History of medical practice in Illinois - Bushnell Historical Society

Medical Bacteriology 357During the summer of 1892 the Northwestern University Woman'sMedical School equipped bacteriologic laboratories, in whil li during 1892-1893, under the direction of Ludvig Hektoen, the second year studentswere given practical laboratory courses in bacteriology two hours daily,four days a week, with George H. Weaver as demonstrator. By the autumnof 1893 Rush Medical College had erected a laboratory building containinga well equipped bacteriologic laboratory, in which systematic courseswere required of all second year students, under George H. Weaver asdemonstrator. Here also for several years a postgraduate course in laboratorybacteriology was given each summer, beginning in 1894. In 1893Northwestern University Medical School also erected a laboratory buildingcontaining ample facilities for teaching practical bacteriology. In 1892-1893 the students were required to take a laboratory course on stainingpathogenic bacteria, but the making of cultures was optional. Just whensystematic courses in laboratory bacteriology were first required is notevident, but by 1895 laboratory courses occupying six hours a week, supplementedby lectures(with recitations) one hour a week, given by JohnDavis Kales, were being required of second year students.Thus between 1892 and 1895 systematic courses of laboratory instructionhad been established in all the regular medical schools of Chicago asa part of the instruction of all students.The laboratories were in charge of young men who served as demonstrators,and who were called on by hospitals and private practitioners toperform much clinical bacteriologic work, for which there was a rapidlygrowing demand.THE INTRODUCTION OF BACTERIOLOGYINTO THE SERVICEOF PUBLIC HEALTH IN CHICAGO *By FRED O.TONNEY, M.D.fBACTERIOLOGY first began its service of the public health in Chicagoin 1893, in a small "cubby hole" back of a drug store owned by Prof.E. B. Stuart, at the corner of Thirty-Ninth Street and Cottage GroveAvenue. Here, after Dr. Stuart had been appointed by Mayor Hempstead• Extracted from a paper read before the Society of Medical History of Chicago andthe Institute of Medicine of Chicago, in Joint session, Nov. 24, 1936, and published inBull. Soc. Med. Hist. Chicago 5:22, 1937.i For main yean Dr. Tonney was associated with the Department of Health of Chicago.He graduated from Loyola Medical School in 1909.—Editor