Lewis Atterbury Stimson (August 24, 1844 – September 17, 1917 ) was an American surgeon who was the first to perform a public operation in the United States using
Joseph Lister
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister, (5 April 182710 February 1912) was a British surgeon, medical scientist, experimental pathologist and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery and preventative medicine. Joseph Lister revolutionised the craft of ...
's
antiseptic
An antiseptic (from Greek ἀντί ''anti'', "against" and σηπτικός ''sēptikos'', "putrefactive") is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putre ...
technique.
Early life
Stimson was born on August 24, 1844 in Paterson, New Jersey. His parents were Henry Clark Stimson (1813–1894) and Julia Maria (
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Atterbury) Stimson (1819–1908). His siblings included Henry A. Stimson (1843–1936), Catherine Boudinot Stimson Weston (1846–1942), Mary Atterbury Stimson (1848–1928), John Ward Stimson (1850–1930), William Frank Stimson (1853–1872), Frederick Julian Stimson (1856–1926), and Julia Josephine Stimson (1861–1933), who was married to Dr. Henry Patterson Loomis. He was the uncle of
Alfred Lee Loomis
Alfred Lee Loomis (November 4, 1887 – August 11, 1975) was an American attorney, investment banker, philanthropist, scientist, physicist, inventor of the LORAN Long Range Navigation System and a lifelong patron of scientific research. He estab ...
(1887–1975), the inventor of the
LORAN
LORAN, short for long range navigation, was a hyperbolic radio navigation system developed in the United States during World War II. It was similar to the UK's Gee system but operated at lower frequencies in order to provide an improved range ...
In 1866, after marrying, he entered the banking office of his father and in 1867, became a member of the New York Stock Exchange. He remained active in business until 1871.
antiseptic
An antiseptic (from Greek ἀντί ''anti'', "against" and σηπτικός ''sēptikos'', "putrefactive") is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putre ...
technique. In December 1883, Stimson operated on former president
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 A ...
's leg.
In 1898, Stimson wrote the charter of Cornell's new medical school, the Cornell University Medical College. He was instrumental in obtaining, along with William Mecklenburg Polk (1844–1918), the medical school's first dean, a gift of $1.5 million from Col.
Oliver Hazard Payne
Oliver Hazard Payne (July 21, 1839 – June 27, 1917) was an American businessman, organizer of the American Tobacco trust, and assisted with the formation of U.S. Steel, and was affiliated with Standard Oil.
Early life
Oliver Hazard Payne wa ...
to open the new medical college. Stimson was also a professor of surgery at the Cornell Medical College. He made advances in techniques for abdominal surgery and is attributed with developing the Stimson maneuver for reducing a dislocated shoulder or hip, which he described in the article, "An Easy Method of Reducing Dislocations of the Shoulder and Hip", published in ''New York Medical Record'' in 1900.
He was a member of the American Surgical Society, New York Medical Society, the County Medical Society, the Medical-Surgery Society. He was also a member of the Century Club,
New York Yacht Club
The New York Yacht Club (NYYC) is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. ...
New York Yacht Club
The New York Yacht Club (NYYC) is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. ...
, docked his yacht, ''Fleur-De-Lis'', in Palermo, Italy. In February 1905, he entered his yacht in the
Kaiser's Cup
Kaiser's Cup was a yachting race across the Atlantic between Sandy Hook, New Jersey (USA) and The Lizard (Cornwall, England). This was a famous sailing race of the day, and was won by the yacht '' Atlantic'' which held the record for nearly a centu ...
.
In June 1905, Stimson was a dinner guest aboard the yacht, '' Hohenzollern'', of
Emperor Wilhelm II
, house = Hohenzollern
, father = Frederick III, German Emperor
, mother = Victoria, Princess Royal
, religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United)
, signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg
Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...
along with
Robert Goelet
Robert Goelet Jr. (September 29, 1841 – April 27, 1899) was an American heir, businessman and yachtsman from New York City during the Gilded Age.
Early life
Robert Goelet was born on September 29, 1841 in Manhattan, New York City, to Sarah ...
.
Personal life
In 1866, Stimson was married to Candace Thurber Wheeler (1845–1876), the daughter of Thomas Mason Wheeler (1818-1895) and Candace Thurber Wheeler (1827–1923). They had met in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784. His biographer wrote that "his devotion to her began with their first meeting, and lasted as long as his life. It was the mainspring of much of the tenderness and compassion that marked his relation to humanity." Lewis and Candace were the parents of:
* Henry Lewis Stimson (1867–1950), Secretary of State in Herbert Hoover's Administration as well as Secretary of War in the William Howard Taft Administration and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Administration.
* Candace C. Stimson (1869–1944), who helped administer the anti-tetanus serum around Europe during World War I with her father.
In a memorial written for Stimson after his death,
Edward Lawrence Keyes
Edward Lawrence Keyes (August 28, 1843 – January 24, 1924) was a leading American urologist of the late 19th century and the first president of the American Association of Genitourinary Surgeons at its founding in 1888.
Life
Keyes, a son of Ge ...
(1843–1924) wrote about Stimson and his wife:
"Dr. Stimson impressed me as a man of very deep feeling which he kept under perfect restraint. He once drove me to Woodlawn Cemetery where he looked over his wife's grave. He spoke briefly but feelingly. I asked him how he ever survived such a loss. He replied, 'By years of constant, grinding work.'."
Edward Lawrence Keyes
Edward Lawrence Keyes (August 28, 1843 – January 24, 1924) was a leading American urologist of the late 19th century and the first president of the American Association of Genitourinary Surgeons at its founding in 1888.
Life
Keyes, a son of Ge ...