iniht€\mtMmfcxk ISitUrmtt ilibrarg Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from Open Knowledge Commons http://www.archive.org/details/inmemoriammaryhOOchic ^n pi^«ti?rirt«t MARY HARRIS THOMPSON FOUNDER, HEAD PHTSICIAN AND SURGEON OF THE MART THOMPSON HOSPITAL OF CHICAGO FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN, WEST ADAMS AND PAULINA STREETS, MAT, iSbs-MAT, iSg^ ^^j^^ PUBLISHED BY THE BOARD OF MANAGERS 1896 ^^.,sM.^£=.^£o.^£=.^£:.^£=^£.=^l£:^£o,^£..^£=,^£:^^^% i^,j-^fl>w^ m:^c)U»^^* BOARD OF MANAGERS. MRS. OTTO H. MATZ, MRS. I. N. CAMP, MRS. A. McARTHUR, MRS. HENRY WILKINSON, MRS. GEORGE OBERNE, MRS. A. D. PRICE, MRS. L. R. HALL, MRS. C. F. PIETSCH, MRS. PHILO R. KING, MRS. JEWETT E. RICKER, MRS. HEATON OWSLEY, MRS. H. A. BEIDLER, MRS. J. L. FULTON, MRS. J. B. SHERWOOD, MRS. GEO. L. MATHEWS, MRS. JOHN R. WILSON, MRS. CHAS. FITZ SIMONS, MRS. E. G. CLARK, MRS. O. W. POTTER, MRS. PHILIP D. ARMOUR, MRS. L. J. GAGE, MRS. L. E. HILTON, MRS. J. H. PEARSON, MRS. JOHN C. SPRY, MRS. WILLIAM HEYWOOD, MRS. C. C. KOHLSAAT, MRS. A. VAN BUREN, MRS. BENJAMIN ALLEN, MRS. FERD. W. PECK, MARIE J. MERGLER, M.D. 'We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths; In feelings, not in figures on a dial. We should count time in heart-throbs. He most lives Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best." Bailey. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Portrait, Frontispiece Board of Managers, ....... 15 In Memortam, ......... 7 Biographical, cj Memorial Address, 23 Memorial Testimonies, 29 Resolutions of the Boards of the Mary Thompson Hospital, ........ 29 Minutes of the Chicago Medical Society, . . 30 Remarks bj Dr. John Bartlett, 31 Reminiscences bj Dr. Edmund Andrews, . . 34 Letter of Dr. N. S. Davis, 36 Resolutions of the Woman's Medical College, . 37 Tribute of the West End Womanls Club, ... 38 Resolutions of Managers of Illinois Hospital, . 39 Testimonials of 1871, 40 Recent Letter of Rev. Robert CoUyer, ... 41 History of the Hospital, 45 ''Tis sweet as year by year we lose Friends out of sight, in faith to muse How grows in Paradise our store." Keble. IN MEMORIAM. THOMPSON — After an illness of two days, at her home, 63S Jackson Blvd., Mary Harris Thompsox, !M.D., head physician and surgeon of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children. I ''HIS notice, as it appeared in the Chicago daily -*■ papers of May 22, 1895, brought sorrow to the hearts and homes of many besides those of her immediate relatives and friends, and, while many testimonials of her worth were written and spoken, it is fitting that these expressions should take on a permanent form, and that all who come after should pay tribute to her who was one of the pioneer physicians of her sex — one of the first women to practice medicine in Chicago. Our good physician began her life work in this growing city during the tempestuous times of our civil war, caring for the sick women and little children in the families of the brave men who had gone to the front to battle for their country. From the Southland came refugees, white and colored, homeless and dependent, and when sickness came upon them the need of an institution was sorely felt. (7) 8 IN MEMO RI AM. Then were laid the foundations, broad and deep, of The Chicago Hospital for Women and Children, by Dr. Thompson, ably aided by Rev. Dr. W. H. Ryder, W. G. Dyas, M.D., and his noble wife, Hon. J. Young Scammon, and other philan- thropic men and women, many of whom have "entered into rest," but their works live, and this grand institution is a lasting monument to their self-sacrificing labors. BIOGRAPHICAL A yrARY HARRIS THOMPSON was born in ^^ ^ the town of Fort Ann, Washington County, New York, April 15, 1829. Her parents were an old and respected family of English descent, and the child grew up in the modest farmhouse, and received her earlier education at the nearest country school. Desirous of giving her more advantages, her parents sent her to Fort Edward Institute, Fort Edward, New York, and afterwards to West Poult- ney Academy, West Poultney, Vermont. She took optional courses in both of the institutions, and showed the eminently practical bent of her mind, even at that youthful period, by substituting Latin and Greek for French and music. She began teaching at an early age, and was so employed during the intervals of student life. One of her preceptresses at Poultney was so impressed with the ability and force of her pupil that she urged Miss Thompson to prepare herself in some other institution and return to become instructor in physiology, anatomy and hygiene, a department (9) 10 IN MEMORIAM. which it was desired should be added to the Poult- ney school. Miss Thompson went to Boston to take a course in the Xew England Female Medical College, in order to perfect herself as nearly as pos- sible for the designated work; but being obliged to listen to full courses of medical lectures, before the close of the first year in college she began to con- sider the possibility of becoming a physician, and ere the second year ended, her decision to graduate was made. Feeling that she knew little of practical study, she gave her attention to discovering a hospital in which to perfect herself, and found it in the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. After a year in the Infirmary, she returned to Boston to graduate, having refused to do so the previous year, though urged by all the members of the class and a majority of the faculty. Having made all possible preparation for her chosen field of labor, she de- cided to begin practicing in Chicago. Then w^as the pathway opened which virtually shaped the whole life of the great woman. Dr. Thompson arrived in this growing metropo- lis July 3, 1863, and having had considerable experi- ence in hospitals in New York and Boston, she took up the practice of her chosen profession with a de- MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. ii gree of confidence and skill that impressed itself on all others with whom she came in contact. She persevered and won her way, step by step, until, at the time of her decease, she was well known throughout the entire country, and stood in the highest esteem of all the profession. Her private patients came from all ranks of society, and she often had large fees for performing important and dangerous surgical operations; but her extensive practice among the poor drew upon her sympathies, and she not only gave them of her time and skill, but divided her money also. She was personally a woman of sweet disposition, of tender feeling and of open-handed generosity, and she devoted her life to relieving the physical sufferings of the most helpless of humanity. Her great mental and physical vigor was shown in the fact that, though sixty-six years of age, she attended to her duties as head physician and surgeon of the Hospi- tal until within a few hours of her fatal illness. It is by her connection with this institution that she is the best known and will be the longest re- membered. At the time of her coming, the only hospitals in the city were the Mercy and the Marine. Convinced of the necessity of a hospital for women and children, Dr. Thompson endeavored 12 IN MEMOklAM. to arouse an interest in the undertaking. The de- termination with which she persisted in her effort was rewarded more speedily than might have been expected. It was entirely her own idea, and it was she who was the ever-present spirit that pushed the great project to its comipletion. From the date of its organization, in 1865, Dr. Thompson was head physician and surgeon of the fine staff that has ever been the pride of the Hospital. So thor- oughly has she been identified with the establish- ment, that among those who are familiar with the profession it was always referred to as "Dr. Thomp- son's hospital." Dr. Thompson found the name Mary Thompson to be a not uncommon one. So frequently did letters for her go astray as the city increased in size, that she decided, after consulta- tion with her parents, to insert her grandmother's maiden name, in her own. It is very gratifying to her friends to have a his- tory of the Hospital and its early struggles for per- manence recorded by herself, and as it is incorpora- ted within these pages, it need only be touched upon incidentally in this sketch. On the approach of the thirtieth anniversary. May 8, 1895, the members of the Board of Mana- MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 13 gers and Board of Trustees thought it would be a suitable occasion in which to do honor to its found- er, and invitations were issued to old physicians, former members of the Boards, patients, nurses and internes, to a reception at the Hospital. The guests assembled in the operating-room at 3 o'clock, and after prayer was offered by the Rev. Dr. William M. Lawrence, of the Second Baptist Church, and a member of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Thompson read the history of the Hospital, which she had compiled with a great deal of care and painstaking. Some of the old friends of Dr. Thompson and the Hospital who were present were asked to make some remarks, and many compli- ments and congratulations were given on the good work that had been accomplished during the years that were past. The innate modesty of our head physician was displayed when she blushed and hid her face behind her fan, as she heard herself de- scribed by one of the older physicians as a young and beautiful girl. That was on her first coming to the city, but her friends who were around her thought that she had lost none of her beauty by years, but had rather added to it grace and dignity. She presented a pleasing appearance on this occa- sion, and bore her honors meekly, though she was 14 IN MEMO RI AM. the recipient of many compliments and congratula- tions. She was tastefully dressed in a heavy silk of golden brown, with delicate lace in the neck and sleeves, and made up plainly, as was the more be- coming to her full figure. Her dark hair, Avhich had become silvery white wM'th advancing age, was drawn smoothly from her noble brow and twisted in a coil at the back of her head. However, her dark eyes had lost none of their brilliancy, and her smile was as winning as in the days of her youth. Her gentle manners and sweet, clear voice showed how it was that she had been able to make so many friends and to keep them. We little thought that she w^as to part from us so soon. The day was a happy one to all, especially to her who was thus able to see her fondest hopes realized, her life's w^ork accomplished. Though the founding of the Hospital was her greatest work, she has herself alluded in her history of the institution to the part she had in estab- lishing the Woman's Medical College, and its connection with the Hospital during the earlier years of its existence. Indeed, Dr. W. H. Byford, the first President of the faculty, in his inaugural address delivered before the faculty and students at the opening of the first session for 1870-1, gives her MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 15 a great deal of credit, as will be seen from the fol- lowing extract : "The indefatigable, if- not indomitable, medical attendant of the Woman's Hospital of Chicago, finding her darling project for educating women for the profession unexpectedly frustrated, after due deliberation and consultation with her friends, in- augurated measures which have resulted in the en- terprise we represent tonight. This would proba- bly have been impracticable if the Woman's Hospital had not been in existence, and the pro- fession been witness to the efficiency of woman's labor in connection with it. The faculty of the College is composed largely of the consulting staff of that Hospital, and the members of it hope to be able to avail themselves of the advantages afforded by that institution for teaching." By her influence she has been very largely in- strumental in the success of the College. For many years she held a chair in the faculty, and at the commencement exercises in the spring of 1888 she gave the "Doctorate Address." Classes from the College have always attended clinics at the Hospi- tal, and at the time of her death she was a clinical professor. In 1890 the Chicago Medical College (a depart- 1 6 IN MEMORIAM. merit of the Northwestern University) granted a degree to Dr. Thompson; the only one ever award- ed to a woman by that institution. The diploma, of which the recipient was justly proud, now hangs in the Hospital. In 1873 she became a member of the Chicago Medical Society; in 1875, of the State Medical So- ciety; in 1886, of the American Medical Society, before the section of which devoted to pediatrics she read a paper advocating the disuse of alcohol and opium in the treatment of children and infants. This paper was the first one presented by a woman to this society. It provoked a warm discussion, and later, at the same meeting, Dr. Thompson was elected chairman of the section, which office she subsequently resigned. In 1887 she joined the International Medical Society. The Doctor was the inventor of a surgical needle that is considered of such great value that it is now in use by many leading physicians. We have thought that it would not be inappro- priate to add the testimony of some eminent pro- fessional men to these pages, and they will be found in their proper place. For many years she had made the world brighter and better, by showering the blessings of her knowledge and skill upon the MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 17 sick and needy, and she was stricken in the midst of her honors and usefulness. On Saturday, May 18, she was apparently in good health, and went about her usual round of duties, spending the even- ing with friends, and at the bedside of a patient. She awoke early Sunday morning in severe pain, yet with her usual thoughtfulness for others, made arrangements for the immediate care of her pa- tients, not thinking, however, that her work with them and in the Hospital was ended. Her suffer- ings, caused by cerebral hemorrhage, increased so rapidly that she became unconscious at about mid- night. Doctors N. S. Davis, John Bartlett, Dod- son, Brower, Foster and Gunn met in consultation, and all that medical skill could suggest was done for her, but without avail, and she passed away at sunrise, Tuesday, May 21, 1895. Her sudden decease was a great shock to her many friends, as her illness was known only to a few. Arrangements for the funeral were made by the officials of the Hospital, and the building was draped out of respect to her memory. The relatives and intimate friends, with the Board of Trustees and Board of Managers of the Hospital, assembled at the late residence of Dr. Thompson, No. 638 Jackson Boulevard, at 10 1 8 IN ME MORI AM. o'clock in the morning, and after a prayer by Rev. Dr. Lawrence, the procession was formed and marched on foot, following the hearse to the Hos- pital, a distance of little more than two blocks. On either side of the hearse walked the honorary pallbearers, old men, every one, and honored physi- cians, who thus showed their respect for her who had "gone before." They were Drs. Ferdinand C. Hotz, W. E. Clarke, I. N. Danforth, Ephraim In- galls, John Bartlett, John M. Dodson, S. C. Blake and E. Marguerat. Following these came the mem- bers of Dr. Thompson's family, her brother, sisters, niece and cousins; then the Board of Trustees, Board of Managers and other friends. On arriving at the Hospital, they passed through two lines of students from the Woman's Medical College, former internes of the Hospital, and the nurses. A choir of the nurses led the procession into the building, singing "Asleep in Jesus." The casket was taken into the reception-room and placed under her picture, and four nurses stood about it as thougn it were guarded. Loving hands had brought flowers and ivy wreaths, and the air was fragrant with perfume. Rev. Dr. J. L. With- row. President of the Presbyterian Hospital, and pastor of the Third Presbyterian Church, offered MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 19 a fervent prayer, after which a quartette from the Fourth Baptist Church sang the beautiful hymn, "Jesus, lover of my soul." Rev. Dr. Lawrence delivered a glowing eulogy upon the life and work of our beloved physician, which was listened to with rapt attention by all within hear- ing, and we are glad to print it in full elsewhere for the benefit of those who did not have that privilege. The sweet, girlish voices of the nurses then again broke forth in the favorite hymn, "Abide with Me." At the close of the services, the vast audience passed into the reception-room and around the casket to look once more, and for the last time, upon the dear face of her who would live so long in our memories. Among those present were Mrs. Fannie Ferris, the first private patient in the new building; Dr. Anna C. Burnet, the first interne; Sophie Lundine, the first nurse in the old building, and Dr. Odelia Blinn, Dr. Thompson's first medical student. The rich and the poor mingled their tears together as the old friends and former patients moved sadly through the room during the two hours that the casket was there, and it was esti- mated that fully one thousand people viewed the remains. A little incident that occurred is worthy 20 IN MEMORIAM. of note. An elderly woman, in plain apparel, lifted up a little boy to look into the casket, and then called the attention of the child to the crayon por- trait of Dr. Thompson, saying to him, "Look, child, upon the face of that woman, for you will never see it again. She was always kind to the poor." Those of the inmates of the Hospital who were well enough to leave their beds were brought down by the nurses for a last look, and amid tears and lamentations, the casket was closed, and that even- ing the relatives started with it on their long journey to the early home of the Doctor, Fort Ann, Washington County, New York. In the little vil- lage cemetery, on a beautiful knoll, with gentle breezes from her native hills to lull her to rest, her dust mingles with that of her kindred. " And if the ear Of the freed sph-it heedeth aught beneath The brightness of its new inheritance. It may be joyful to the parted one To feel that earth remembers him in love." Whittier. On the afternoon of Thursday, June 27, 1895, the Board of Trustees and Board of Managers of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children held MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 2\ a meeting, at which it was unanimously resolved to take the necessary legal steps to change the name of the institution to the Mary Thompson Hos- pital OF Chicago, for Women and Children. Thus do we seek to hold in perpetual remembrance the name of the noble woman' whose life and work will live in the hearts of all who knew her. "The memory of the just is blessed." " Day after day we think what she is doing In those bright realms of air; Year after year, her tender steps pursuing, Behold her grown more fair. 'Thus do we walk with her, and keep unbroken The bond which nature gives, Thinking that our remembrance, though unspoken, INIay reach her where she lives." hongjello-uj. MEMORIAL ADDRESS By rev. dr. WILLIAM M. LAWRENCE. WE are gathered here this morning under cir- cunastances of peculiar solemnity and very especial interest. The concourse is no ordinary one. We are not only here in person ourselves, but at this hour attention is being directed to the occasion all over this country. Our friend whose body we have carried to this place earned our gratitude and received our respect because she did not live for herself, but associated her name with all that is noble in life, with all that is regarded by men as valuable in their estimates of life. It is only a few days ago since we were gath- ered here upon an occasion very different from the present. It was an hour of felicitation. We came to congratulate ourselves upon the wonderful career that this Hospital had achieved; to express our ap- preciation of the reception which it had obtained at the hands of a discriminating public, and to testify by our presence and in our remarks our hopes that the days which were before us would far surpass (23) 24 IN MEMORIAM. any that we had enjoyed. Among those who were here at that time was the brave woman whose body we have just placed in the adjoining parlor. Mod- est, self-poised, almost unconscious, we all felt that it was she to whom we owed all that we had been able to achieve as connected with and expressed by this Hospital. I remember the first time I was ever associated with her in any public work. It was on the occa- sion of the commencement of the Woman's College. I was comparatively a stranger here in this city, and all the circumstances and incidents made a very strong impression upon my mind, because I was familiar with the struggles which had encompassed woman in her work for recognition in the medical profession. I listened on this occasion to which I am referring, with peculiar interest, as the Doctorate address was delivered by Dr. Thompson. It was direct; it was simple; it was inclusive; it was con- clusive; and the impression that was made upon my mind was that here was a woman who had mas- tered her profession until it had become an art, and whose interest in it was not because of her personal ambition, but because she loved it and loved it for what it could be to others. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 25 Now, as we look at a woman of this character, we naturally ask ourselves what were the main- springs of such a life? " We look for her associa- tions. She lived in an hour when Chicago was passing through some of its trying experiences, and she lived at a time when those associated with her were being developed in a marvelous way, and whose names stood as synonyms for all that was good and great in this city. Shall I fail to mention that poet- preacher whose volumes gave to me in my early life such an inspiration, and whom today we revere — Robert Collyer? Surely if there is any one sermon which in a word epitomizes the life of Dr. Thomp- son, it is that sermon of " The Root and the Flower," that sermon which teaches the gospel of self-abnega- tion and the highest form of altruism. Shall we ever forget the picture which he drew of Charles Lamb taking his sister Mary over the moors? Shall we ever forget the fact that he instances, that the un- forbidding circumstances of life by the grace of God may become the occasions of the highest ministra- tions of mercy? The men with whom she was as- sociated were men of broad minds, men who fore- saw the possibilities of those conceptions which were a part of her life. Dr. Mary Thompson was a woman whose eye 26 IN MEMORIAM. was toward the rising sun. I never knew a woman who loved the air more than she did. Great natures are always those whose natures are always in close communion with Mother Nature. The true physician is not the one who brings to his practice some theory which he intends to substanti- ate by the manipulation of his patient, but the true physician is the one who studies nature, who dis- covers its facts, and who is led by this discovery to the further discovery of some law — universal, or special, in its application, as the case may be. In a word, no one can be a great physician who is not a great lover of nature. Now, this girl, or this woman in her girlhood, was developed along this line. She loved the trees; she loved the flowers; she loved the sky; she heard the breath of God in the murmur of the leaves; she saw the hand of God in the opening of the rosebud; she saw the picture of God in the sunrise and in the sunset. There are natures which are always look- ing toward the west. They are always feeling that their life is passing, the best part of it, and that in a little while the rosy rays will be tingeing the western sky, and they shall lose their identity in the mass of color. Not so with Dr. Thompson. It is a very peculiar thing that she died as the sun was rising; MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 27 that her prayer was that she might be spared to see the Hght of another day. And if ever there was any nature that could echo Newman's favorite hymn, "Lead, kindly light," it certainly was hers. I think of those words of Anna Letitia Bar- bauld: "Life, we've been long together, Through pleasant and through cloudy weather. 'Tis hard to part when friends are dear — Perhaps 'twill cost a sigh, a tear; Then steal away, give little warning, Choose thine own time; Saj not good-night, but in some brighter clime Bid me good-morning." Into that clime she has entered, and there she abides, until the hour shall come when she shall look up and see the King of Glory in all His beauty, and "there shall be no night there." "The meaning of all things in us — Yea, in the lives we give our souls — doth lie; Make then their meaning glorious By such a life as need not fear to die!" Lozvell. MEMORIAL TESTIMONIES. 'HpHE Board of Trustees and Board of Managers ■*• of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children, at special meetings held soon after de- cease, adopted these resolutions: "Whereas, Our hearts are saddened by the sudden removal from this earthly life of Dr. Mary Harris Thompson ; therefore, "■Resolved, That in the recent death of Mary Harris Thompson, the founder and constant sup- porter and friend of the Chicago Hospital for Wom- en and Children, this institution has sustained an irreparable loss. ''Resolved, That while the world recognizes her pre-eminent attainments in her chosen profession, Dr. Thompson's services to it are of higher value than the recognition of her personal triumphs. Her success and fame will be an invaluable incentive to that higher education in, and noble devotion to, that science which ever watches to relieve the many ills that afflict our common humanity. '' Resolved, That her self-sacrificing efforts to aid young women in acquiring a broader medical and surgical education have borne glorious fruit in thor- (29) 30 IN MEMORIAM. oughly equipped accessories to the ranks of the medical profession and in the 'elevation of the pro- fession itself. "■Resolved, That while the present Hospital has been for thirty years a noble proof of her earnest, untiring devotion to its best interests, the remem- brance of her stainless life, her sunny cheerful, lov- ing disposition, her hopeful perseverance, her tenac- ity of purpose in the accomplishment of ultimate good, her Christ-like abnegation of self, enshrined, as it is, in the hearts of her legion of friends, is a monument that shall endure forever. "■Resolved, That we tender our sympathy to the immediate relatives of Dr. Thompson in their hour of bereavement, and assure them that their grief is shared by all connected with the Hospital she loved so well, and by the entire community where she was as thoroughly appreciated as she was widely known." At a meeting of the Chicago Medical Society, held June 3, 1895, a special committee appointed to take cognizance of the death of Dr. Mary H. Thompson, rendered the following report, which, on motion, was adopted as the sense of the Society: "Special Minute. Mary Harris Thompson, M.D., an esteemed member of our Society, Profes- MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 31 sor of Clinical Gynaecology in the Woman's Medical School of the Northwestern University, Gynaecolo- gist and Surgeon-in-Chief of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children, prominent among the founders and promoters of these institutions, a noble physician, a beloved woman. Her name is here enrolled in honor of her talents and virtues, and in sorrow at her departure. Inscribed, June 3, 1895. ''Resolved, That a special minute be engrossed on a blank page of our records in the above words, and the same be surrounded by mourning lines. "Edmund Andrews, M.D., "Addison H. Foster, M.D., "Marie J. Mergler, M.D., " Committee^ At a meeting of the Chicago Medical Society, June 3, 1895, these remarks were made by Dr. John Bartlett: "Mr. President, it is our sad duty at this meet- ing to pay a tribute of respect to a departed mem- ber. Dr. Mary H. Thompson, so long and so honorably associated with us, has passed away. Of this honored member and notable woman I feel im- pelled to utter some words of appreciation. "Dr. Thompson had an active mind and a kind and generous spirit. A good education in scholar- ship and morals had well prepared her for the work 32 LY MEMORIAM. accomplished in Chicago. She was endowed with great industry, remarkable perseverance and an ex- haustless patience. She was a singular compound of modesty of opinion and determination of pur- pose. Mild in demeanor, moderate in assertion, she was yet as persistent as an Earle and as tena- cious of purpose as a Fitch. "One of the most striking peculiarities of Dr. Thompson was her unconscious consciousness of worth — she bore about her a mysterious signet in- dicating to all that she was a true lady. There was that in the conduct, in the bearing, in the utter- ance of Dr. Thompson which inhibited in all, the conception of the suspicion that she was other than the noble and true Avoman that she was. Void of presumption, with hardly a trace of self-assertion, all about her unconsciously felt the weight of her opinions. With the mildest and quietest manner, she managed to make her capability for persuasion and control felt by all within her influence. "Dr. Thompson had in a remarkable degree the faculty of making and retaining friends. With her the rule was, once a friend, always a friend; and with her also that word was received in its broadest and deepest sense. The Doctor was devoted to her profession; she was ever studious, and labored in- dustriously to keep herself abreast of the times; using a ripened judgment in sifting from a host of vain novelties the really useful remedies, means and methods as they appeared. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 33 " Dr. Thompson was what was called a genera- tion ago 'a woman's rights woman,' but, as she ex- pressed it, she was 'always too busy utilizing the opportunities for work that now offered, to spend time in preaching the gospel of the rights of her sex.' "The one chief purpose of the Doctor's life was the establishment of the fact that women were com- petent to become useful ministers of the healing art. The great labor of her life was in connection with the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children, not only as physician and surgeon, but, when the occa- sion required it, as organizer, promoter, matron. "Our former colleague, Dr. Bogue, in alluding to his thirteen years of service in a large hospital, once said, 'This attendance has cost me a great amount of work and a vast deal of pluck.' May we not infer, in connection with this utterance of one of our most capable men, something of the labor undergone and the courage displayed by the woman whose death we mourn, in her thirty years of service in the Mary Thompson Hospital? "Mr. President, the noble work of this admirable woman in the cultivation and practice of our heal- ing art, in the establishment of a noble eleemosy- nary institution, is ended; and the fruits of her in- dustry, her energy, her courage, her philanthropy, live in her works. Her efforts, long and never weary, for the advancement of her sex, wherever her influence has been felt, have struck a chord in the 34 IN MEMORIAM. heart and mind of women, the sympathetic re- sponses to which may not cease so long as the true, the natural, unison of accord between man and woman remains unattained. "Mr. President, mortals may not anticipate heav- enly decrees, but surely, were all here below ac- quainted with the life-work of our departed friend, to hold inquiry as to the use she had made of the talent to her intrusted, we should have rendered this verdict, spontaneous and unanimous: 'Well done, good and faithful servant!'" Edmund Andrews, M.D., LL.D., furnishes these reminiscences of Dr. Thompson : "Over thirty years ago. Dr. Godfrey Dyas, in- vited me, with other medical men, to an informal reception at his home on State Street. When we arrived, he introduced us to a bright, black-eyed, beautiful girl named Mary H. Thompson, who car- ried all our hearts by storm, as she had already done his own. He informed us that she was a fully-edu- cated physician, recently graduated at the East, who had come to locate herself in Chicago. "At that time I do not think there was another woman in Chicago possessed of a properly conferred medical diploma. At least, I do not remember one. It was, therefore, a new sensation to meet a fresh, charming young girl who had studied anatomy, sur- gery, the practice of medicine and, in fact, had taken MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 35 the whole course, not even omitting the dissecting- room, and had a genuine, honest diploma to show her attainments and prove her possession of the de- gree of M.D. "After that, we met frequently. In 1863, as an officer of the Chicago Medical College, I assisted in conferring upon her as an honor, the ad eundem de- gree of Doctor of Medicine. She opened an office and gradually built up a practice. I do not know whether her progress was rapid or slow, but as time went on I was pained to notice on her handsome face an expression as of care or anxiety, and, though she said nothing, I feared the burdens of pro- fessional life weighed heavily on her and were sad- dening her spirits. However this may be, she gradually gained influential friends, and after a time the saddened expression left her face, and I con- cluded that her anxieties were less, or else she had learned how to carry her burdens more easily. "The best men in the medical profession hon- ored her, and the best men and women out of the profession joined with her in the labor and expense of establishing and carrying on the Chicago Hos- pital for Women and Children and the Woman's Medical College. These were arduous works, but I leave them to be related by those better acquainted than myself with the details. "As consulting surgeon to the Hospital, I often met her, and many times operated at her request. I always found her honorable, thoroughly compe- 36 IN MEMORIAM. tent and devoted to the welfare of her patients. It is not a habit with me to dwell on the sadness of losing friends. It is better to rejoice in the memo- ries of the happier days when they were with us. Let us gladden our hearts by remembering her vir- tues, her gracious presence and her noble works." Dr. N. S. Davis, Dean of the Chicago Medical College, was invited to be a pallbearer at Dr. Thompson's funeral. In response he wrote the following letter to Dr. A. H. Foster: "Chicago, May 27, 1895. "Your letter dated the 2ist inst., asking me to be one of the honorary pallbearers at the funeral of the late Dr. Mary H. Thompson, was received at my house after I had left home to attend the meet- ing of the State Medical Society in Springfield, and I did not see it until today, I acknowledge its re- ceipt at this late date for the purpose of assuring you and the friends of the deceased that, had I been at home, I would have deemed it both an honor and a duty to have responded to your invita- tion, as I had known Dr. Thompson well during her whole professional career, and entertained the most profound respect for her professional attainments and skill, her integrity of character, and her untir- ing devotion to the interests of her patients. While ever presenting in a high degree all the modest, un- obtrusive qualities of the true woman, she has, by 36a IN MEMORIAM. After the memorial volume was published, this sketch of Dr. Thompson was written by Dr. H. O. Dodge of Boulder, Colorado: In the fall of 1866, while a student of medicine in the office of Drs. Fitch and Blake, I first met Dr. Mary H. Thompson. Dr. Blake in introducing us remarked, "This young man can help you in many ways if you will set him at work." It was agreed that I should report at the Hospital and Dispensary for Women and Children, then at 212 Ohio Street, the next Saturday morning. Then began a friendship which terminated only at the death of Dr. Thompson. As our acquaintance grew I found a woman gifted with a brilliant mind, well trained in the best forms of society, being always a lady, and thoroughly grounded in the professional principles as laid down by the authorities of that time. Added to a personal charm of manner was ability to estimate the true value of those who surrounded her and infinite tact in deal- ing with human vagaries. Possessed of an almost per- fect physique, she had to an eminent degree the physi- cal and moral courage of her convictions. Discourage- ments and ingratitude did not cause her to falter in the work which she had planned as her own. Her attitude towards her work was that of one who had already succeeded — an attitude which held the chari- tably inclined as continual patrons. MARV HARRIS THOMPSON. 36b j\nd so. as the years went by, there grew out of nothing but her remarkable energ}- and faith that grand monument which affirms her success, the hospital which now bears her name, the Mary Thompson Hospital of Chicago for Women and Children. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 3; her industry, perseverance and wisdom in founding and successfully maintaining the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children and the Woman's Medical College of Chicago, erected the best and most en- during monument to her own memory. "N. S. Davis, M.D." Resolutions adopted at a meeting of the faculty of the Northwestern University Woman's Medical School, June i, 1895: "Whereas, Death has removed from the ranks of the profession Dr. Mary Harris Thompson, pio- neer among medical women of the Northwest, one of the founders of the Woman's Medical College, and a member of our faculty for twenty-five years; and, "Whereas, Dr. Mary Harris Thompson being a woman who combined unusual medical skill with a most gracious, womanly character, she attained a position unrivaled in honor and respect among physicians of her sex; therefore, be it ''■ Resolved, That while the faculty deeply feel their loss, we extend our deepest sympathy to her immediate family. ^'Resolved, That these resolutions be spread upon the minutes, and a copy sent to the sister of the deceased, and also to the Board of Managers of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children, "Marie J. Mergler, Secretary!' 38 IN MEM OKI AM. The following tribute was read before the West End Wonnan's Club, Friday afternoon, October 4, 1895: "For more than thirty years Dr. Mary Harris Thompson has moved in our midst, a quiet, strong, zealous worker for humanity. She gave liberally of her time, labor and means to do what she could to be helpful in any line or place she was called to fill. The Woman's and Children's Hospital, with its open doors, will ever speak eloquently of its de- voted founder. The Woman's Aledical College, of this city, will also stand as a monument to her earnest zeal for the medical education of women. Those who have been closely associated with her were always impressed with her great strength and the modesty with which she presented her valuable thoughts. She was a dear, true friend and co-labor- er, ready to promote social and intellectual advance- ment. "Whereas, Our loving and all-wise Father has taken Dr. Thompson from the active duties of her noble womanhood to the higher pursuits of the life to come. We, as a Club, desire to give expression to our feelings on this occasion. "■Resolved, That we deeply deplore her sudden death, and that the West End Woman's Club has sustained a great loss — she was one of its earliest and firmest friends. "■Resolved, That we extend to the family of Dr. Thompson our tenderest sympathy, with the prayer MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 39 that God will enable them to carry this great sor- row in his strength. ''Resolved. That the preamble and these resolu- tions be spread upon the records of this Club, and that a copy of them be transmitted to the family of our deceased friend. "Mrs. E. G. Clark, "Mrs. J. L. Fulton, " Committee y At a meeting of the Board of Lady Managers of the Illinois Hospital, on Austin Avenue, corner of North Union Street and Milwaukee Avenue, held May 22, 1895, the following resolutions were unani- mously adopted: "Whereas, In the great wisdom of divine Providence we are called upon this day to mourn the deatli of Mary Harris Thompson, M.D., the founder and senior surgeon of the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children ; therefore, be it ''Resolved, That we express our high apprecia- tion of the talents, the culture, and the professional and benevolent achievements of the deceased, and our sorrow over the loss of so great a benefactor to her race. "■Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to the family of Dr. Thompson and published in the Inter Ocean. "Mrs. S. S. Bishop, President. "Mrs. J. M. Angear, Secretary!' 40 IN MEMO Ri AM. Letters were given to Dr. Thompson when she went East to solicit money for the Hospital and College, after the great fire of 1871. James Free- man Clarke, after an interview, wrote to Wendell Phillips as follows: "Boston, Dec. 20. 1871. " Dear Wendell: Please to hear Miss Thomp- son's story, and see if you can at any time help her by a public word in her behalf. She comes in a good cause, and well recommended by Robert CoUyer and other good people whom I know. Moreover, she recommends herself, as you will see. "Yours truly, "James Freeman Clarke." Another letter was as follows: "Chicago, Nov. 27, 1871. " Dr. Mary H. Thompson, the bearer of this note, is one of the Professors in the Woman's Hospital Medical College of Chicago. She was the founder and has been the medical attendant since its organ- ization of the Hospital for Women and Children, of this city. It affords us pleasure to say that her pro- fessional and social standing is in every way unex- ceptionable. I would cordially recommend her to such of my professional friends as she may meet, as worthy of any kindness they may show her. "W. H. Byford." MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 41 An old and valued friend wrote this: "Chicago, Nov. 27, 1871. "Dear Friend: I want you to make a little corner in your time and care for this noble woman, Mary Thompson, M.D. She has devoted eight faithful years to building up a hospital for women and children. It is burnt down. We cannot help her as we did before; we have to send her to where they can. Will you not aid her by introductions, etc.; the etcetera means any way you think best, and so put on me a new load of esteem and grati- tude. Yours as ever, "Robert Collyer." The Rev. Robert Collyer, in a recent letter to one of the Board of Managers, makes a touching reference to Dr. Thompson and her work, from which we take the following quotation: "The Chicago Hospital for Women and Children was founded and built up by Dr. Thompson, out of her heart's love and her life, and what little I could do, for one, to help her is not to be counted for a feather-weight. "I can remember her quiet enthusiasm, the pur- est enthusiasm of humanity, and her utterly un- selfish devotion in the work God had given her to do, so that her poor helpers could only say, 'Amen !' and lend a hand, or perhaps a finger. 42 IN MEM OR! AM. "She never tired, and never lost her courage and clear grit, no matter what the rest might do, in the dark and difficult times through which she had to pass, that she might make good her most noble purpose; and so it is truly the Mary Thompson Hospital for Women and Children. " In New Orleans they have a statue to the memory of a woman who was the godmother, shall I say, to many hapless children, the only statue to a woman, they told me, in the republic. So, when you are able — and you are able to do anything in my dear old Chicago — I hope the second will be to Dr. Mary Thompson, in pure white marble, set up in the vestibule of the Hospital. I know she would forbid you, but that's no matter." THE CHICAGO HOSPITAL FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN/^' THIS Hospital was one of the indirect results of the Civil War. Its need, however, was de- veloped years previous to its opening, when the war between the North and South had made its evil effects felt throughout the entire land. National expenditures of all kinds had been increasing each year since the great conflict began. Ordinary industries were changed into caring for the sick and wounded soldiers, the manufacturing of war implements and sustaining the navy. The pov- erty and miseries of homes were laid bare to the public as by ravages of fire, and more and more suf- ferings were entailed upon the people by the enlist- ing and drafting of heads of families into our army to refill its ranks, depleted by active warfare. The young and growing city, with large transient popu- lation and comparatively few houses, demanded more hospital accommodations, especially for sick * This paper was written by Dr. Thompson, and read at the celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of the institution, May 8, 1895. ^43) 44 IN MEMORIAM. women and children. As there was at that time but one hospital in the city that could admit this part of the population, which then, as now, amount- ed to about three-fifths of the whole, the need of another institution was urgently pressed upon those interested in the soldiers and their families. In 1863, relief was attempted, and I, having come recently from the East, fresh from a year's charity practice in connection with the New York Infirmary for Women and Children, was asked to aid. In New York I could get medicine from the hospital, and, when necessary, could send patients there to remain and be cared for by physicians and nurses. In Chicago, though many were visited, and more were prescribed for at my ofifice, the result was far short of what was desirable, because of the lack of needed care and comforts of the sick-room. When these wants were made known, the question arose as to why Chicago could not have a hospital for women and children. In February, 1865, Rev. Dr. Wm. H. Ryder called a meeting of benevolent friends of the sol- diers and the poor. At this meeting was formed the nucleus of a hospital organization, to which more names were subsequently added until it amounted to twenty-seven members. A staff of MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 45 consulting physicians of high standing was made up from some of the best men in the medical profes- sion. The consulting staff was W. G. Dyas, M.D., F.R.S.; C. G. Smith, M.D.; S. C. Blake, M.D; A. Fisher, M.D.; John Bartlett, M.D.; H. W. Jones, M.D.; Thos. Bevan, M.D.; E. Marguerat, M.D.: T. D Fitch, M.D.; E. L. Holmes, AI.D. The follow- ing organization, called that of the Chicago Hospi- tal for Women and Children, was perfected by ]\Iay of the same year : President — J. Young Scammon. Vice Presidents — G. S. Bowen, A. C. Badger. Secretary — C. T. Morse. Treasurer — E. I. Tinkham. Board of Management — Rev. \Vm. H. Ryder, Rev. I. R. Hibbard, Rev. Robt. Collyer, Rev. O. H. Tiffany, ?\Ir. F. B. Gardner, Mr. T. 3-1, Avery, Mr. C. T. Morse, :\Irs. W. H. Dewey, Mrs. \V. H. Bryan, Mrs. W. G. Dyas, Mrs. J. ^ledill, Mrs. O. H. Tiffany, Mrs. W. H. Ryder, Mis. R. S. Parker, Mrs. H. San- ford, Mrs. A. Fisher, ]\Irs. E. I. Colby, iMrs. C. Degenhardt. Mrs. W. D. Plain, Mrs. Geo. Hall, Mrs. M. A. Rourke, Mrs. A. E. Kent. Resident and Attending Physician — Mary Har- ris Thompson, M.D. Among this number. Rev. Dr. Ryder, Mr. F. B. 46 IN MEMORIAM. Gardner and Mrs, Dr. Dyas were the first friends of the institution. I was requested to rent some suit- able place for a hospital and conduct it as I thought best. A house was found on the southeast corner of Rush and Indiana Streets, and opened as a hospi- tal on the 8th of May, 1865. The house accommo- dated fourteen beds and contained on the ground- floor two rooms convenient for dispensary use and a small one for medicines. A young woman, a medi- cal student of six months' study, was an assistant and soon became a great help. In the first report of the Hospital, the trustees state that the institution was organized (i) to afford a home for women and children among the respect- able poor in need of medical and surgical treatment; (2) to sustain a free dispensary for the same class; and (3), as incidental to the above, to train compe- tent nurses. The report states that these objects have been carried out so far as the means placed at the disposal of the trustees would allow ; also that 212 patients were treated in the house, 544 in the dispensary, and 10 at their homes; making a total of 756 for the first year. At the end of this year, the Hospital was moved to 212 Ohio Street, where it remained three years and three months. During the second year, Mr. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 47 Gilbert Hubbard had joined the Hospital associa- tion, Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard were the best of friends to the Hospital and its purposes, and always met its needs with open hearts and hands. Mr. Hubbard offered a generous donation to the Hospi- tal without solicitation when for the first time over- hearing its objects recited to another person. In about the fourth year of the Hospital's exist- ence, Prof. Wm. H. Byford gave his name as one of the consulting staff, and in the fifth year he made the first major operation in the Hospital. In July, 1869, the Hospital was moved to 402 North State Street, into a large wooden house with a ground seventy-five feet front and over two hun- dred feet deep. The house accommodated sixteen patients, and the barn was used for a laundry. Mr. J. Y. Scammon and Mr. Gilbert Hubbard had pur- chased the place and held it in trust for the Hos- pital until the Board of Management could pay for it, which it was doing, and had paid about one-third of its value at the time of the great fire. It w^as while here that I told Dr. Byford of the efforts I had made to gain admittance for women medical students to a regular medical college, and of having been twice refused at the Rush Medi- cal College. Dr. Byford very kindly took my re- 48 IN MEMORIAM. quest to the Chicago Medical College. The answer, though favorable, was made so late in the season that two or more students had gone to Philadelphia. Five women matriculated at the Chicago Medical College, including myself, but after the first year we were not allowed to return, although some arrange- ment was suggested by which women could enjoy many of the benefits of a college well established; but the outlook was not pleasant, and Dr. Byford advised me to form a faculty and open a medical school for women only. This was soon done, and a large room in the Hospital was given up for the lectures. The Hospital and College were incorpo- rated then as the Woman's Hospital Medical College, with Rev. Dr. E. O. Haven, then President of the Northwestern University, as president of the trustees, and Dr. W. H. Byford as president of the faculty. As one might suppose, the one room used for college purposes was not crowded with students, or illustrations for a college, neither was the clinical material extensive in the Hospital; but these stu- dents were then privileged to visit what has now developed into the County Hospital. It was then located near the south branch of the Chicago River, at the corner of Arnold and Eighteenth Streets. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 49 Later, college rooms for lectures were fitted up above a marble factory at 2 North Clark Street. One week of lectures had been given, and every- thing appeared more prosperous for College and Hospital than ever before, when, on Saturday even- ing, October 7, 1871, a fire was seen from the Hos- pital that looked as if nearly in the south. It was said to be on the west side of the south branch of the river and Fifteenth Street, where it burned three squares. It was watched all night and by morning was apparently subdued. On Sunday evening, however, another fire was seen in nearly the same direction, but slightly farther east. This continued all night, and came northeast. With the high southwest wind that existed at the time, and an exhausted fire department, it seemed very natu- ral for the light burning material of Saturday night's fire to be taken over the river and lodged among wood buildings on the east side. Thus be- gan another fire which burned all that it could reach; extending on, leaping the main body of the river, taking in the general conflagration the newly fitted up college rooms, the innumerable private houses and business places, and the waterworks, leaving a thirsty, burning city. It took the little wooden hospital, north of Division Street on State, 50 IN ME MORI AM. into the air in burning material and smoke in about five minutes on Monday morning, between 8 and 9 o'clock, the 9th of October. As it was seen ap- proaching, about 3 o'clock A. M., three helpless patients were carried to Captain C. K. Nichols' house, beyond Lincoln Park, and several convales- cents were given as good a breakfast as possible on the occasion, and sent to the same kindly offered refuge. Mr. and ]\Irs. Nichols welcomed doctors, nurses and patients, saying all would be perfectly safe there, but alas I their house was in ashes with the general pile before sunset. Before dark, the Nichols family and Hospital party were on their wa}' to the prairie with all of their fortune that was left. Dr. Norman Bridge, then a professor in the College, found his way to this party in some inex- plicable manner, and relieved them of a helpless lit- tle girl. Mr. Nichols took one helpless patient, and the father of another came for her about dark. Tuesday morning, all that was left of the Hospi- tal party wound its way to the West Side and sought refuge with Dr. and !Mrs. Dyas, whose hearts were large enough to furnish a home for many families. In less than twenty-four hours, a message was sent from the Relief and Aid Society that "the Hospital was needed more than ever before, and that if Dr. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 51 Thompson would have the rent of some building secured, the Relief and Aid Society would provide for its maintenance; all the hospitals were so over- crowded that the patients could not be cared for." My friends, Mr. F. B. Gardner and his brother Ran- som, were found, and they very readily promised to pay the rent; the house at 598 West Adams Street was taken for the Hospital. The house, which now owned a pair of pillows, a pair of blankets, nine square feet of carpeting, and had one helpless pa- tient, was soon filled with the sick, burned and wounded, who fairly carpeted the floors, for they were sent before anything like bedsteads could be furnished. In the midst of this confusion and pov- erty of means to use in caring for these patients, the College was crowded into what was the parlor of the house, and lectures continued a month or two, when the Relief and Aid Society said the Hos- pital must go out on the prairie in barracks, corner of Throop and Harrison Streets, to accommodate more patients, and must include men. The College was then moved farther east into a student's parlor, on West Adams Street. The barracks were given up the succeeding spring, and the Hospital returned to the charge of its own organization. The Board of Management rented a house on 52 IN MEMO RI AM. Center Avenue until a permanent home could be found. In the spring of 1873, a house corner of Paulina and Adams Streets was purchased with $25,000 given by the Relief and Aid Society under certain conditions, one of which was that the Hos- pital should care continually for as many patients as the Society gave thousands of dollars. The house stood on the present Hospital ground, which is 130x150 feet. The Association raised the house and made in effect one story more with stone donated by r^Ir. Mancel Talcott. The faculty asked permission to bring forward and raise a barn which was located on the rear of the lot. The permit was granted, and rooms quite convenient for the classes of that time were made, and several classes were graduated from there. About 1884, it was learned by trial that it would be better to separate Hospital and College, and it was done; the College having elected an independ- ent Board of Trustees. They found a house on Lincoln Street, the present college locality. The Hospital was incorporated again with the name it had first borne, the Chicago Hospital for Women and Children. The old building, that was used and crowded until its walls seemed to be made of rub- ber, has gone the way of all animate and inanimate MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 53 things whose usefulness has ended, and, upon the same lot, a proud young structure is reared, that ac- commodates sixty patients comfortably, and can, by crowding, admit eighty; with a school for nurses numbering twenty-two. The structure was falling apart; its aneurysmal old water pipes were every now and then flooding walls and floors, notwithstanding the efforts to re- pair by the surgeon plumbers. The Hospital be- came so overcrowded, infirm and dilapidated, that Mrs. Mancel Talcott was solicited to give a sum for the beginning of a fund with which to build a new home. She said she would give $1,000 on the condition that if there was not money enough sub- scribed to erect a building, her subscription should be used for incurable patients. Others gave, and Mrs. Talcott added more to her first donation. Subscribers to the building fund were: Mrs. Man- cel Talcott, $13,000; Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Murray, $15,000; Mrs. P. D. Armour, $5,000; Mrs. C. M. Henderson, $1,000; N. B. Ream, $1,000; A. A. Munger, $1,000; Eugene S. Pike, $1,000; E. W. Blatchford, $500; Marshall Field, $500; H. H. Porter, $500; Henry Strong, $500; Robert D. Fowler, $250; J. W. Doane, $500; Mrs. W. S. Hen- derson, $500; Mrs. O. W. Potter, $500; C. R. Cum- 54 /-V ME MORI AM. mings. $500; S. A. Kent. S500; S. M. Xickerson, $250; ]Mr. and Mrs. C. H. S. ]\Iixer, S200; C. I. Munn, §100; T. S. Chard, Sicx); Henry S. Field, $100; Dr. C. Gilman Smith, $100; C W. and E. Pardridge, $100; Mrs. C. F. Pietsch, $100; Rock- well King, building material, $44.87; E. Baggot, building material, $75.00; Chicago Stone Dealers, building material, §234.33; W. E. Hale, on elevator, $1,250; Otto H. Matz, architect, $1,500; Architect Wadskier, arrangement of stone in old building; \Vm. Baragwanath & Son, patent water purifier and putting in, $250; Matt. Benner, fire escape, $300; George Tapper, services as builder. When money enough had been subscribed to justify the Trustees in beginning a new building, plans were drawn by several architects, and that of ]\Ir. Otto H. Alatz was chosen. Ground was broken September 6, 1884. The corner stone was laid October 8 of the same year. Ceremonies were opened with prayer by Professor Saving, and addresses were made by Rev. Dr. Wm. H. Ryder, Prof. Franklin \V. Fisk, Dr. Hosmer A. Johnson and Dr. Wm. E. Clarke. Others in attend- ance were the Board of Managers, Board of Trus- tees, architect, consulting and attending medical staff. The new building was completed, and pa- MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 55 tients were moved into it December 10, 1885. The value of the new building at the time of completion was $64,624.90. It is a five-story and basement brick structure, with the wards and the greater number of the private rooms on the south, and a beautiful ground in front. Private rooms were furnished by difTerent ladies, and named by the givers, as follows: "The Ad- ams," Mrs. J. MacGregor Adams; "The Armour," Mrs. Philip D. Armour; "The S. W. Allerton," Mrs. S. W. Allerton; "The Brown," Mrs. Susan L. Brown; "The C. M. Henderson," Mrs. C. M. Hen- derson; "The W. S. Henderson," Mrs. W. S. Hen- derson; "The Hall," Mrs. L. R. Hall; "The Mur- ray," Mrs. W. H. Murray; "The Matz," Mrs. Otto H. Matz; "The Pike," Mrs. E. S. Pike; "The Pietsch," Mrs. C. F. Pietsch ; "The Talcott," Mrs. Mancel Talcott; "The Blossom Villette," Mrs. Frank Villette; "The Gardner," Mrs. John Stock- ton, for her father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. F. B. Gardner; "The Brayton," Mr. John Hall, for Mrs. Sarah T. Brayton; "The King." Mrs. John A. King, for her daughter Agnes. Mr. and Mrs. Geo. Oberne furnished the chil- dren's ward. There are ten free beds in the wards, for the 56 IN MEMORIAM. support of each $300 is paid annually. Mrs. J. Mac- Gregor Adams, Mrs. O. W. Potter, Mrs. P. D. Ar- mour and the Central Church each support one; the Ryder Bequest supports two, and the Ryerson Be- quest supports four. In the children's ward there is one free bed, "The Florence McCready," for which Mrs. Lilla B. McCready has given $3,000. The Carter H. Harri- son heirs will pay $5,000 to endow a bed, "The Sophonisba Preston Harrison," in perpetuity and in memory of their mother. - Bequests that have been received are $14,000 and real estate to the value of $12,000 from the es- tate of Miss Julia Rosa Newberry, and $3,000 from Mrs. Julia M. Abbey. This money was used in the erection of the new building. Other bequests that have been reserved as an endowment are: Rev. Wm. H. Ryder, $10,000; Ryerson Charity Fund, from $400 to $1,700 annually; Mrs. Lilla B. McCready, $3,000; Carter H. Harrison heirs, $5,000; Dr. Charles G. Smith, $1,000; Jacob Petrie, Polo, 111., $400. The Dispensary was established with the Hos- pital and as a part of it. An assistant and myself performed the work alone the first six years. It was nearly broken up for a year after the lire of MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 5; 1871, but continued from the summer of 1873, and has grown with the Hospital since it was perma- nently located. Patients come from the most re- mote parts of the city and suburbs. It is now cared for by the attending staff of the Hospital, and has been since 1874. The whole number of patients treated from May 8, 1865, to January i, 1895, has been 35,128. The classes of cases are gynaecologi- cal, obstetrical, and medical and surgical of adults and children. It was not the design of this Hospital to admit incurables, but occasionally one comes that cannot be refused. Sometimes one has gone home well who was thought incurable when she came. Some have died before reaching the Hospital, and yet others have reached it in time to be cared for in their last days. It was the original design of the incorporators of the Hospital eventually to organize a school for nurses in connection with the care of the sick. It was not done, however, in the first years, because of limited means, limited room, and small number of patients. About the year 1874, some of the pa- trons and donors of the Hospital, especially Mrs. E. W. Blatchford, made requests that a school be established for nurses, A beginning was made, and 58 IN MEMO RI AM. women from outside were allowed to attend lec- tures, and, for practical instruction, to spend a cer- tain number of morning hours in the wards daily. This continued until the new building gave better facilities, and since then nurses whose only occupa- tion was nursing, and who could remain in the Hos- pital, have been much more satisfactorily taught. The school has grown with the increased patron- age until from twenty to twenty-five are required to care for the whole number of patients in the house. Over fifty graduates are in private practice in this city and in other States, and prove most acceptable to the profession and the people employing them. Each undergraduate nurse is required to serve in the several departments for two years, in this way, getting the practical instruction which she must have to perfect herself as a nurse. She learns how to secure cleanliness and rest for wounds; how temporarily to stop hemorrhage, whether from acci- dental or pathological wounds; surgical cleanliness in all departments, and particularly in gynaecological surgery; the hygiene of hospitals and hospital wards; the best diet in different diseases, and how to give food with certain kinds of medicine; also, how best to prepare the more common foods for the sick; and to watch and care thoroughly for her patients, yet to economize her own strength. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON. 59 We cannot close the history of the Hospital without mention of one of the important parts of its work, which has not yet been referred to. It is affording the advantages of the Hospital work to internes, women graduates of medicine, who do much of the work under the direction of the differ- ent members of the attending staff. It is really a post-graduate course to them. Each graduate comes for a year, and spends the first four months in the drug room; the second four months as house physician; the third, as externe, visiting charity patients at their homes, and either prescribing and taking the whole responsibility of her cases, or, if she wishes, asking the advice of some member of the staff. These women go as physicians into the homes of the poor, and do many things for their improvement besides administering medicines for a present illness. They can teach hygiene in the everyday life and in the convalescence of the sick. From this Hospital they have gone to larger clinics in New York and Europe, in the various post-grad- uate schools, for a yet wider experience in observa- tion. Others have gone to asylums as physicians or assistants. Talented women have also gone out from here to practice in thirteen different States, to New Mexico, Corea, China and India. '-'\