James Craik (; 17276 February 1814) was Physician General (precursor of the Surgeon General) of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

, as well as

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

's personal physician and close friend.

Biography

Education and emigration to America

Born on the estate of

Arbigland Arbigland in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, lies on the coast of the Solway Firth, to the south-east of Kirkbean. It is the birthplace of John Paul Jones, the United States' first well-known naval co ...

in the parish of Kirkbean, County of Kirkcudbright,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, Craik was the illegitimate son of William Craik, 1703 -1798, an agricultural pioneer and landowner. His half-sister, Helen, writes that he was about six years old at the time of his father's marriage in 1733. He studied medicine at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

, then joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

after graduation and served as an army surgeon in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

until 1751. Craik then opened up a private medical practice in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia B ...

, and shortly thereafter relocated to

Winchester, Virginia Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...

French and Indian War career

On 7 March 1754, Craik resumed his military career, accepting a commission as a surgeon in Colonel

Joshua Fry Colonel Joshua Fry (1699–1754) was an English-born American adventurer who became a professor, then real estate investor and local official in the colony of Virginia. Although he served several terms in the House of Burgesses, he may be best kn ...

's Virginia Provincial Regiment. While with this force, he became good friends with George Washington, at that time a lieutenant colonel in the regiment. Craik saw a great deal of action in various battles of the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the st ...

. He fought at the

Battle of the Great Meadows The Battle of Fort Necessity, also known as the Battle of the Great Meadows, took place on July 3, 1754, in what is now Farmington in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. The engagement, along with the May 28 skirmish known as the Battle of Jumonvil ...

and participated in the surrender of Fort Necessity, then accompanied General

Edward Braddock Major-General Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europ ...

on Braddock's unsuccessful attempt to recapture the region in 1755, treating Braddock's ultimately fatal wounds. Craik then served under Washington in actions in Virginia and Maryland, during various engagements with Indians.

Between the wars

After the war's end, Craik opened another medical practice at Port Tobacco, Maryland, and on 13 November 1760, he married Mariamne Ewell at her family's estate, Bel Air, located in

Prince William County, Virginia Prince William County is located on the Potomac River in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 482,204, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manass ...

. Marriamne would later become the great-aunt of

Richard S. Ewell Richard Stoddert Ewell (February 8, 1817 – January 25, 1872) was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Le ...

.Hayden, Horace (1891) 979 ''Virginia Genealogies. A Genealogy of the Glassell Family of Scotland and Virginia.'' Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., pp. 333–354 They had six sons and three daughters. In 1760, he moved to

Charles County, Maryland Charles County is a county in Southern Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. Charles County is part of the W ...

, where in 1765, he built La Grange near

La Plata, Maryland La Plata is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 10,159 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Charles County. History According to an unconfirmed local story, the town was named by one Colonel Samuel Chap ...

. In both 1770 and 1784, he went on surveying expeditions with Washington, examining military claims in Pennsylvania and what is now

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

Revolutionary War career

With the outbreak of hostilities during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

, Craik once more rejoined the army. He served as an army surgeon, ultimately advancing to the second-highest post in army medicine. Craik warned Washington about the plots of the

Conway Cabal The Conway Cabal was a group of senior Continental Army officers in late 1777 and early 1778 who aimed to have George Washington replaced as commander-in-chief of the Army during the American Revolutionary War. It was named after Brigadier Gene ...

, and treated the wounds of General Hugh Mercer at the

Battle of Princeton The Battle of Princeton was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, fought near Princeton, New Jersey on January 3, 1777, and ending in a small victory for the Colonials. General Lord Cornwallis had left 1,400 British troops under the comman ...

and Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette at the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, Sir William Howe on September& ...

. Mercer died of his wounds, but La Fayette was more fortunate. At the conclusion of the war, Craik was admitted as an original member of The

Society of the Cincinnati The Society of the Cincinnati is a fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of military officers wh ...

of Maryland. Washington persuaded him to move his practice to

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...

, where he built his house

Vaucluse Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Quasi-War The Quasi-War (french: Quasi-guerre) was an undeclared naval war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and the French First Republic, primarily in the Caribbean and off the East Coast of the United States. The ability of Congress ...

against France, installing him as Physician General of the Army on 19 June of that year. After the conclusion of hostilities, Craik mustered out on 15 June 1800. His grandson, who was named after him, would build his house Elm Grove, later renamed the Craik-Patton House, on a tract of land awarded to Dr. Craik as payment for his service in the Revolutionary War.

At Washington's death

As Washington's personal physician, Craik was one of three doctors to attend on him during his final illness on 14 December 1799. Washington complained of respiratory distress, described by Craik as " cynanche trachealis". When Washington proved unable to swallow medicines orally, Craik and the other two physicians (Dr.

Elisha C. Dick Elisha Cullen Dick, M.D. (March 15, 1762 – September 22, 1825) was a Virginia physician and political figure. He was the attending physician at George Washington's death. Dr. Dick at times represented Fairfax County in the Virginia House of ...

and Dr. Gustavus Richard Brown) treated his condition with

bloodletting Bloodletting (or blood-letting) is the withdrawal of blood from a patient to prevent or cure illness and disease. Bloodletting, whether by a physician or by leeches, was based on an ancient system of medicine in which blood and other bodily f ...

, the application of various

poultice A poultice, also called a cataplasm, is a soft moist mass, often heated and medicated, that is spread on cloth and placed over the skin to treat an aching, inflamed, or painful part of the body. It can be used on wounds, such as cuts. 'Poultice ...

s, and a rectal solution of calomel and

tartar Tartar may refer to: Places * Tartar (river), a river in Azerbaijan * Tartar, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons * Tərtər, capital of Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar Island, South Shetland Islands, A ...

. Washington's condition continued to deteriorate, but Craik and Brown decided against Dick's suggestion of a

tracheotomy Tracheotomy (, ), or tracheostomy, is a surgical airway management procedure which consists of making an incision (cut) on the anterior aspect (front) of the neck and opening a direct airway through an incision in the trachea (windpipe). The r ...

(which might have been lifesaving, but likely would have spread the infection and caused sepsis), and Washington died at 10:10 p.m. Brown and Craik co-published an account of their treatment in December 1800. Craik died in Alexandria in 1814; he is buried in the graveyard of the Old Presbyterian Meeting House in that city.

Sources

*Pilcher, James Evelyn.: ''The Surgeon Generals of the Army of the United States of America: A Series of Biographical Sketches of the Senior Officers of the Military Medical Service from the American Revolution to the Philippine Pacification'' (1905)pp. 21–24
James Craik
, The United States Office of Medical History, Retrieved 20 May 2006.

*" ttp://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2005_winter_spring/washingtons_death.htm A Physician Looks At The Death of Washington, Vibul V. Vadakan, M.D., ''Early American Review'', Retrieved 20 December 2008.
''James Craik'', Office of Medical History, Surgeon General
* Letters of his daughter Helen Craik in "Farmer's Magazine – A Periodical Work Exclusively Devoted to Agriculture and Rural Affairs," published in Edinburgh in 1811.

References

External links

The Society of the Cincinnati

The American Revolution Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craik, James 1730 births 1814 deaths United States Army officers Surgeons General of the United States Army Physicians in the American Revolution People of Virginia in the French and Indian War Alumni of the University of Edinburgh American surgeons British Army regimental surgeons Continental Army staff officers Scottish soldiers Scottish surgeons Kingdom of Scotland emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies Virginia colonial people People of colonial Maryland People of Maryland in the American Revolution People from Dumfries and Galloway People from Port Tobacco Village, Maryland British America army officers Burials in Virginia 18th-century American physicians