America’s first African American with a medical degree, James McCune Smith became founding member of NY Statistics Society
In 1852, James McCune Smith, the first African American to hold a medical degree, was invited as a…
Adolphe Chatin published the hypothesis of population iodine deficiency associated with endemic goiter
In 1852, Adolphe Chatin, a French chemist, was the first to publish the hypothesis of population iodine deficiency…
The West Florida Seminary (Florida State University) was founded
On Jan. 24, 1851, the West Florida Seminary (Florida State University) was founded by the Florida General Assembly…
The Sisters of Mercy took control of the Illinois General Hospital
In 1851, The Sisters of Mercy took control of the Illinois General Hospital.
The University of Minnesota was founded as a preparatory school
In 1851, The Minnesota Territorial Legislature and Governor Alexander Ramsey chartered the University of Minnesota and elect a…
The University of Deseret (University of Utah) was founded
On Feb 28, 1850, the University of Deseret (University of Utah) was founded with classes beginning at the…
The Female Medical College of Pennsylvania was founded
In 1850, the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania, later known as the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania was…
Surgeon Joseph Lister (Listerine) began the practice of antisepsis
In 1850, surgeon Joseph Lister began the practice of antisepsis, and who was later immortalized in the trade…
The first international sanitary conference was held in Paris, France
In 1850, the first international sanitary conference is held in Paris, France with a goal of making quarantines…
Texas A&M (Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas) was founded
In 1850, Texas A&M (Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas) was founded.
The first class of the University of Wisconsin-Madison met in a Madison school building
On Feb. 5, 1849, the first class of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with 17 students, met in a…
Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in the U.S. with a medical degree
On Jan. 3, 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell received her M.D. degree from the Medical Institution of Geneva, N.Y., and…
Charles Pfizer & Company was founded
In 1849, cousins Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhardt founded Charles Pfizer & Company, a fine-chemicals business, in the…
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The American Association for the Advancement of Science was founded
On Sept. 20, 1848, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) was founded which marked the…
Nelson Dewey, Wisconsin’s first governor, signed the act that formally created the University of Wisconsin-Madison
On Jul. 26, 1848, Nelson Dewey, Wisconsin’s first governor, signed the act that formally created the University of…
The Drug Importation Act was passed by Congress
On Jun. 26, 1848, the Drug Importation Act was passed by Congress. The act required imported drugs to…
The New England Female Medical College was founded
In 1848, the New England Female Medical College was founded, becoming the first institution in the U.S. to…
The State University of Iowa (University of Iowa) was founded
On Feb 25, 1847, the State University of Iowa, now known as the University of Iowa, was founded…
The Pontifical Academy of Science was founded
In 1847, the precursor to the actual Pontifical Academy of Sciences was the “Linceorum Academia,” which was founded…
The Yale College Graduate School of Arts and Sciences was founded
In 1847, the Yale College Graduate School of Arts and Sciences was founded as the ‘Department of Philosophy…
James Moultrie, Jr, MD helped found the American Medical Association
In 1847, James Moultrie, Jr., M.D. (Dean, School of Medicine of the Medical College of the State of…
John Collins Warren provided the first public demonstration of anesthesia in surgery
On Oct. 16, 1846, Harvard Medical School’s first dean, Dr. John Collins Warren, provided the first public demonstration…
Peter Panum described the incubation period of measles and lifelong immunity after recovery from the disease
In 1846, Peter Panum described the highly contagious nature, the 14-day incubation period, and the induction of lifelong…
Ignaz Semmelweis discovered puerperal fever could be reduced with chlorine solution hand washing
In 1846, Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis, known as the ‘Savior of Mothers,’ discovered that cases of puerperal fever, also…
Lewis Caleb Beck’s “Adulteration of Various Substances Used in Medicine and the Arts” was published
In 1846, Lewis Caleb Beck’s published “Adulteration of Various Substances Used in Medicine and the Arts,” one of…
Late blight ravaged Ireland’s potato crop
In late 1845 and 1846, a summer blight ravaged Ireland’s potato crop. It is estimated that more than…
The first description of allergies was published
On Mar. 16, 1844, John Bostock, Jr., an English physician, published the first description of allergies in Medico-Chirurgical…
The Hampden-Sydney College medical department moved into its first permanent home, the Egyptian Building
In 1844, The Medical Department of Hampden-Sydney College moved into its first permanent home, the Egyptian Building.
Oliver Wendell Holmes identified the cause and prevention of puerperal fever
In 1843, Harvard Medical School dean and physician Oliver Wendall Holmes discovered the cause and prevention of childhood…
Ether used as surgical anesthetic for the first time
On Mar. 30, 1842, Dr. Crawford Long, an American physician and pharmacist in Jefferson, Georgia, used ether for…