Dr. William Patton Thornton (February 6, 1817 – October 10, 1883) was a physician, educator, author, and politician.

Education and career

Thorton graduated from Kemper's Medical College in

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

and

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 unive ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

. After graduation he spent five years in

Houston, Mississippi Houston is a city in and one of two county seats of Chickasaw County, Mississippi, Chickasaw County, in northern Mississippi, United States. The population was 3,623 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History Native Americans in the ...

, where he began to specialize in diseases of the trachea and larynx. In 1847, Thornton returned to Ohio and established a practice. He began a long affiliation with the Cincinnati Hospital and the

University of Cincinnati College of Medicine The University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center (AHC) is a collection of health colleges and institutions of the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio. It trains health care professionals and provides research and patient care. AHC has st ...

, where he was chair of the Anatomy and Physiology Department. Thornton published papers on choleraThe Cholera Epidemic of 1873 in the United States. United States Surgeon General’s Office, G.P.O., 1875. and laryngology. After retiring from practice in 1877, Thornton served as mayor of College Hill, Ohio, until his death. He was buried in

Spring Grove Cemetery Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum () is a nonprofit rural cemetery and arboretum located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the third largest cemetery in the United States, after the Calverton National Cemetery and Abraham ...

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...

Family

In 1841, William Thornton married Electa Bacon in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

. He was cousin to Samuel W. Thornton and

James Johnston Thornton James Johnston Thornton (November 24, 1816, in Highland County, Ohio – February 29, 1884 Guadalupe County, Texas) was a prominent military reconstruction judge, land developer, and quartermaster of the Union Army. He was also the uncle of fame ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thornton, William Patton 1817 births People from Hillsboro, Ohio Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery 1883 deaths People from Logansport, Indiana People from Houston, Mississippi