Frederick Haven Pratt (19 July 1873 – 11 July 1958) was an American physiologist and served as a professor at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

from 1921 to his retirement. He contributed to early experimental studies on the electrical stimulation of muscles, developing techniques and instrumentation for the purpose. Pratt was born in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

where his father Frederick Sumner was a prominent businessman, and Sarah McKean née Hilliard. He went to local preparatory schools, receiving an AB (1896) and AM (1898) before joining Harvard University for his master's degree. Here he worked on the role of the veins of Thebesius in heart nutrition, examining also the historical views of

Emanuel Swedenborg Emanuel Swedenborg (, ; born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, ''Heaven and Hell'' (1758). Swedenborg had ...

. He also went to study briefly at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

and returned to work at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. In 1901 he joined as an assistant at Harvard University and received an MD in 1906. Prominent influences included his teacher

John Farquhar Fulton John Farquhar Fulton (November 1, 1899 – May 29, 1960) was an American neurophysiologist and historian of science. He received numerous degrees from Oxford University and Harvard University. He taught at Magdalen College School of Medicine at ...

. He taught at Wellesley College until 1912 and moved to the University of Buffalo. Pratt examined muscle fibre contraction and confirmed the "all-or-none" principle using techniques that he adapted. This included a capillary electrode with a pore of 8µ to stimulate single muscle fibres from a frog. He served as an honorary professor at Clark University and as a teaching fellow at Harvard. He became a professor at the University of Boston in 1921 and continued thereafter, retiring emeritus in 1942. He later headed Harvard Apparatus Company that produced instruments for physiology research. Pratt married Margery Willard Davis (1887-1964) in 1912 and they had five children. Pratt also took a keen interest in creative photography and sailing. His photographs were entered into the 1904 Toronto salon and at other exhibitions.

Alfred Stieglitz Alfred Stieglitz (January 1, 1864 – July 13, 1946) was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. In addition to his photography, Stieglitz was kno ...

included his photographs in various exhibitions associated with the Photo Secession. Pratt also took an interest in history and apart from medical history, he examined life during the Revolutionary period.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Frederick Haven 1873 births 1958 deaths American physiologists People from Worcester, Massachusetts Harvard University alumni Boston University School of Medicine faculty