Ernest Sachs Jr. (October 2, 1916 – December 3, 2001) was an American neurosurgeon. The great-grandson of

Goldman Sachs Goldman Sachs () is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered at 200 West Street in Lower Manhattan, with regional headquarters in London, Warsaw, Bangalore, H ...

's founder, he was a neurosurgeon at Dartmouth College's Hitchcock Medical Center for 30 years. He promoted the use of the seat belt from the early 1960s onward. He researched the cause of schizophrenia as well as Ramsay Hunt syndrome, brain tumors and head injuries.

Early life

Ernest Sachs Jr. was born on October 2, 1916, in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

. His father,

Ernest Sachs Ernest Sachs (January 25, 1879 – December 2, 1958) was an American neurosurgeon. The grandson of Goldman Sachs's founder, he became Professor of Neurosurgery at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri in 1919. He was ...

, was a neurosurgeon. His mother,

Mary Sachs Mary Sachs (1882-1973) was an American playwright and poet. Biography Mary Sachs was born Mary Parmly Koues in 1882. She graduated from Smith College in 1912, where she was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. Sachs published her first pla ...

, was a playwright and poet. He had a brother, Thomas D. Sachs, who became a professor of physics at the University of Vermont. Sachs's great-grandfather, Marcus Goldman, was the founder of

. Sachs was educated at the St. Louis Country Day School in St. Louis. He graduated from Harvard University in 1938, and he received a medical degree from the Harvard Medical School in 1942. He was an intern under the supervisions of Drs

Barney Brooks Barney Brooks (December 17, 1884 – March 30, 1952) was an American physician and surgeon. He was a medical educator, particularly in surgical residency training, and was known for his research in orthopedics, intestinal obstruction, and vascular ...

and

Cobb Pilcher Cobb may refer to: People * Cobb (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Cobb * Cobb Rooney (1900–1973), American professional football running back Places New Zealand * Cobb River * Cobb Reservoir * Cobb Power S ...

at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Sachs joined the United States Army by the end of World War II, landing in Normandy in June 1944. He served in the Battle of the Bulge, and he was present at the liberation of the

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; literally 'beech forest') was a Nazi concentration camp established on hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within Germany's 1937 borders. Many actual or su ...

. He was the recipient of the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for his service.

Career

Sachs started his career as assistant professor of Neurosurgery and Neurology at Tulane University. One year later, he became a neurosurgeon at the

Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC), the flagship campus of the Dartmouth Health system, is the U.S. state of New Hampshire's only academic medical center. DHMC is a 422-inpatient bed hospital and serves as a major tertiary-care referral ...

on the campus of Dartmouth College in 1950. He subsequently served as the chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Dartmouth College. He was a visiting professor of neurology at

Ankara University Ankara University ( tr, Ankara Üniversitesi) is a public university in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the formation of the republic in 1923. The university has 40 vocat ...

in Turkey in the Spring semester of 1966. He served as a physician at the

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

. Sachs researched the cause of schizophrenia. He also studied the Ramsay Hunt syndrome and its impact on the geniculate ganglion. Additionally, he studied the presence of the

acetylcholine Acetylcholine (ACh) is an organic chemical that functions in the brain and body of many types of animals (including humans) as a neurotransmitter. Its name is derived from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline. Part ...

in the cerebrospinal fluid, and he "discovered serotonin in cases of brain tumors". Moreover, after seeing many cases of head injuries due to ski falls, Sachs researched materials to create protective helmets and reduce the risks of injuries. Sachs supported the use of the

seat belt A seat belt (also known as a safety belt, or spelled seatbelt) is a vehicle safety device designed to secure the driver or a passenger of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result during a collision or a sudden stop. A seat belt reduc ...

in cars as early as 1963. By 1972, he was appointed to the New Hampshire Traffic Safety Commission. Additionally, he served as the president of the New England Neurosurgical Society. He was a Fellow of the

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

Personal life and death

Sachs married Jeanne O'Sullivan in 1943. They had four sons (Ernest Sachs, Christopher Sachs, James Sachs, and Robert D. Sachs) and two daughters (Ann Sachs and Patricia Sachs). They resided in Hanover, New Hampshire from 1950 to his death. Sachs was a member of the Harvard Club of New Hampshire, the Norford Lake Club, the Adirondack Forty-Sixers, and the

Mars Society The Mars Society is a nonprofit organization that advocates for human Mars exploration and colonization, founded by Robert Zubrin in 1998. It is based on Zubrin's Mars Direct plan, which aims to make human mission to Mars as lightweight and fe ...

. Sachs died on December 3, 2001. His funeral was held at the Rollins Chapel in Hanover, New Hampshire on December 8, 2001.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sachs, Ernest Jr. 1916 births 2001 deaths American people of German-Jewish descent People from St. Louis People from Hanover, New Hampshire Harvard Medical School alumni Tulane University faculty Dartmouth College faculty American neurosurgeons Deaths from leukemia in the United States 20th-century surgeons