LOCAL HISTORY: STOREY, Henry Wilson. HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY PA. Vol. 1 The Lewis Publishing Co., 1907. Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Martha Humenik. There is an HTML version of this book, with page images, on the county web site: http://www.camgenpa.com/books/Storey/v1/ Copyright 2006. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm _______________________________________________ CHAPTER XXI. THE MEDICAL PROFESSION. It seems paradoxical that a physician should locate in this county while it was still a wilderness with very few people. However, such was the case, for Dr. Francis came to Ebensburg in 1796, although it is uncertain how long he remained there. He and his wife walked from Philadelphia in company with George Roberts and his little colony, who were about two months on the journey. In the year 1800 it is evident there was none in the Indian village of Conemaugh, or Johnstown, as we find from the book of original entry of John Horner that he paid Jacob Good fifteen shillings in state currency "for going to Greensburg to the Dockter." From his time until 1820 is the dark age in the profession, as there is no evidence of a resident practitioner unless it be Dr. Francis, of Ebensburg. In that year Dr. Robert Young began to practice in Ebensburg, having studied medicine with Dr. Stewart, of Indiana. Dr. Young married Charlotte Henderson, a sister of Mrs. Moses Canan, about 1824, while living there and they had two children--Samuel, who died in California, and Mary, who died in Oregon. Dr. Young removed to Wyota, Wisconsin, in 1841, dying there about 1850. The next was Dr. Armand Aristide Rodrigue, who located in Ebensburg in 1839, only to remain there until 1847, when he moved to Hollidaysburg. He was born in Philadelphia, August 10, 1810, and married Ann Caroline Bellas, of Sunbury. Being the attendant physician to Rev. Dr. Gallitzin in his last illness, the dying man gave him a Greek cross, which is represented as made from the wood of the true cross and had an authenticated history in the eyes of the Gallitzin family. The cross is now in possession of Hugh Bellas Rodrigue, of Pittsburgh. In 1855 Dr. Rodrigue moved to Lecompton, Kansas, as a Free State advocate and there was an aide to John Brown. He died in Kansas, June 11, 1857. Ebensburg had two other physicians about this time: Dr. David Lewis, who was there until about 1862, died subsequently in Pittsburgh; and Dr. William A. Smith, who was there in the forties. 510 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Dr. Robert Devereux, graduated from the Jefferson Medical College in the class of 1867, and has practiced continually at the Summit and Cresson. Dr. Charles G. Phythian, who came to Johnstown in 1829, was probably the first physician to locate there permanently, as Dr. David T. Storm, who had come there in 1825, only practiced his profession for ten or eleven years. Dr. Storm was born in York county in 1796, and educated at Emmitsburg College. He married Maria Jane Agnew, of Ebensburg, a cousin of Maj. John Linton and Mrs. Phythian. He also resided at and doctored the people of Stoyestown about the same time he was practicing in Johnstown, probably having an office at each place. Physicians in those days worked under difficulties, as the long distances were to be covered either on horseback or in sleighs. Dr. Swan was the first physician in the county to possess a buggy, and that not until 1867. Dr. Storm was appointed prothonotary of the county by Gov. Ritner, and after his term of office expired he entered the mercantile trade and opened several stores in different parts of the county. About 1854 he removed to a farm near Portage, and died in 1869. The next doctor in Johnstown was Michael Hay, a son of Col. George and Seaba Fahnestock Hay. He was born March 21, 1795, at York, Pennsylvania, and died at the scene of his labors on the same date in 1861. He was paymaster in the Fifth Division of Pennsylvania Militia in 1816-17, and studied medicine with Dr. Thomas Jameson, of York, In 1820-21 he attended the University of Pennsylvania, and practiced in Blockley Hospital, Philadelphia. Graduating January 22, 1822, he returned to York, and on May 23 of the following year married Margaret Worley, of that place. In 1829 he removed to Armagh, and in 1836 located in Johnstown, which was then a town of about 1,100 or 1,200 people, with one other doctor only, C. G. Phythian, and one lawyer, Moses C. Canan. It is stated that a doctor by the name of Keiffer was in Johnstown about 1840. In 1846 Dr. John Lowman came to Johnstown, and ten years later he and Dr. Hay had five medical brethren in the town--W. W. Walters, Henry and Andrew Yeagley, and Charles Koehler. Dr. William A. Vickroy, a brother of Edwin A. Vickroy, died at Wilmore about that time. Three years later the medical force of Johnstown had been increased to nine by the appearance of Dr. F. Bingel, of Zanesville, Ohio, and Dr. H. W. Marbourg. In 1864 Dr. Benjamin Yeagley graduated with honors at 511 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. the Eclectic College in Cincinnati, and established himself in Johnstown, soon after which his brother Henry removed to Lawrence, Kansas, whereupon the brothers, Andrew and Benjamin, continued the partnership until the death of the former in 1889. Dr. Andrew Yeagley was elected county treasurer in 1878. Dr. Benjamin Yeagley was president of the State Eclectic Medical Association in 1888-89, and president of the National Eclectic Medical Association in 1892-93. He died January 14, 1895. Dr. Francis Schill who came to Johnstown in August, 1865, is the oldest practicing physician residing in the county. The first homoeopathic physician and surgeon to engage in the work in Cambria county was Dr. J. K. Lee, who located in Johnstown, April 1, 1869, and lost his life in the great disaster of May 31, 1889. A few years previous Dr. Maximilian Werder and Dr. Lewis, who were also of the Hahnemann school, had been there for a short time, but the school of homoeopathy was successfully established by John Kidd Lee. He was a son of William K. and Jane Horner Lee, both natives of England. The father died at Tarentum, in 1869, and the mother at Aetna, Pennsylvania, in 1882. Dr. Lee was born in Freeport, Pennsylvania, August 14, 1841, and graduated from the Hahnemann College of Philadelphia in 1869. He enlisted in Company H, First Maryland Cavalry, August 19, 1861, and was discharged December 5, 1863; re-enlisted in Company M, same regiment, December 24, and was discharged August 8, 1865. While a prisoner he was confined in Andersonville prison. On November 21, 1871, he and Emily M. Swank, of Johnstown, were married. Dr. Lee was a member of the Masonic fraternity, and was one of the leading citizens of the town and served several years in the borough council. There are at present five homoeopathic physicians in Johnstown: Horace E. Kistler, William Wallace, A. M. Wesner, H. H. Sanderson, and P. L. Bolsinger. Dr. Lawrence Francis Flick, a native of Carrolltown, this county, is a distinguished physician of Philadelphia. He is a son of John and Elizabeth Sharabaugh Flick, born there August 10, 1856. He is a graduate of the Jefferson Medical College of the class of '79. He has given special study to the dreaded disease, consumption, and apparently has mastered it. He has been the president and controlling physician of the hospital at the White Haven Sanitarium for the free treatment of that dis- 512 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. ease, with marked success. It attracted the attention of Henry Phipps, of Pittsburg, who founded and endowed the Phipps Institute of Philadelphia, for the study and prevention of tuberculosis. The Institute is in its conception and establishment an embodiment of a new idea--namely, concentrated effort upon a single disease for its extermination. Dr. Flick is the founder and guiding spirit of the scientific work of the Institute, which was organized in 1903, Mr. Phipps chose him for his skill and ability, and approved of his advanced and common-sense ideas of its treatment. The first regular drug store in the county was established by C. T. Frazer in April, 1856, at the corner of Main and Franklin streets. Prior to that time drugs were kept in connection with such commodities as books, stationery and groceries. In those days the physicians kept their own drugs, and for some time after Colonel Frazer began the prescription trade was limited. It is also true that when he started the exclusive drug store on the corner of Main and Franklin streets it was out of the business district, the center of trade being on Clinton. He tried to get a room there, but it was out of the question, and he was forced to go to the other corner at an annual rental of $125. It is now the business center of a district of 100,000 people. The profession was again honored by the prompt and efficient services of Doctors George W. Wagoner, B. E. Longwell, H. F. Tomb, Charles E. Hannan, C. B. Millhoff, F. B. Statler, J. S. Taylor, J. B. Woodruff, Emlyn Jones and John B. Lowman, and Dr. Updegraff of Bolivar, who went into the coal mine at the time of the dreadful explosion, to rescue the exhausted and injured men. Marshall G. Moore, the mining engineer who was with them, in an article in the Franklin Institute Journal states that "by a liberal use of oxygen, quick trips to the hospital and faithful work on the part of the physicians and nurses, a number were resuscitated. Others were too far gone." A further reference is made to this disaster in the chapter on Coal. THE MEDICAL SOCIETY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. The earliest record obtainable of a Medical Society of Cambria county is that it came into existence in 1852--Drs. Hay, Vickroy, John Lowman, C. Sheridan, and Levinus Marbourg, of Johnstown, being among the members--and the final meeting 513 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. was held at Cresson in about 1856, at which Dr. Lowman and Dr. Marbourg were present. The Society seems to have gone so completely out of existence, and the local physicians were so discouraged about it that there was no determined effort made at reorganization until 1868. Dr. John Lowman was the first president, and was followed by Drs. C. Sheridan, Walters, Swan, and W. B. Lowman. After a somewhat uneventful career, during which time there were frequent strenuous attempts made to keep up interest, it became evident that the organization must go down. It was one of the rules of the Society that meetings were to be held monthly at the offices of the members, and to this fact, more than to any other, is attributed the want of success of the organization. There now came another long period of inaction, for it was not until the spring of 1882 that another reorganization was effected. The initial meeting was held in the Hulbert House parlors, Dr. W. W. Walters presiding, and Dr. John Lowman was elected president for the first year. Unlike its predecessors, the Society grew in interest, a regular place of meeting was agreed upon. New members were constantly being added, and an enduring organization was the result. Meetings were held in a pleasant room in the Alma Hall until the time of the Great Flood, when all effects and records were lost. Without losing a meeting, however, the Society came together regularly, first in one place, then in another, until in January, 1891, a permanent place of meeting with comfortable and well furnished apartments was secured. After the flood the Society was publicly recognized as a permanent institution: indeed, so much confidence was replaced in it as to warrant the turning over to the Society all property and supplies of a field hospital sent here and maintained for mouths by the Philadelphia Branch of the Red Cross Society, of which Prof. Pancoast was then president, and the staff of the hospital was made up thereafter of members of the Medical Society of Cambria county exclusively. The necessity for incorporating the Society becoming evident, application for articles of incorporation was made and the charter was granted in March, 1892. Prior to this a donation to the Society of valuable books and pictures was made by Dr. J. M. Toner, of Washington, D. C., which necessitated the formation of a library association to be under the control of our Society and to be known as the "Toner Li- Vol. 1-33 514 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. brary Association." Dr. Toner died at Cresson, July 30, 1896, at the age of 71 years. A short history of the Society can scarcely be said to be given complete without some detailed reference to those gentlemen who as the most prominent physicians in the county have from time to time acted as presidents and to whom its success was largely due. John Lowman, son of Andrew Lowman, was born in Greencastle, Franklin county, Pennsylvania, on February 13, 1817, died in Johnstown, June 16, 1893. He moved with his father to Brushvalley township, Indiana county, when about fourteen, his mother having died the year before. They walked part of the way over the mountain. The father having remarried, John left home at seventeen, and went to Indiana town, where he engaged as apprentice with a carpenter named Sloan, and finished the trade; becoming convinced, however, that he was not intended for a mechanic, he determined to give up carpentering, and with the throwing down of these tools he may be said to have taken up the surgeon's knife, for it was not many years ere he was known as one of the best operators upon the human anatomy in the state. He now entered Indiana Academy, where he took the general course; but receiving some money at this time from his mother's estate, he went into the mercantile business, but soon failed, after which he began the study of medicine with Dr. James M. Stewart, of Indiana, and in 1845 he attended his first course of lectures at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, and returned to Indiana penniless. The following year-1846--he borrowed $26 of a friend to bring him to Johnstown, where he opened an office, and succeeded from the start, having fallen into the greater part of the practice of Dr. Charles Phythian. The only other physicians here at that time were Dr. Michael Hay and Dr. Vickroy, the latter afterward moving to Wilmore, Pennsylvania. In 1851 he returned to Jefferson Medical College and graduated in the spring of 1852, returning to Johnstown soon after. He associated with himself in practice for awhile Dr. C. Sheridan, who had been his first student. Other students whom he instructed were James M. Toner, George Storm, Abner Linton, Thomas Roberts, Lemon Shannon, Levinus Marbourg, Hezekiah Marbourg, Samuel M. Horton, Webster B. Lowman, Joshua M. Cooper, and Gustave A. Zimmerman. He was, as we have seen from the first, interested in Society work, having 515 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. been president of the original Society, and becoming the first president on both occasions of reorganization of the Medical Society of Cambria county, and he was also a member of the American Medical Association. He was a thoroughly public- spirited man, having been the real proposer of the project of the Johnstown Water and Gas Company, of which he was until his death a director. In 1840 he married Miss Margaret Ann Bodine, who died in 1842, and they had one son--Dr. W. B. Lowman. His second wife was Mary Jane Moore-Heyer. Campbell Sheridan was born in Butler, on June 30, 1819, died in Johnstown, October 19, 1904. His father, John Sheridan, was of Irish descent, and his mother, Mary Campbell, of Scotch. At the age of twelve he began clerking in the store of Steele & Smith in Blairsville, remaining in their employ four years. The next two years were spent working for Hugh Dugan, who kept a general supply store in Jefferson, now Wilmore. In 1839 he, with Cyrus L. Pershing, subsequently Judge Pershing, and George N. Smith, a former political leader in this county, and who is now dead, were appointed clerks in the collector's office in Johnstown--James Potts, afterward Judge Potts, being collector. He remained in that position for six years, or until there was a political change in the state government, and this office being a part of "the spoils," the entire force were requested to step down and out. But, as navigation on the canal was suspended during winter, he and C. L. Pershing devoted this time of enforced inactivity to pursuing a collegiate course in Jefferson College, Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. At this institution they "bached" together, and aver that they lived on the fat of the land at a cost of about sixty cents each per week, as provisions of every kind could be obtained for a trifling sum. His next adventure was on the canal. He and George Nelson Smith invested in a section boat which made the trip from Pittsburg to Philadelphia and return. Mr. Smith as first "ran" the boat but soon sold out to Sheridan, who was both captain and cook. Financially the venture was not a success, and Sheridan sold the boat to other parties, and engaged in teaching school in Johnstown. At the close of his first term he was offered a position in the office of Henry Kratzer, agent for the Union Transportation Company, then owned principally by the Grafts. He remained with Mr. Kratzer for two years, and then entered as a student of medicine under his former Indiana classmate, 516 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Dr. John Lowman, in whose office Dr. Toner was also a student. In the spring of 1849 he graduated from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, and on his return to Johnstown entered into a partnership with his former preceptor, Dr. Lowman, and was soon one of our most successful practitioners. In 1854, however, he was seized with the "Western fever," and sold his house and grounds, being the place now occupied with the handsome residences of the late James McMillan and W. Horace Rose, and moved to Illinois, where he spent his substance, not in "riotous living," but in an attempt at farming. Four years spent in this attempt convinced him that as a farmer he was not a success, so he returned to Johnstown and again took up dispensing pills and potions. At the close of the Civil war his practice had grown to such porportions that he invited Dr. S. M. Swan, who had just returned from the army where he had served as surgeon, to assist him. The partnership thus formed lasted for ten years without a single discordant note. About this time he decided to go West to establish his sons in business, and moved to Earlville, Illinois, in which place he bought a drug store and placed his sons--John C. and Harry K.--in charge while he did some practice in his profession, but not relishing a practice in the West, he sold his drug store to his son John C. and Dr. Vosburg, and returning to Johnstown resumed his profession. His son John C., having in the meantime relinquished the drug business, studied medicine and graduated from the Rush Medical College, Chicago, and coming back to Johnstown, his father took him into partnership, which relation continued until 1892. Drs. Sheridan, Lowman, Hay and Vickroy, of Johnstown, Lemmon, Smith and Bunn, of Ebensburg, were all original members of the Medical Society of Cambria county, of which body Dr. Sheridan was three times president--the last time being in 1883. Walter Winston Walters was born in the town of Brecon, South Wales, on January 11, 1824, and died in Johnstown, July 23, 1896. His father--Rev. John Walters--was a minister of the Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Church. He came to this country in 1843, and located at Catasauqua, Pennsylvania, where he was employed at the blast furnaces of the Crane Iron Works, under the direction of the famous David Thomas, the great ironmaster. He graduated in the class of 517 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. 1853 of the Medical Department of Pennsylvania College at Philadelphia. After graduating he began practice in Catasauqua, and remained there for two years. The successful operation of the Cambria Iron Works, at Johnstown, commencing about 1854, induced quite a number of the ironworkers of Catasauqua to remove thither, and Dr. Walters followed in 1855, since which time, with the exception of two years--1859-60--passed in Ebensburg, he was a citizen of Johnstown. He took an active interest in the Medical Society, and was present at its first reorganization in 1868 and again in 1882, at which meeting he presided, and became president in 1886. In the great Flood of 1889 Dr. Walters' home was badly wrecked and was entirely destroyed by the fire of June following, together with an extensive library and mineralogical collection. The day after the Flood he attached himself to the temporary hospital, established in the old "Hansmann" Hall, on Bedford street, and was one of the members of the first board, of managers of the Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital. He found time to take an active interest in public affairs; and his early struggles for an education gave him a peculiar interest in the public schools. He served as a school director of Johnstown borough from 1866 to 1881, fifteen years, nearly all of which time he acted as secretary of the board. The establishment of the high school was one of the first results of his work in this connection, and his interest in the public school system never flagged. In politics Dr. Walters was an ardent Republican, having been an original Abolitionist. He was present at the organization of the Republican party of Cambria county, and was named as a candidate for coroner on the first ticket nominated. Samuel Moorhead Swan, son of Samuel Swan, D. D., was born March 10, 1833, near Ligonier, Westmoreland county, and died in Johnstown, July 23, 1898. When he was ten years old his parents moved to Johnstown, where he attended public school for three or four years. At the age of fourteen he was sent to Elders' Ridge Academy and in the fall of 1849 he entered the junior class of Jefferson College, at Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, remaining there until he took his degree of A. B. in 1851. The same year he began the study of medicine with Dr. Campbell Sheridan, followed by two courses of lectures at Jefferson Medical College, from which he graduated in the spring of 1854. 518 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. He spent the summer of that year in the town of Indiana, Pennsylvania, practicing with Dr. Thomas St. Clair, but the next year travelled in the Western States prospecting, and for a few months had charge of a drug store in Iowa City, Iowa, but finally located in DeKalb county, Illinois, where he remained five years, engaged in the practice of medicine and in farming. At the breaking out of the Civil war Dr. Swan entered the army as assistant surgeon of the 12th Illinois Infantry. In March, 1864, he was promoted to the surgeoncy of the lllth Illinois Infantry; he was in the seige and capture of Atlanta, marched with Sherman to the sea and through the Carolinas, participated in the grand review at Washington, and was mustered out at Springfield, Illinois, in June, 1865. The same year he returned to Johnstown and entered into partnership with his preceptor--Dr. Campbell Sheridan--which arrangement continued until 1874, when it was terminated by Dr. Sheridan's removal to the West. He helped to reorganize the Medical Society of Cambria county both times and was president three different times--first in 1871, then in 1884 and 1887-- and he was a member of the American Medical Association, to which he was sent as delegate once at Washington and again at Philadelphia, and to the State Society. Owing to the privations and sufferings at the time of the Great Flood, the Doctor's health began to fail, and he was compelled to call to his assistance Dr. L. H. Mayer, with whom he was associated until the spring of 1892, at which time, on account of the total failure of his health, he was compelled to abandon entirely the practice of his profession, and until his death lived in comparative retirement. He was married in 1869 to Miss Elizabeth Collins and they had one son--Collins M. Swan, born December 1, 1874, and died March 17, 1900, after a few day's illness. He was a graduate of the Johnstown high school, and was the president of his class of 1897. At the time of his death, he was a registered student of the law in the office of H. W. Storey. Webster Bodine Lowman, son of the late Dr. John and Mrs. Margaret Ann (Bodine) Lowman, was born March 25, 1841, at Indiana, Pennsylvania, and died in Johnstown, December 5, 1904. His preparatory education was obtained at Burlington College, N. J., of the senior class of which he was a member when the war broke out, and would have graduated in six 519 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. months. He commenced the study of medicine in 1865, at Johnstown, under the direction of his father, attended two courses of lectures at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, graduating in 1867, and was ever after actively engaged in practice. He was early identified with the Society, having been present at its first reorganization in 1868, was its Secretary for several years and president one year; and again in 1882, becoming president again in 1893; was a member of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania, and one of its vice- presidents in 1886; and a member of the American Medical Association. A companion of the Pennsylvania Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, he served as private 3d Pennsylvania Infantry, April 19, 1861; discharged for disability May 4, 1861, private 136th Pennsylvania Infantry, August 20, 1862; first sergeant, August 27, 1862; discharged for promotion February 18, 1863; second lieutenant same regiment February 19, 1863; captain April 21, 1863; honorably mustered out May 29, 1863; captain 5th Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, September 10, 1864; honorably mustered out June 30, 1865. His military service began with the outbreak of the Civil war, leaving college to go to the front, under the first call for troops. He enlisted in the three months' service, but was discharged on surgeon's certificate. Pending the call for nine months' volunteers, he contributed largely to the organization of what became Company K, 136th Pennsylvania Infantry, of which he was the original first or orderly sergeant. As such he participated in Burnside's attack on Fredericksburg, and was a part of the column that assaulted Marye's Heights. In the absence of the commissioned officers of his company, he gallantly commanded the same through the battle, and was shortly thereafter promoted to the captaincy of the company, as a reward for his skill and gallantry. After his muster out in 1863 he remained at home, pursuing his medical studies until 1864, when he organized Battery D, Fifth Heavy Artillery (204th Pennsylvania), of which he was commissioned captain, and served with his command until June 30, 1865, when he was mustered out. He also commanded his company in the Chancellorsville battle, under Hooker. Daniel William Evans, son of William Evans, was born on a farm in Cambria township, four miles south of Ebensburg, January 21, 1827, and died in Johnstown, May 26, 1895. In early life he attended, school near Ebensburg during the winter 520 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. and assisted his father on the farm during the summer months. When seventeen or eighteen years of age he began to teach in the schools in his neighborhood and afterward in Ebensburg, and later entered Hiram College, in Ohio--of which the late President Garneld was president--to prepare himself fur the ministry, but on account of a lack of oratorical ability he abandoned this ambition and decided to study medicine. In 1859 he went to East Liberty, Pennsylvania, to complete the study of medicine with Dr. David Lewis, formerly of Ebensburg, returning to Ebensburg to practice. At the time of Lee's invasion at Gettysburg, in 1863, he went out as a private, but was soon after taken sick with typhoid fever and was sent home. He remained in Ebensburg until about 1882, when he came to Johnstown and opened an office on Main street, opposite the park, where he remained four years, removing therefrom to the Fifth Ward. He was one of the incorporators of the Memorial Hospital and for two years a member of the board of managers, and was a member of the medical staff at the time of his death. Thomas Sherman Troxell was born at Cresson, Pennsylvania, March 11, 1858, and died of apoplexy, at Gallitzin, December 16, 1904. Early in life he attended the public schools, and subsequently was employed as clerk in his father's general store, followed by the usual course of study at St. Francis College, Loretto. On September 26, 1876, he began the study of medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. Robert Devereaux, at Summit, Pennsylvania, and in 1877 matriculated as a student at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, taking three courses, and graduating in the spring of 1880. After spending three months very profitably at Jefferson Hospital he returned to his mountain home, locating at Gallitzin, and began practical life as a physician. He became a member of the Society in 1886, and was its president in 1894. He served many terms as a school director. Francis Schill, son of Francis Joseph Schill, a cooper, was born in the Granddukedom of Baden, Germany, September 20, 1831. He attended the schools of his native place until about fifteen years of age, when he entered the Gymnasium or Lyceum of Freiburg. After remaining the required length of time and passing the examination he was promoted to the University of the same place, where he entered as a medical student. He afterward twice visited the University of Heidelberg, without, however, matriculating. After passing the state examinations 521 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. --which were different from those in vogue at the present time--he came to this country at the solicitation of a medical friend located in America, February, 1864. By recommendation and after presenting his papers and passing an examination (in German) at Columbus, Ohio, he was appointed assistant surgeon of the 107th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which was composed largely of Germans. When he joined the regiment--May, 1864,--the latter was encamped at Jacksonville, Florida, at which place he was stationed for several months. From there he was transferred as post surgeon to Fernandina, Florida, where he remained almost a year. July 3, 1865, he was ordered to Charleston, South Carolina, where his regiment was quartered, and he remained there several weeks, having had plenty of work and very little pleasure. The regiment was soon ordered home to Cleveland, Ohio, where barracks were occupied for two weeks, and the Doctor was mustered out of service with the rest. In the latter part of August, 1865, he came to Johnstown to practice medicine, where he has since remained. He was a U. S. examining surgeon, and for five years a member of the board of health of the city of Johnstown; one of the incorporators of the Memorial Hospital, and a member of the board of managers and of the medical staff of the same. He was one of the organizers of the Society in 1868 and also in 1882, and for many years has been and is its treasurer. He is a member of the State Society and of the American Medical Association. In May, 1875, he married Miss Anna Lorentz, and they have one son--Francis Schill, Jr.,--a graduate of Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, in the class of 1897, and now practicing his profession in Johnstown. He is also a member of the board of school controllers. Joshua Morrell Cooper, son of James Cooper, was born April 29, 1844, near Jennerville, Somerset county. At the age of seven years he removed with his parents to the vicinity of Johnstown, where his primary education was secured in the public schools. At the age of eighteen he entered upon a course at Allegheny College, Meadville, receiving subsequently from that institution the degree of A. M. In 1865 he began the study of medicine under the tutorage of the late Dr. John Lowman, and the next year began a two-year course at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, graduating in 1868. Soon thereafter he took up his residence in Erie, Pennsylvania. The next ten years was a resident of the home of his youth, having acquired a 522 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. comfortable practice soon after his removal to Johnstown. He was one of the reorganizers of the Society in 1882 and its president in 1885, and a member of the State Society, American Medical Association, and International Medical Congress. Since 1886 he has been censor of the Medico-Chirurgical Medical College of Philadelphia. After the flood of '89 he removed to Meadville. Alfred Newlon Wakefield, son of Samuel Wakefield, D. D., LL. D., was born on his father's farm, near Mt. Pleasant, Westmoreland county, December 7, 1842. At the age of six he removed with his parents to Pittsburg, where they resided two years, during which time he attended the public school in an old two-story frame building on Marbury street, now Duquesne Way. They returned to the farm, near Mt. Pleasant, but soon sold it and bought another in Rostraver township, near West Newton, same county, to which he was taken at ten years of age. Here he attended the public schools during winter and worked on the farm at other times, until about seventeen, when he allowed his ever-present dislike for farm work to conquer, and he entered the West Newton Academy, where he pursued the usual course of study for three years, and in 1861 began the study of medicine under the direction of Dr. David Porter, an old and distinguished practitioner of that neighborhood; after two years' continuous reading in his office he was compelled to change preceptors, by the retirement of Dr. Porter to private life and his removal from the county. He finished the prescribed four years' course of reading with Dr. H. S. Lindley, in Ligonier, after which, in 1865, he went to Philadelphia and took a course in anatomy under Prof. Forbes, whose kindness and attention at that time he still cherishes in his memory. In the fall of 1866 he matriculated at the Western Reserve University, Medical Department, Cleveland, Ohio, taking two courses, and graduated March 4, 1868. Returning to his native county he immediately began practice by purchasing the property and good will of Dr. D. W, McConaughy, in Madison, remaining there four years, when he sold out and removed to Johnstown in the fall of 1872, locating on the South Side. Thus he was the pioneer physician of that section, he being for several years the only one on that side of the river. In the Great Flood his residence with all his house-hold and office furniture were ruined or washed away, he and his family fortunately escaping the following day to the hill, 523 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. where he immediately began the work of relief to the sick and injured, and the same day secured a private house and established what proved to be the first dispensary opened and the last to be closed of that memorable period. The Doctor became a member of the Medical Society a few months after its last reorganization and was its president the year of the flood. By direction of the Society he received and disbursed to twenty-seven physicians relief money to the amount of $6,967.60; he is one of the directors of the Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital, and a member of the surgical staff; a permanent member of the State Society, and a member of the American Medical Association. On July 1, 1894, the board of trustees of the Medico-Chirurgical College of Philadelphia elected him a censor of that institution, with all the privileges belonging thereto; he was for several years physician to the out-door poor of this vicinity; U. S. examining surgeon for four years, and the first president of the Johnstown Board of Health. George Washington Wagoner, son of George and Mary L. (Henrie) Wagoner, grandson of George Wagoner, was born February 22, 1856, at Pittsburg. He was educated in the common and public high schools of Johnstown. At the age of seventeen he published for one year-1873--The Literary Herald, an amateur weekly newspaper, size 13x26, and did a general job printing business, having a plant worth about one thousand dollars. In 1875 he began to read medicine under Dr. A. N. Wakefield, at Johnstown; attended two courses of lectures at the Western Reserve University, Medical Department, Cleveland, Ohio, graduating in March, 1878, being the valedictorian of his class, and at once located in the practice of medicine at Johnstown. Dr. Wagoner became a member of the Medical Society soon after its final reorganization, was secretary in 1887-89, and president in 1890-91; of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania, of which he has been treasurer since 1903; of the American Medical Association; was secretary of the U. S. Pension Examining Board, 1884-89; deputy medical inspector for the Pennsylvania State Board of Health after the Great Flood of 1889, having charge of the sanitary operations in the Fifth and Sixth wards. John Campbell Sheridan, son of Campbell Sheridan, M. D., was born in Johnstown, December 8, 1853, where he spent his boyhood days; attended the public schools for eight or ten 524 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. years, after which, he went to Glade Run Academy, and finally finished his general education at the State Normal School at Edenboro, Pennsylvania, after which he taught two terms near Johnstown. In 1873 he went to Illinois and engaged in the drug business, in which he continued for five years, after which he matriculated as a student in Rush Medical College, Chicago, took two courses, and graduated in 1879. Returning to his old home in Pennsylvania soon after to begin the practice of medicine, he has proved himself unusually successful. He was among the original number who reorganized the Medical Society in 1882, and became its president in 1891. He is a member of the State Society and also of the American Medical Association; also a member of the Ninth International Medical Congress. He is a member of the National Association of Railroad Surgeons, of the Baltimore & Ohio Association of Railroad Surgeons and Surgeon at Johnstown for that Company. He was U. S. Examining Surgeon from 1890 to 1894, and is an incorporator and a manager, as well as a member of the surgical staff of the Memorial Hospital. At the time of the flood he, with the rest of the physicians, took a conspicuous part in the work of relief and reconstruction. Joseph Campbell Wakefield was born in Indiana county, in 1853, spending his early life on the farm, and attended the school in his neighborhood every winter and at academies in Homer City and Mechanicsburg, Indiana county. He thus early acquired a studious habit which has persistently remained with him. Beginning the study of medicine in 1875 under the guidance of Dr. B. F. Tomb, now of Morrellville, in the fall of 1876 he entered the Western Reserve University, Medical Department, at Cleveland, Ohio, took two courses, and graduated in March, 1878, Dr. George W. Wagoner, of Johnstown, being a classmate. He located at Vinco, Cambria county, Pennsylvania, the next year, soon built up a lucrative practice, and, excepting for a short period, has lived there since. He was one of the original members of this Society as reorganized in 1882, was secretary one year, and became its president in 1892. While president the Doctor removed from the county, resigning both as president and member, returning, however, to Vinco soon after. John Wesley Hamer, president in 1894-95, was born 1855; graduate of Columbus Medical College, Ohio, class of 1882. He was secretary of the Society in 1890. 525 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Louis H. Mayer, president in 1896-97, was born in Johnstown, 1862; graduated in the class of 1887 from the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia. He is a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania. Dr. Charles E. Hannan was the secretary. Both practice in Johnstown. Frank V. Ferguson, president in 1898, was born in 1864, and graduated in the class of 1890 from Medico-Chirurgieal College of Philadelphia. He is also a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Resides at Gallitzin. Dr. F. B. Statler was secretary. Henson F. Tomb, of Johnstown, president in 1899, was born 1860; graduate of the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia of 1887; he is also a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Dr. Francis Schill, Jr., was the secretary. Frank B. Statler, of Johnstown; born 1864; graduate of Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia, class of 1889; he is a member of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania, and was president of the Cambria Society in 1900. Dr. Schill, Jr., secretary. Francis Schill, Sr., of Johnstown; president in 1901; born in 1831; he is a graduate of the University of Freiburg, Germany, class of 1863. He is a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Dr. Schiil, Jr., secretary. William D. Haight, president in 1902; born 1859; graduate of Bush Medical College of Chicago, in 1883. He is also a member of the American Medical Association and of the State of Pennsylvania. He resides in Johnstown. Dr. Schill, Jr., secretary. Harry Somerville, resides at Chest Springs; born 1867; he is a graduate of the Cleveland Homeopathic Medical College, 1888, and was president of the Society in 1903; also a member of the American Medical Association and of the State of Pennsylvania. Dr. Eloise Meek, who was the secretary, is a graduate of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania, at Philadelphia, class of 1899; she is a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania; she resides in Johnstown; her parents live at Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. John. B. Lowman, of Johnstown, born 1874; president in 526 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. 1904, as was his grandfather and father on several occasions. He is a graduate of the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia of 1895; also a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Dr. Longwell was secretary. James A. Lynch, of Cresson; born in 1871; president in 1905; a graduate of the Medico-Chirurgical College of Philadelphia, class of 1896; he is also a member of the American Medical Association and of the State of Pennsylvania. Dr. Longwell, secretary. John B. Woodruff, of Johnstown; born 1859; president in 1906; a graduate of Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia, of 1896; he is also a member of the American Medical Association, and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Dr. Longwell, secretary. William A. Wheeling, of Spangler; born 1872; president in 1907; he is a graduate of Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia; also a member of the American Medical Association and of the Medical Society of Pennsylvania. Dr. Henry J. Cartin, of Johnstown, is secretary. CAMBRIA COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY. Organized in 1852. Reorganized in 1868 and 1880. Officers and members, March, 1907; President, William S. Wheeling, Spangler; Vice-President, Clarence B. Millhoff, Johnstown; Vice-President, Arthur F. Stotts, Ehrenfeld; Secretary, Henry J. Cartin, Johnstown; Treasurer, Francis Schill, Sr., Johnstown; Reporter, Henry J. Cartin, Johnstown. Members 70, as follows: Akers, Andrew Franklin, Gallitzin. Harris, Clarence M., Johnstown. Andersen, Guy R., Barnesboro. Hawes, John W., Windber. Barker, Olin G. A., Johnstown. Hay, George, Johnstown. Barr, John W., Nanty-Glo. Helfrick, T. Orlando, Spangler. Blaisdell, Irving C., Wilmore. Horowitz, Max, Johnstown. Born, Charles E., Johnstown. Jefferson, James, Johnstown. Burkhart, Ephraim J., Johnstown. Jones, Emiyn, Johnstown. Carlisle, Henry Lorain, Windber. Jones, Fremont C., Ebensburg. Cartin, Henry J., Johnstown. Jones, Leighton Wherry, Johnstown. Comerer, James Alvin, Vintondale. Koontz, James S., Johnstown. Detrick, Frank A., Cresson. Kress, Frederick C., Lilly. Dowler, William I., Patton. Kring, Sylvester S., Johnstown. Dimmore, Albert F., Barnesboro. Kaucher, Clifford T., Reynoldsville. Ferguson, Frank U., Gallitzin. Longwell, Benton Elkins, Johnstown. Fichtner, Albon S., Johnstown. Lowman, John Bodine, Johnstown. Fisher, Daniel E., Lilly. Lubken, William Oscar, Johnstown. Fitzgerald, Clyde A., South Fork. Lynch, James A., Cresson. Glass, Joseph H., South Fork. McAneny, John B., Johnstown. Griffith, Harvey M., East Conemaugh. MacDonald, George F., Gallitzin. Haight, William D., Johnstown. Matthews, William E., Johnstown. Hannan, Charles E., Johnstown. Mayer, Louis H., Johnstown. 527 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Meek, Eloise, Johnstown. Sheridan, John Campbell, Johnstown. Miller, Edward L., Johnstown. Shires, B. Frank, Patton. Miller, Joseph S., Barnesboro. Sloan, Ira E., Johnstown. Millhoff, Clarence B., Johnstown. Sloan, George H., Carrolltown. Murray, Valesius A., Patton. Somerville, Harry, Chest Springs. Nickel, Harry G., Johnstown. Statler, Frank B., Johnstown. Penrod, Harry H., Johnstown. Stotts, Arthur F., Ehrenfeld. Porch, George B., Johnstown. Tomb, Henson F., Johnstown. Pringle, William N., Johnstown. Van Wert, John Irving, Patton. Reed, Marvin Warren, South Fork. Wagoner, George W., Johnstown. Rice, Daniel S., Hastings. Wakefield, Alfred N., Johnstown. Sagerson, John Leo, Johnstown. Watkins, Arthur 0., St. Benedict. Schill, Francis, Sr., Johnstown. Wheeling, William S., Spangler. Schill, Francis, Jr.. Johnstown. Woodruff, John B., Johnstown. Shank, Orlando J., Windber. Physicians in Cambria other than members of the Medical Society of Cambria county are as follows; Amsbry: Proctor S. Miller. Ashville: Geo. William Krumbine. Barnesboro; John C. McMillen. Blandsburg: William R. Patterson. Carrolltown: E. F. Arble. Joseph V. Maucher. J. L. Walters. Conemaugh: Stanley A. E. Brallier, George Martin. James Ross Reed, Peter L. Swank. Cresson: Robert Deveraux. Ebensburg: Thomas J. Davison, Samuel 0. Thomas. Expedit: Wentwonh D. Vedder. Frugality: Winter 0. Keffer. Gallitzin: Edward T. Bradley, Thomas C. Twitmire. Glasgow: Geo. Bailey Goheen. Hastings: Francis J. Bennett, Frederick Rice. Johnstown: Laverne A. Barber, P. L. Bolsinger, Bertha T. Caldwell, Philip R. Cleaver, George E. Conrad, Geo. W. Conrad, William J. George, William W. Grove, L. M. Gurley, J. M. Heading, Horace E. Kistler, L. S. Livingstone. John F. Norris, Francis T. Overdorff, Kimmell E. Rauch, William Rauch, Harry H. Sanderson, M. B. Shultz, Joseph K. Tannehill, J. Swan Taylor, William M. Wallace, M. A. Wesner, J. W. Wirt, Henry F. Womer, Allen L. Yoder. G. A. Zimmerman. Loretto: John H. Murphy. Mountaindale: William S. Ruthrauff. Nanty-Glo: C. E. Belcher. Patton: Wallace A. Blair. John A. Murrsy, Samuel W. Worrell. Portage: Silas C. Gorman. Alfred J. Miller, J. F. Schofleld. Scalp Level: Alfred W. Brinham, William L. Helsel, John A. Luther. South Fork: George P. Glass, Allison A. Pringle. Vinco: Joseph C. Wakefield. Total 62, making 133 physicians in the county. We are under obligations to Dr. John C. Sheridan, Dr. George W. Wagoner and Dr. Louis H. Mayer for their very kind and valuable assistance. The events and experiences narrated of the physicians after the great flood is a just and proper recognition of a class of men who devoted their skill in relieving the sick and the injured for many months. Appalling and overwhelming beyond human conception, the wreckage and debris heaped high and intermingled with thousands of human beings requiring medical and surgical aid, was the conditions that faced the physicians of Johnstown at the time of the memorable flood, but even while the flood was still raging, while the wreckage was being tossed about in fury like a great tidal wave surging from all directions, the actual work of relief had already begun. At various points throughout the flooded districts were physicians who had been carried along with the seething mass, and those who reached points of safety found immediate service in alleviating the distress of the sick and injured within their reach; those located in places of safety 528 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. on the outskirts also worked untiringly to afford relief to the survivors of this frightful tragedy. The amount of work done by the local physicians was tremendous. In the unsettled conditions following that awful night and the succeeding days it was impossible to keep any record, but we are convinced from all obtainable data that the work was carried on thoroughly and systematically and that not one case suffered for the lack of medical and surgical attention. In Morrellville were located Dr. C. Sheridan, Dr. B. F. Tomb, Dr. E. L. W. Marbourg and Dr. A. S. Fichtner--the latter being the only living member of the group, and from him the following facts were obtained. Several carloads of people needing medical attention were standing near the Haws' brick works; these were taken to Morrellville, and the first temporary hospital, established over the livery stable of A. L. Young "Before sundown of the Friday of the Great Flood." Willing hands brought cots, bedclothing and everything that could be procured to make more comfortable the condition of the distressed. This hospital was continued for some time, numerous patients were treated, hundreds of prescriptions filled, and numbers cared for in the homes of residents of Morrellville. Dr. George B. Porch, of Cambria City, rendered valuable service. Dr. E. L. Miller found himself at the P. R. R. station and for some time was the only physician on that side of the Stone Bridge and in the Twelfth Ward. He immediately began rendering temporary relief to all who required medical and surgical aid. Cambria Hospital opened its doors for the reception of patients and in a short time was fully occupied. Dr. W. N. Pringle, at Conemaugh, found many persons there and along the hill above Woodvale who required his constant attention; Dr. H. F. Tomb was in Conemaugh borough, now the Ninth and Tenth Wards; Dr. J. W. Hamer on Bedford street; Dr. George on Horner street. On the South Side were Dr. A. N. Wakefield, Dr. George W. Wagoner, Dr. George E. Conrad, Dr. D. W. Evans and Dr. F. T. Overdorff, who afforded temporary relief in that portion of the city. In the midst of the wreckage were Drs. John and W. B. Lowman at their residence; Dr. F. Schill, Sr., at the residence of Mrs. Amelia Kress; Drs. S. M. Swan and J. G. Sheridan at the residence of the former, and Dr. W. W. Walters at his residence; Dr. L. H. Mayer in the Union Street School House, and Dr. W. E. Matthews at Alma Hall. 529 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Early the following day the Bedford Street Hospital was organized and put in operation by some of the local physicians. No hospital equipment being at hand, it was found necessary to send a messenger on horseback to Stoyestown, the nearest telegraph station, with a message to the Pittsburg Relief Committee asking for a supply of cots, mattresses, medicines, instruments and other necessities to make it possible to carry on the work. The most prompt response was received from the committee, and early the next morning a full and complete equipment was received. By this time, however, every available space was taken up with sick and injured. At the same time volunteer physicians from Pittsburg, Altoona, Philadelphia and other towns came in. These gentlemen immediately went to work to assist the local physicians in perfecting more complete arrangements. Dr. J. A. Oldshue was placed at the head of this institution, where he served for about ten days, with Charles Griffith as pharmacist, who was later relieved by Charles Young. Dr. Oldshue was succeeded by Dr. Joseph S. Dickson and Dr. Thomas T. McCann, who were in turn succeeded by Dr. J. C. Sheridan, who continued in charge as long as this institution was in existence. This hospital was the central point from which all work was directed, the out-door work being assigned to physicians in routine order. Field dispensaries were located throughout the flooded district. They were equipped with medicines and supplies and placed in charge of a corps of physicians. Each day a fully equipped hospital car was placed at the disposal of the medical men in charge through the courtesy of the management, of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, and patients transported free of cost to the hospitals of Pittsburg, Cumberland and other points along their line. The Bedford Street Hospital was continued until all necessity for an emergency institution was passed. It was found that during its existence it admitted 175 patients, attended to 340 minor injuries, treated 1190 outdoor patients, and filled over 3,000 prescriptions. Within a few days after the flood, the Cambria Hospital was placed under the management of the Philadelphia physicians, with Prof. W. S. Forbes as director in charge for about ten days, after which the relief work was directed by Dr. W. B. Lowman, who continued in this capacity until the emergency had ceased. Over 1000 outdoor patients were treated. A free dispensary was also established at the corner of South and Napoleon streets, under the direction of Drs. Wake- Vol. I-34 530 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. field and Wagoner, and medical treatment was furnished to hundreds of sick and injured. The Homeopathic College Hospital of Philadelphia established a free dispensary on Jackson, street, with Dr. Horace E. Kistler in charge, which also furnished medical treatment to hundreds of people. There were other free dispensaries in different quarters of the city from which medicines were largely furnished. At the Military Hospital, Dr. William McC. Johnston, Dr. Silliman, and Dr. McCandless kindly furnished aid to all who applied. Within a week after the flood Prof. W. H. Pancost, president of the Philadelphia Branch of the Red Cross Society, established and maintained a field hospital in the Seventh Ward. It consisted originally of tents throughout; later a temporary structure built in a rough but convenient manner was erected. This building, known as the Seventh Ward Hospital, was in November, 1889, transferred to the management of the local physicians, and was kept in operation by funds furnished by the Philadelphia branch of the Red Cross Society until the time of the opening of the Memorial Hospital. Over 300 patients were treated. The work done by these men, both local and visiting, was highly commendable--more so because it was done without compensation, as we have no knowledge of any of them accepting either fee or reward of any kind for their labors and we will always cherish and hold in loving remembrance the names of the following physicians who assisted us in our time of need: Thomas H. White, of Connellsville; F. C. Jones, of Ebensburg. Those from Pittsburg were: J. A. Oldshue, J. N. Dickson, James McCann, Thos. T. McCann, J. M. Duff, Stuart Patterson, M. A. Arnholdt, Chas. Emmerling, G. W. McNeil, J. Guy McCandless, Watt, Rossman, C. B. King, C. R. Seip, D. N. Burham, W. F. Barclay, A. Blumberg, J. W. Chaistler, C. V. Goulding, J. J. Buchanan, J. S. Dickson, C. S. Show, C. Cummings, J. M. Brockerhoff, Golden and W. W. Beech. From Altoona: G. F. Arney, J. N. Blase, W. S. Bruner, M. J. Buck, C. H. Classon, D. W. Crosthwaite, H. J. Evans, A. L. Feltwell, W. M. Findley, H. Jacob, S. M. Ross, Wm. S. Ross, S. M. Sellers, Ike, Morrow, J. M. Sheedy, H. R. Smith, A. L. Spanogle. Those from Philadelphia were: Prof. W. S. Forbes, Drs. A. Hewson, C. A. Cusin, M. H. Fussell, Philip Marvel, F. A. Packard, W. D. Green, Allen J. Smith, W. M. Sweet, J. B. Shober, W. J. Miller, Prof. W. H. Pancoast, Drs. Heinholzer, J. W. 531 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. Heustis, McCloud, Mattson, E. E. Riggs, A. Pettit, N. W. Brown, A. H. Babcock, M. E. Ward, J. M. Duff, J. C. Lange, Golden, W. W. Beech, E. B. Haworth, J. N. Ryall, J. J. Green, P. M. McGough, J. J. Stauffer, W. G. Ransom, A. L. Shoemaker, W. B. Donaldson, J. H. Williamson, E. Williams, T. E. Evans, Geo. Kelley, A. S. Daggett, Chas. Gangloff and C. Q. Jackson. Allegheny City: Drs. R. W. Stewart, N. Rankin, J. B. Horner, Robt. McGrew, E. J. Small. Other physicians were: Alice Bennett, from Norristown, Pa.; Hattie B. Jones, Weston, W. Va.; Clifford, Scottdale, Pa.; J. B. Wakefield, Grapeville, Pa.; J. E. Horner, Allegheny, Pa.; John D. Milligan, Madison, Pa.; Lewis Smith, Pleasant Unity, Pa. To each of the above named the following memorial and resolutions were presented: CAMBRIA COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY, Johnstown, Pa. MEMORIAL OF THE AID. RENDERED CITIZENS OF THE CONEMAUGH VALLEY BY MEDICAL VOLUNTEERS. Whereas, on May 31st, 1889, a flood, unparalleled in the history of the civilized world, overwhelmed the prosperous citizens of the Conemaugh Valley, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, and swept thousands to a sudden and most horrible death. It destroyed millions of property and almost blotted out of existence the thriving city of Johnstown. It left thousands of people without homes, broken hearted at the loss of so many of their loved ones and filled with dismay at the great masses of debris covering the sites of their former homes, and in which were the ruins of their dearest possessions. This calamity touched the hearts of all the people. The appeals for help were answered by the most lavish offerings of money and supplies from all the nations of the earth. The immediate wants of the sufferers were promptly and completely satisfied by these contributions, which were received with hearts overflowing with thankfulness. But, not content with expressions of sympathy and the outpourings of a blessed charity, hundreds of noble men put aside their own affairs, hastened into the devastated region and labored with untiring zeal to aid and comfort the sorely stricken people. Whereas, among this number of self-sacrificing volunteers was -----, who gave of his time and abilities to the cause of distressed humanity; therefore, be it resolved, that the Cambria County Medical Society hereby bears witness to the value of his services to the citizens of the Conemaugh Valley, and on their behalf, tenders him the sincere thanks of the Society, together with the assurance that his generous aid helped to relieve the distress and soothe the agonies of many sufferers. Resolved, this Society shall cherish with affection and pride 532 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. the memories of those who by their presence and aid lightened the gloom of the many dark days which followed the swift and awful destruction in the Conemaugh Valley. J. C. SHERIDAN, G. W. WAGONER, W. B. LOWMAN, Committee. A. N. WAKEFIELD, President. L. H. MAYER, Secretary. Dr. A. J. Graham, of Peoria, Illinois, came to this stricken community a short time after the flood and offered his services to the people. The sick and wounded were being cared for by those who had preceded him, but not being content to return home with nothing accomplished, he tendered his skillful attainments to the Board of Health. Dr. Graham remained during the hot season and assisted that department in preventing a probable pestilence. There are four hospitals in the county: The Cambria Hospital, in Johnstown, for the employees of the Cambria Steel Company, private; Dr. John B. Lowman, physician. The Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital in Johnstown; public. The Johnstown City Hospital, in Johnstown, established in 1906; public. The Municipal Hospital, in Johnstown, established in 1902; public; forty beds; Margaret Waters, superintendent. The Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital was founded to perpetuate the kind and merciful assistance given the stricken people of the Valley by the Red Cross Association. Clara Barton, the representative of the Red Cross Association, with an ample staff of assistants, materials and supplies for relief, reached Johnstown within a few days after the flood. The assistants began their work at once by going from house to house, from tent to tent, or wherever a family might be, making inquiries of the needs of women and children, and giving prompt assistance. It was done quietly and most kindly. Miss Barton erected a hospital for contagious diseases in Hamilton's orchard, where many persons were carefully nursed back to health. She also erected another hospital of a general character which was known as the Seventh Ward Hospital and equipped it with modern appliances of the kind most suitable for a temporary home for the sick. The Seventh Ward Hospital was in full operation when the Red Cross Association was making preparation to leave in December, and when Miss Barton suggested that it be transferred to some persons residing there, who should continue the work, and of which she would bear the expense until such time as it would be able to care for itself. In 533 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. view of this, the grateful friends of the Red Cross Association founded the Memorial Hospital. On November 2, 1889, the organization was perfected by electing James McMillen, president; Dr. George W. Wagoner, secretary; and Dr. W. B. Lowman, treasurer; and in the following month was duly incorporated as "The Conemaugh Valley Hospital Association." The friends of the Memorial Hospital intended to erect buildings as quickly as they could do so; however, at the same time, the State Flood Commission, in closing its affairs, found there still remained several thousand dollars on hand for distribution, and upon due consideration the commission approved of such balance for the erection of the Memorial Hospital, and appointed James B. Scott, Reuben Miller and S. S. Marvin to represent it and construct the buildings, and appropriated $65,000 for that purpose. The buildings were completed and equipped in the best manner possible on January 21, 1892, and on February 4th the formal transfer was made, and the Memorial Hospital dedicated to the public. Its usefulness is appreciated more and more as it grows older day by day. In February, 1896, a Training School for Nurses was opened in connection with the hospital. The prescribed course requires three years of practical work, during which time lectures are delivered by the medical and surgical staffs. After due examination a diploma is given to those who deserve it. Though the association of the Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital was organized and incorporated December 2, 1889, it was not until February 27, 1894, that the organization of "The Women's Memorial Hospital Association" was duly effected. The first enrollment of thirty-one members elected as president, Mrs. Will McLain; first vice president, Mrs. Charles Griffith; second vice president, Mrs. W. B. Lowman; secretary, Mrs. J. C. Sheridan, and treasurer, Mrs. E. B. Entwisle, who has efficiently served in this office since that time. The society was organized to assist in the promotion and extension of the charitable work of the hospital and to aid the managers in securing comfort for the sick and injured treated in its wards. The association is not able to accomplish all this by means of the annual assessments and donations of the members, but also by soliciting and by the proceeds of lawn fetes, recitals, amateur theatricals and operas, colored people's balls, 534 HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY. New Year receptions in the Amicus Club rooms, and the donations of clubs and schools. The association purchased the lot adjoining the hospital grounds on the north for $3,000, and has also expended large sums of money to assist in defraying the general expenses of the hospital, in fitting up the alcoholic ward, providing shutters and screens for the windows, supplying beds and mattresses, bed and table linens, towels, clothing, kitchen utensils, furnishing artificial limbs for those unable to purchase for themselves, and, in all, doing a work worthy of much commendation. The enrollment of members at the present time is 270. The Johnstown City Hospital was incorporated June 2, 1903, and opened April 25, 1906. The building stands on an elevated site above the Von Lunen road, off the extension of Murdock street, in Dale borough, and is a modernly equipped hospital, having thirty-five beds. The officers of the corporation when it opened were: Dr. J. Swan Taylor, president; Dr. Earl K. Conrad, secretary; and Dr. William Rauch, treasurer, and Margaret Wilt, matron. To render to the Johnstown City Hospital the same assistance, ten ladies organized the Women's City Hospital Association, March 3, 1906. They elected the following officers: President, Mrs. Daniel A. Judy; first vice president, Mrs. William Rauch; second vice president, Mrs. J. P. Custer; secretary, Mrs. Kimmell Rauch; and treasurer, Mrs. J. P. Dailey, all of whom are at present filling their respective offices with the exception of the last named who was succeeded by Mrs. Moses Alwine. The general plan of their work is very largely carried on like that of the Memorial Association, and the membership has increased to 135.