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History of medical practice in Illinois - Bushnell Historical Society

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482 <strong>History</strong> <strong>of</strong> Medical Practice <strong>in</strong> Ill<strong>in</strong>oisIn 1850 the Proceed<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> the Medical Convention for the Purpose <strong>of</strong>Organiz<strong>in</strong>g the Ill<strong>in</strong>ois State Medical <strong>Society</strong> was published <strong>in</strong> Chicago.The meet<strong>in</strong>g was held <strong>in</strong> Spr<strong>in</strong>gfield on June 4, 1850, and adopted a constitutionand the pr<strong>in</strong>ciples <strong>of</strong> ethics. It passed a resolution aga<strong>in</strong>st quackery.At the second meet<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> Jacksonville <strong>in</strong> 1852, delegates attended fromseven county <strong>medical</strong> societies. The meet<strong>in</strong>g was largely led and controlledby Dr. Nathan S. Davis, who also seems to have made most <strong>of</strong> the motions.The annual dues were set at $2.00, and the members apparently got atleast 32.00 worth <strong>of</strong> service. The meet<strong>in</strong>g expelled J.W. Halsted, an oculist,from the Stark Medical <strong>Society</strong> because <strong>of</strong> an advertisement <strong>in</strong> the press.A prize <strong>of</strong> §20.00 was <strong>of</strong>fered by Dr. Davis for the best essay on the differencebetween stimulants, <strong>of</strong> which alcohol is a type, and tonics, <strong>of</strong> whichbitter barks and iron are specimens. The 1853 meet<strong>in</strong>g was held <strong>in</strong> Chicago,and it was voted to cont<strong>in</strong>ue the essay prize for another year and to holdthe next meet<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> La Salle. The Ill<strong>in</strong>ois State Medical <strong>Society</strong> publishedtransactions for many years, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g a volume cover<strong>in</strong>g the first 48 annualmeet<strong>in</strong>gs from 1851 to 1898.These early years were a period <strong>of</strong> many political struggles <strong>in</strong> medic<strong>in</strong>e<strong>of</strong> the Midwest. The homeopaths were battl<strong>in</strong>g for recognition and publish<strong>in</strong>gperiodicals and articles to support their beliefs. In 1855 the NortJiwesternMedical and Surgical Journal came fully under the control <strong>of</strong> Dr.Davis. When it became the Chicago Medical Journal, the Ill<strong>in</strong>ois StateMedical <strong>Society</strong> asked him to pr<strong>in</strong>t its transactions. In the first three anda half years <strong>of</strong> its operation, Dr. Davis had lost $1109.00 <strong>in</strong> publish<strong>in</strong>g themagaz<strong>in</strong>e. In 1871, the October, November and December issues appearedcomb<strong>in</strong>ed because the Chicago fire occurred <strong>in</strong> October, 1871.From January, i860 to August, 1875, a monthly publication called theChicago Medical Exam<strong>in</strong>er was issued with Drs. N. S. Davis and E. A. Steeleas editors.In 1858, while Dr. Daniel Bra<strong>in</strong>ard was <strong>in</strong> Europe, Dr. Davispersuaded the faculty <strong>of</strong> Rush Medical College to approve certa<strong>in</strong> recommendationsmade by the American Medical Association. When Dr. Bra<strong>in</strong>ardreturned, he vetoed them. Then Drs. Davis, Evans and others left theRush faculty and formed the Medical Department <strong>of</strong> L<strong>in</strong>d University. TheChicago Medical Exam<strong>in</strong>er was obviously the organ <strong>of</strong> the new school. Thisperiodical conta<strong>in</strong>ed abstracts <strong>of</strong> the proceed<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> the Chicago Medical<strong>Society</strong>,Medical <strong>Society</strong>.the Chicago Academy <strong>of</strong> Medical Sciences and the Ill<strong>in</strong>ois StateJust for the record, we list The Pharmacist published briefly by theChicago College <strong>of</strong> Pharmacy under the editorship <strong>of</strong> Albert E. Ebert; alsoThe Medical Investigator, an organ <strong>of</strong> homeopathy from 1861 to 1874which consolidated <strong>in</strong> 1875 with the United States Medical and SurgicalJournal to become the United States Medical Investigator. Dr. Thomas

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