Augustus W. Stinchfield (December 21, 1842 – March 15, 1917) was an American physician and one of the co-founders—along with Drs. Charles Horace Mayo,

William James Mayo William James Mayo (June 29, 1861 – July 28, 1939) was a physician and surgeon in the United States and one of the seven founders of the Mayo Clinic. He and his brother, Charles Horace Mayo, both joined their father's private medical practic ...

, Christopher Graham, E. Starr Judd,

Henry Stanley Plummer Henry Stanley Plummer ( – ) was an American internist and endocrinologist who, along with William Mayo, Charles Mayo, Augustus Stinchfield, E. Starr Judd, Christopher Graham, and Donald Balfour founded Mayo Clinic. Plummer is also immortal ...

, Melvin Millet and

Donald Balfour Donald Church Balfour (August 22, 1882 – July 25, 1963) was a Canadian medical educator and surgeon who specialized in gastrointestinal surgery. He worked at the Mayo Clinic from 1907 until 1947, and was director of the Mayo Foundation for Medic ...

—of the

Mayo Clinic The Mayo Clinic () is a nonprofit American academic medical center focused on integrated health care, education, and research. It employs over 4,500 physicians and scientists, along with another 58,400 administrative and allied health staf ...

in Rochester,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

Life and career

Stinchfield was born in Phillips,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

and received his early education in the nearby town of

Strong Strong may refer to: Education * The Strong, an educational institution in Rochester, New York, United States * Strong Hall (Lawrence, Kansas), an administrative hall of the University of Kansas * Strong School, New Haven, Connecticut, United S ...

. He moved from Maine to

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

as a young man and, in 1864, enlisted as a private in Company F of the Thirty-ninth Wisconsin Volunteer Army. After the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

, he attended

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

and the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. He received his M.D. degree from Bowdoin College in 1868. After practicing medicine in Verona, Missouri, as well as

Dundas Dundas may refer to: Places Australia * Dundas, New South Wales * Dundas, Queensland, a locality in the Somerset Region * Dundas, Tasmania * Dundas, Western Australia * Fort Dundas, a settlement in the Northern Territory 1824–1828 * Shire ...

and Eyota, Minnesota, Stinchfield was asked by William Worrall Mayo to join the Mayos' practice in 1892. William Worrall Mayo was retiring and wanted a mid-career physician to balance the growing private practice. While the Mayo brothers excelled in surgery, Stinchfield was well qualified to handle the non-surgical duties of the practice. When Will Mayo approached the remaining partners in 1915 about changing the private practice to a not-for-profit practice, Stinchfield was the first to sign the agreement. When the remaining partners signed the transfer papers, this gift insured the long-term survival, development and growth of the Mayo Clinic.

Bibliography

* "Psychological influences in health and disease", ''Tr. Minnesota State Medical Society'', 1875, pp. 30–40 * "Sciatic neuritis", ''Northwest. Lancet'', 14:184, 1894 * "Gastritis", ''Northwest. Lancet'', 15:321–324, 1895 * "The treatment of pleurisy", ''Northwest. Lancet'', 16:395, 1896 * "Nervous syndroms of Bright's disease", ''Northwest. Lancet'', 16:449, 1896 * "Bronchitis and its complications", ''Northwest. Lancet'', 17:452–455, 1897 * "Cardiac dilation", ''St. Paul Med. Jour.'' 2:610–615, 1900

References

* Clapesattle, Helen. ''The Doctors Mayo'', University of Minnesota Press (1975). * Mayo Clinic, ''Physicians of the Mayo Clinic and the Mayo Foundation'', University of Minnesota Press, 1936
Mayo Medical School
at www.mayoclinic.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Stinchfield, Augustus 1842 births 1917 deaths 19th-century American physicians Bowdoin College alumni People from Phillips, Maine People from Rochester, Minnesota People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War University of Michigan alumni People from Lawrence County, Missouri People from Rice County, Minnesota People from Eyota, Minnesota Physicians of the Mayo Clinic Writers from Maine