Dr. Caroline M. McGill (1879–1959) was a co-founder of the

Museum of the Rockies Museum of the Rockies is a museum in Bozeman, Montana. Originally affiliated with Montana State University in Bozeman, and now also, the Smithsonian Institution, the museum is largely known for its paleontological collections. The Museum houses ...

Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of th ...

, the first pathologist for the state of Montana and the first successful female doctor in

Butte, Montana Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the ...

Early life

Caroline M. McGill was born on a farm in Mansfield, Ohio and was one of five children. Her father was a farmer and music teacher and her mother was a midwife. Although later living on a hardscrabble farm on the Missouri Ozarks, Caroline's parents were strong supporters of higher education for all their children and Caroline received her Teaching Certificate from Lebanon Normal School in 1901. She used this certificate and teaching knowledge to support herself as an instructor at University of Missouri Medical School teaching pathology 1901 through 1909 while working on her Bachelors, Masters and Ph.D. degrees.

Awards

In 1909, McGill graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a Ph.D. in Anatomy and Physiology. In 1909, Caroline was honored as the first recipient of the

Sarah Berliner Research Fellowship The Sarah Berliner Research Fellowship for Women was established in 1908 by Emile Berliner in honor of his mother, and first awarded in 1909. The fellowship was award biennially and provided $1200 to support a woman studying physics, chemistry, or ...

, an endowment that paid for a year of study in Europe, with the opportunity to meet and study with authoritative persons in her field of Zoological science. Caroline studied at University of Berlin in Germany, University of Tübingen in Germany, and

Naples Zoological Station The Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn is a research institute in Naples, Italy, devoted to basic research in biology. Research is largely interdisciplinary involving the fields of evolution, biochemistry, molecular biology, neurobiology, cell bio ...

in Italy. In 1955, McGill was awarded an honorary doctorate by Montana State College for her “accomplishments in the medical field and in historic and wilderness preservation.”https://arc.lib.montana.edu/finding-aids/item/866?_ga=2.143429937.569170859.1588703875-1532162343.1567003171. Montana State University Library. Special Collections and Archives. The Butte Business and Professional Women’s Club awarded McGill as “Woman of the Year” in 1955.

Publications

* The Effect of Low Temperatures on Hydra. McGill, Caroline. ''Biological Bulletin'', , 01/1908, Volume 14, Issue 2, pp. 78–88 * The structure of smooth muscle in the resting and in the contracted condition. McGill, Caroline. ''American Journal of Anatomy'', , 1909, Volume 9, Issue 1, pp. 493–562 * The early histogenesis of striated muscle in the esophagus of the pig and the dogfish. McGill, Caroline. ''The Anatomical Record'', , 01/1910, Volume 4, Issue 1, pp. 23–47 * The effect of contraction on the volume of the smooth muscle nucleus. McGill, Caroline. ''The Anatomical Record'', , 12/1909, Volume 3, Issue 12, pp. 633–635 * The chromosomes of anasa tristis and anax junius. Lefevre, George and McGill, Caroline. ''American Journal of Anatomy'', , 02/1908, Volume 7, Issue 4, pp. 469–487 * Blood Urea Determinations in 211 Cases. Schwartz, Harold and McGill, Caroline. ''Archives of Internal Medicine'', , 01/1916, Volume XVII, Issue 1, p. 42 * Abstracts. Corson, Eugene R; McGill, Caroline; Kirk, Edwin G; Coghill, G. E; Pohlman, A. G; Retzer, Robert. ''The Anatomical Record'', , 07/1908, Volume 2, Issue 4, pp. 143–156

Dr. McGill

While traveling in Europe on the Sarah Berliner Fellowship, she was asked to come to Montana to become a pathologist there; after returning from her studies in Europe, Caroline moved to Butte, Montana to become the state's first pathologist (1911–13), working extensively as an advocate for tuberculosis patient and community health initiatives. Dr. McGill’s pathology efforts related to Butte

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, ...

s and the Butte community's ongoing battle with tuberculosis prompted her to work with Montana's antituberculosis organizations; the Montana Tuberculosis Association and an organizer of the Butte Anit-Tuberculosis Society. McGill was also an outdoor recreationalist. Not only did she treat the miners of Butte, but she also hunted and enjoyed outdoor life with them. In her diary, she wrote, “never was any older woman more differently or more kindly treated...the relaxation of this outdoor life made it possible for me to carry on my heavy practice in Butte.” https://www.lib.montana.edu/archives/finding-aids/0945.html?_ga=2.211015057.569170859.1588703875-1532162343.1567003171#1. Montana State University Library. Special Collections and Archives. Box 1. Folder 3.

Later years

The meadow's such a busy place, Christmas Card from the 320 Ranch

After retiring from her medical practice in 1956, she started working with Dr.

Merrill G. Burlingame Merrill G. Burlingame (March 13, 1901 – November 14, 1994) was a history professor at Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana who specialized in Montana history and the history of the American West. He was instrumental in the founding ...

in 1957, donating to the people of Montana the remarkable gift of her large collection of artifacts, collectible antiques, her personal and professional papers, and her time to catalog all the materials; the two became co-founders of the

References

External links

Caroline McGill MSU Special Collections
Birth and death dates from this external source {{DEFAULTSORT:McGill, Caroline M. 1879 births 1959 deaths Physicians from Ohio People from Butte, Montana University of Missouri alumni American women physicians Johns Hopkins School of Medicine alumni