Eli Ives (February 7, 1779 – October 8, 1861) was an American physician. He was son of Dr Levi and Lydia (Auger) Ives, and was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, February 7, 1779. He graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

in 1799. The two years after his graduation he spent as Rector of the

Hopkins Grammar School Hopkins School is a private, college-preparatory, coeducational, day school for grades 7–12 located in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1660, Edward Hopkins, seven-time governor of the Connecticut Colony, bequeathed a portion of his estate to found s ...

in New Haven, at the same time studying medicine partly with his father and partly with Dr. Aeneas Munson. At a subsequent period he attended in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

the lectures of Drs

Benjamin Rush Benjamin Rush (April 19, 1813) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and a civic leader in Philadelphia, where he was a physician, politician, ...

and

Caspar Wistar Caspar Wistar may refer to: * Caspar Wistar (glassmaker) (1696–1752), Pennsylvania glassmaker and landowner * Caspar Wistar (physician) Caspar Wistar (September 13, 1761January 22, 1818) was an American physician and anatomist. He is sometim ...

. In 1801 he began to practice his profession in New Haven, and was continuously engaged in a widely extended field, during a period of over fifty years His eminence as a physician was recognized throughout the state, and even beyond its limits. He was one of the originators of the

Yale School of Medicine The Yale School of Medicine is the graduate medical school at Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was founded in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College and formally opened in 1813. The primary te ...

, and at its organization in 1813, was appointed one of the first five professors. He held the chair of Materia Medica and Botany for sixteen years till in 1829 he was transferred to the chair of the Theory and Practice of Medicine. In 1853 he ceased to be actively engaged in the Institution, and was named by the Corporation, Professor Emeritus. He was one of the founders of the New Haven Medical Association, and an active member of the Connecticut State Medical Society and many other local associations. In 1860, the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...

at its meeting in New Haven, elected him President. While Professor in the Medical College he expended much time and effort in the maintenance of a Botanical Garden. He published four articles in early volumes of the ''

American Journal of Science The ''American Journal of Science'' (''AJS'') is the United States of America's longest-running scientific journal, having been published continuously since its conception in 1818 by Professor Benjamin Silliman, who edited and financed it himself ...

'', an Oration before the

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

Society in 1802, and an address before the New Haven Horticultural Society in 1837. He married, Sept. 17, 1805, Maria, daughter of Deacon Nathan Beers, and had three sons and two daughters. He was honored and beloved for his eminent attainments and his many Christian virtues. He died in New Haven, Conn., October 8, 1861, aged 82. A commemorative discourse was delivered at his funeral, by Rev. Dr. Dutton, and was printed in the '' New Englander'', (Oct. 1861) and as a separate pamphlet.

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