, left a legacy to the State Society of five hundred dollars which is known as "The Merritt H. Cash Fund." The fund now amounts to seven hundred and fifty dollars and the interest is devoted to a prize essay written by members of the county medical societies throughout the State. Dr. Cash also left four thousand dollars for the monument erected at Goshen in honor of those who fell at the battle of Minisink. The society was, of course, much interested in this event and was accorded a prominent place at the unveiling of the monument July 22, 1862.
Four members represented this society and served as surgeons with credit and distinction during the Civil War: Dr. R. V. K. Montfort and Dr. J. H. Thompson in the 124th, Dr. Solomon Van Etten in the 56th, and Dr. Theodore Cooper (assistant surgeon) in the 156th regiment of volunteers.
In 1879 the society received a special invitation to attend the celebration of the centennial of the battle of Minisink. This invitation was in recognition of the county's obligation to the donor, Dr. Merritt H. Cash, and for the patriotic and heroic services rendered by Dr. Benjamin Tusten at the battle of Minisink, July 22, 1779, where his life was sacrificed in the actual performance of his professional duties.
The last quarter of the century is notable in the history of the society for a renewal of interest and increased literary work. This was the developmental era of antiseptic and aseptic surgery, and the records, as shown by the papers read and the cases reported, were creditable to the progressive spirit and practice of the members of the society.
A resolution to the effect that all members of the society, in good standing for thirty years, be constituted honorary members was adopted in June, 1887. This honor was accordingly bestowed upon Dr. Bartow Wright, whose membership dated from 1834, and upon Dr. Harvey Everett, who joined the society in 1839. The former died in 1890 and the latter April 8, 1899, having been a member of the society for sixty years.
In 1895 revised by-laws were adopted, one of which admitted to membership any licensed physician who declared his full abnegation of sectarian principles and practice. This invitation was an expression of a principle and belief which it is hoped will in the near future rally all physicians to a broad standard of practice, and the recent law enacted, which provides but one board of examiners to grant State licenses to physicians of all schools, is another hopeful sign of medical unity.
In 1898, at the breaking out of the war with Spain, Dr. James R. Wood, a member of this society, volunteered and accompanied the 101st Regiment to Cuba. There he afterwards died in the performance of his duties, which were those of endeavoring to render sanitary the almost impossible conditions at Guanajay.
In February, 1901, the Orange County Medical Association was organized, about which time a successful effort was made to complete the organization of associations in those counties where they had not been formed when the State Association split off from the State Society, because of the code question in 1882. The two sets of organizations had not been long maintained, however, when a comparison of their ethical standards revealed the fact that twenty years had so modified opinions as to have practically removed the differences. The associations, however, had the advantage of the recognition of the American Medical Association, which had never been accorded the societies since their adoption of the new code of ethics. In order to avail themselves of membership in the national association many of the members of the societies joined the associations, too, and the barriers between the two organizations eventually became completely broken down.
The first meeting of the amalgamated county societies was held at Newburgh, January 25, 1906, the combined membership being seventy-nine.
The society had three hundred and thirty-eight members and forty-eight honorary members during one hundred years. Of these sixty-two were elected to the office of president one or more times, twenty-three to the office of secretary, and twenty-three to the office of treasurer.
The centennial celebration of the society was held at Goshen, Monday, July 2, 1906. The first part of the exercises consisting of addresses and an historical sketch—were conducted in the board of supervisors room in the County Building, which stands on the same ground once occupied by the old Court House, in which the society was organized, July 1, 1806. A collation, followed by short speeches, was afterwards held in Music Hall, which had been decorated for the occasion with flags and bunting. Eighty-five members and guests were present.
(A list of the officers and members of this society will be found in the chronological table.)
The second medical society formed in the county was theHomeopathic Medical Society of Orange County.
This society was organized November 12, 1851, at the time when considerable local interest had been awakened in this system of practice and the controversy heretofore mentioned was going on between the new and old schools. The first meeting was held in Newburgh when by-laws were adopted and the following officers elected:
Drs. A. Gerald Hull, president; Dewitt C. Jayne, vice-president; Ira T. Bradner, secretary and treasurer; and W. A. M. Culbert, corresponding secretary. A committee was also appointed to prepare an address to the public in answer to that on ethics published by the Orange County Medical Society.
Quarterly meetings were held during the first year, but no records of subsequent meetings are again found until January 11, 1870. The meetings were at first resumed semi-annually, but after three years, more interest seems to have been taken and the society met every three months. From time to time papers were read by members of the society bearing upon important topics and the society continued active for a number of years. After 1888 the meetings were held but twice a year, and interest waned until 1891, when they were discontinued.
(A list of the officers and members of this society will be found in the chronological table.)
The Tri-States Medical Society.—This society was organized in September, 1871, by a number of physicians living in Port Jervis and the adjacent counties of the three States, New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which join near there. Drs. Solomon Van Etten, Isaac S. Hunt, O. A. Carroll and P. G. McCabe represented Orange County in the formation of the society.
Quarterly meetings were held and fifty physicians became members during the first ten years. The society flourished for about eighteen years but was finally discontinued, probably because of a renewed interest in the county societies. Several Orange County physicians served as officers of the society.
(A list of the officers and members of this society residing in Orange County will be found in the chronological table.)
W. L. Cuddeback. M.D.
The Newburgh Bay Medical Society.—This society was organized September 10, 1895. The first meeting was held at the Palatine Hotel, Newburgh.
There were present Drs. A. E. Adams, John Deyo, A. V. Jova, C. E. Townsend and J. T. Howell. Dr. Adams was elected temporary chairman and Dr. Townsend, secretary. Committees were appointed to secure additional members and draft a constitution and by-laws, after which the meeting adjourned until October 8th next. At that meeting there were present, besides the above mentioned, Drs. E. H. Borst, W. L. Carr, E. F. Brooks, W. S. Gleason, R. V. K. Monfort, G. Garlzman and M. C. Stone.
The society was named and by-laws adopted. The object of the society was declared to be the banding together of congenial physicians residing in Newburgh and vicinity for the purpose of study and discussion of medical and surgical topics and scientific subjects relative thereto, and the promotion of social intercourse among its members.
The society was incorporated November 8, 1897, and at that time had twenty-nine members. Since then interest in the society has been fully maintained, as is evidenced by the unusual record of individual work and attendance on the part of the members. The present membership numbers forty-two, of whom twenty-six are residents of this county. The meetings are held bi-monthly and are usually at Newburgh.
(A list of the officers and members of this society will be found in the chronological table.)
The Orange County Medical Associationwas organized February 12, 1901, in Middletown, by Drs. M. C. Connor, W. E. Douglas, A. W. Preston. C. I. Redfield, William Evans, E. A. Nugent, L. G. Distlar and F. D. Myers. The following officers were elected: Drs. M. C. Connor, president; F. W. Dennis, vice-president; Charles I. Redfield, secretary and treasurer. A committee on by-laws was appointed and the meeting adjourned until March 12, 1901, to perfect the organization. At the adjourned meeting the appointment of committees was completed and the membership found to be sixteen, including those already belonging to the New York State Association. The additional members not mentioned above were: Drs. E. F. Brooks, J. B. Hulett, W. L. Purdy, R. A. Taylor, C. E. Townsend, H. E. Wise, and E. D. Woodhull. Meetings were held monthly in the different larger places of the county and much interest was maintained by securing the uniform presence of some recognized authority on a special subject for each meeting.
On December 9, 1905, the New York State Medical Association and Medical Society were amalgamated and the formal union of the corresponding county organizations took place, as heretofore stated, at Newburgh, January 25, 1906. The association at that time had thirty-seven members, a number of whom belonged also to the county society.
(A list of the officers and members of this association will be found in the chronological table.)
Homeopathic Medical Society of Dutchess, Orange and Ulster Counties.—The above-named society was formed in response to a suggestion of the Dutchess County Homeopathic Society. The first meeting was held in Poughkeepsie, but the society was not regularly organized until a meeting held at Newburgh June 24, 1902. Since that time the members have met regularly at Newburgh in the months of May and October each year, and much interest has been manifested. The present number of members is twenty-four, eighteen of whom reside in Orange County. Dr. William E. Reed, of Washingtonville, is now president, and Dr. F. A. Jacobson, of Newburgh, secretary and treasurer of the society.
(A list of the officers and members of this society residing in Orange County will be found in the chronological table.)
MIDDLETOWN STATE HOSPITAL.
During the past thirty-seven years several hospitals have been built and conducted in the different larger places of the county. First among these was the Middletown State Hospital (homeopathic) for the care and treatment of the insane, which was incorporated in 1869. Funds were collected by Dr. George F. Foote, and a farm purchased near Middletown as a site for the present hospital. About seventy-five thousand dollars was raised by private subscription, a part of which was used in hospital construction. The following year, 1870, the first appropriation was made by the State and the main building was opened for the reception of patients in the spring of 1874, with Dr. Foote as superintendent. After a brief service Dr. Foote resigned and Dr. Henry R. Stiles was appointed superintendent, which position he held until 1877, when he resigned, and Dr. Selden H. Talcott was appointed to fill the vacancy. Dr. Talcott served for twenty-five years until his death, June 15, 1902, and under his management the institution developed nearly to its present proportions. The present superintendent, Dr. Maurice L. Ashley, was appointed his successor.
The farm and grounds comprise nearly three hundred acres, on which there are thirty buildings, the value of the real and personal property being over $1,500,000. The present annual expenses for all purposes are about $245,000. Since the opening of the institution the reports show seven thousand patients received and treated. Of this number two thousand six hundred have been discharged recovered, and nine hundred improved. The number of patients under treatment at present is one thousand three hundred. Buildings planned and under construction will increase the accommodations to a capacity of one thousand eight hundred and fifty patients and four hundred and fifty employees.
The medical staff consists of nine members: Maurice C. Ashley, M.D., medical superintendent; Robert C. Woodman, M.D., first assistant physician; George F. Brewster, M.D., second assistant physician; Roy E. Mitchell, M.D., third assistant physician; Arthur S. Moore, M.D., junior assistant physician; Clara Barrus, M.D., woman assistant physician, and their interns.
ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL, NEWBURGH.
This institution was founded as a "Home for the aged, the indigent, and the infirm and a Hospital for the sick and disabled." The hospital work for a number of years was of secondary importance, but during the latter half of its existence that has been the principal work of the institution, until now both the name and the work of the Home are discontinued.
The society was organized July 21, 1874, by representative members of the Protestant Episcopal parishes of Newburgh and New Windsor, which influence has until recently predominated in the management, although the work has been wholly non-sectarian in character. A constitution was adopted November 4, 1874, and the institution became incorporated. January 5, 1876. The corporation originally leased different places until the present reservoir site on Carpenter avenue was purchased. On March 23, 1886, the property on Liberty street was secured, where various buildings were erected and changes made from time to time. Recently, March 29, 1907, the seminary building and large grounds on Dubois street have been secured, where the fine elevation and surroundings will better accommodate the increasing needs of the hospital.
During the past fiscal year there were treated seven hundred and seventy-four patients. There are forty-eight beds. A training school for nurses was established in 1893, which now numbers twenty.
The society is a membership corporation and by a change in the constitution adopted November 22, 1906, has become non-sectarian in its management. It derives its income from the charges paid by patients, from voluntary contributions and from the interest received from an endowment fund of $47,415.21. Among the pioneer workers was Dr. Smith Ely, whose interest and zeal had much to do with establishing the hospital.
The present staff consists of four consulting and eleven attending members:
Consulting Staff—Robert Abbe, M.D., surgeon; Stephen D. Harrison, M.D., physician; Henry D. Nicoll, M.D., gynecologist; Henry L. Winter, M.D., neurologist.
Attending Staff—John T Howell, M.D., and Charles E. Townsend, M.D., surgeons; William J. Carr, M.D., and E. C. Thompson, M.D., assistant surgeons; Andrew V. Jova, M.D., and W. Stanton Gleason. M.D., physicians; John Deyo, M.D., and William H. Snyder, M.D., assistant physicians; Alpheus E. Adams, M.D., ophthalmologist and otologist; Louis R. Pierce, M.D., obstetrician; A. Judson Benedict, M.D., rhinologist and laryngologist.
THE PORT JERVIS HOSPITAL.
This hospital was established January 1, 1887, by Dr. J. H. Hunt as a memorial to his father, Dr. J. S. Hunt. It accommodated twenty patients and was located on the corner of Ball and Sussex streets.
On March 8, 1892, the hospital was purchased by Drs. W. L. Cuddeback and H. B. Swartwout, who enlarged and remodeled it, providing additional private rooms, the use of which was extended to outside physicians. The hospital was again sold on September 1, 1895, the purchasers beings several physicians living in Port Jervis and vicinity, who formed a corporation for that purpose. The hospital, besides doing general work, has always especially provided for the care of the injured employees of the Erie Railroad Company.
A training school for nurses was established in 1896, which now numbers five nurses. The number of beds in the present hospital is twenty-five. The number of patients treated during the fiscal year ending 1907 was one hundred and thirty-four. The present attending staff consists of Drs. Cuddeback and Swartwout.
THRALL HOSPITAL, MIDDLETOWN.
This institution was organized largely through the efforts of Dr. Julia E. Bradner and eight other ladies representing different churches, who raised a fund of over five thousand dollars toward the project. Mrs. S. Maretta Thrall subsequently came to their assistance and donated not only the grounds but the building, thus placing the hospital upon a firm basis in the early days of its history. The fund already collected was used for furnishing and equipment.
The hospital was opened May 10, 1892. A training school for nurses was established in 1894, which now numbers ten. The number of beds in the hospital, including those in private rooms, is thirty-five. The number of patients treated during the fiscal year ending 1907 was four hundred and fifty-five. The present staff has six consulting and nine attending members:
Consulting Staff—Dr. M. C. Ashley, neurologist; Dr. Francis Walk, Dr. J. I. Lent, ophthalmologists; Dr. W. E. Douglas, Dr. E. L. Fancher, Dr. C. W. Dennis, physicians.
Visiting Staff—Dr. T. D. Mills, Dr. J. B. Hulett, Dr. W. L. Purdy, surgeons; Dr. Julia E. Bradner, Dr. J. L. Hammer, Dr. D. B. Hardenburgh, Dr. M. A. Stivers, Dr. C. I. Redfield. Dr. E. M. Schultz, physicians.
THE DR. MacDONALD HOUSE.
The Dr. MacDonald House at Central Valley, formerly known as "Falkirk," was founded by Dr. James Francis Ferguson in 1889.
This institution was designed and built for the special care of patients suffering from nervous diseases. Originally it accommodated but fifteen patients, but it was enlarged by the construction of another large cottage called the "Stanleigh," and now can care for twice that number. Its beautiful location and surroundings contribute to make it an ideal home for such patients.
Following the death of Dr. Ferguson, in 1904, the sanitarium was conducted for two years by Dr. Henry A. Ferguson and William E. Ferguson, when it was purchased by its present proprietor and physician in charge, Dr. Carlos F. MacDonald, who has associated with him Dr. Clarence J. Slocum as a resident physician.
INTERPINES.
This sanitarium is located at Goshen and was established in June, 1890, by Dr. F. W. Seward. It then had fourteen beds for patients, but in 1897 the capacity of the institution was increased by commodious additions, to fifty-six patients. The institution affords all the advantages of a modern home for invalids especially for the treatment of disorders of the nervous system.
It is conducted by Dr. Seward and his son, Dr. F. W Seward, Jr., who has been associated with his father for the past eight years.
The limitations of space allotted this article not allowing the presentation of biographies, I have collected and arranged the following data relating to the physicians who have settled in Orange County and practiced there since 1728.
The dates include the period of practice in this county, terminating either by removal or death. The residences designated generally refer to villages or larger places, but sometimes only the townships are known. The last column contains the names of the medical college or society granting the diploma or license, memberships and offices in county medical societies and positions or connections with local hospitals, etc. In all cases every endeavor has been made to obtain the full data, and careful verification made of all information received. In a number of cases it has been impossible to determine the dates, and even the residences of some of the practitioners could not be ascertained. In other cases the source of their diploma or license cannot be found in any of the records. Special mention has been made in a comparatively few instances where physicians are known to have held distinguished positions or have been otherwise honored, but omissions should not be construed to indicate inferiority of the standing of those worthy physicians who labored on in dignified silence, although conscious of many a triumph in the art of life saving.
I am greatly indebted to those physicians and other interested friends who have furnished information and data and especially to Dr. L. R. Pierce who assisted in the compilation of this table.
C. W. Many