John Hill Brinton (May 21, 1832 – March 18, 1907) was an American surgeon. Brinton was the first child of George and Mary Margaret (Smith) Brinton of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 ...

. He graduated from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

in 1850, and from the

Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

in 1852, finishing with an A.M. degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1853 and an LL.D. in 1901. He commenced a general practice in Philadelphia in 1853. He served in the capacity of a brigadier surgeon in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, later as a member of General

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

's staff. Surgeon General

William Alexander Hammond William Alexander Hammond (28 August 1828 – 5 January 1900) was an American military physician and neurologist. During the American Civil War he was the eleventh Surgeon General of the United States Army (1862–1864) and the founder of the Ar ...

made him the first

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

of the

National Museum of Health and Medicine The National Museum of Health and Medicine (NMHM) is a museum in Silver Spring, Maryland, near Washington, DC. The museum was founded by U.S. Army Surgeon General William A. Hammond as the Army Medical Museum (AMM) in 1862; it became the NMHM in ...

. After the war, he returned to Philadelphia and resumed practice as a surgeon. In 1866, he married Sarah Ward (who also posed for Eakins), with whom he would father six children. Brinton was also friends of painter

Thomas Eakins Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (; July 25, 1844 – June 25, 1916) was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the most important American artists. For the length ...

. Brinton succeeded Dr.

Samuel D. Gross Samuel David Gross (July 8, 1805 – May 6, 1884) was an American academic trauma surgeon. Surgeon biographer Isaac Minis Hays called Gross "The Nestor of American Surgery." He is immortalized in Thomas Eakins' ''The Gross Clinic'' (1875), a ...

(who was featured in

' ''

The Gross Clinic ''The Gross Clinic'' or ''The Clinic of Dr. Gross'' is an 1875 painting by American artist Thomas Eakins. It is oil on canvas and measures by . The painting depicts Dr. Samuel D. Gross, a seventy-year-old professor dressed in a black frock coat, ...

''), in the chair of surgery at Jefferson College, and also served as the chairman of the

Mütter Museum The Mütter Museum is a medical museum located in the Center City area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It contains a collection of anatomical and pathological specimens, wax models, and antique medical equipment. The museum is part of The Coll ...

Committee of the

College of Physicians of Philadelphia The College of Physicians of Philadelphia is the oldest private medical society in the United States. Founded in 1787 by 24 Philadelphia physicians "to advance the Science of Medicine, and thereby lessen human misery, by investigating the disease ...

. He also founded the Philadelphia Pathological Society, and served as the first curator of the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

In 1886, he was elected as a member to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. Brinton died in 1907, and is buried in the cemetery at

The Woodlands (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) The Woodlands is a National Historic Landmark District on the west bank of the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia. It includes a Federal-style mansion, a matching carriage house and stable, and a garden landscape that in 1840 was transformed into a ...

References

* John Hill Brinton. . Shawnee Classics reprint. SIU Press, 1996, 361 p. * Schoonover, Jametta Wright, ed. ''The Brinton Genealogy: A History of William Brinton who came from England to Chester County, Pennsylvania in 1684 and of his descendants.'' Trenton, New Jersey: MacCrellish & Quigley Company, 1925, 362–364. {{DEFAULTSORT:Brinton, John H 1832 births 1907 deaths American surgeons Physicians from Philadelphia Members of the American Philosophical Society

See also

References