Date Original
1872-1924
Description
This collection consists of ledgers recording meetings called to order between 1872 and 1924 by the Little Rock and Pulaski County Medical Society, the College of Physicians and Surgeons, and the faculty of the University of Arkansas Medical Department.
Biographical/Historical Note
As the Civil War drew to a close, physicians in Arkansas decided it was time to organize professionally. In January 1866, the Little Rock and Pulaski County Medical Society was formed. It had 13 inaugural members, and for the first six years of its operation was led by six different presidents. One of its early presidents was Philo O. Hooper, who went on to establish Little Rock's College of Physicians and Surgeons in July 1873, after a dispute arose among members of the county society. On June 7, 1873, 13 disgruntled members of the Little Rock and Pulaski County Medical Society officially withdrew from the organization in protest over its admittance of Almon Brooks, whom they felt fell short of the society's professional standards and ethics. They formed the College of Physicians and Surgeons, which continued for six years, resulting in two almost identical, yet competing medical associations in the Pulaski County region. In 1879, leaders of the two organizations were approached by the president of St. John's College, Leo Baier, who wanted his institution to include a medical department. Hooper, who still headed the College of Physicians and Surgeons, consented to the proposition, as did the competing organization's leaders, James A. Dibrell, Jr., and James H. South all. The first joint meeting to discuss the venture was held on April 4, 1879.Unfortunately, St. John's College was already faltering, and more challenges arose in selecting a faculty, so an initial department never materialized. But the union between the previously competitive associations remained firm as they found a new home for their school: the Arkansas Industrial University, now known as the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Washington County. Incorporated in September 1879, this new medical department was an independent part of the university. Hooper selected the faculty, staff, and curriculum, but the University did not financially support the department. Instead, eight physicians invested $5,000 each, which was enough to buy the Sperindio Hotel at 113 West Second Street in Little Rock. These eight doctors became the University of Arkansas Medical Department's chairmen, and that autumn, they accepted their inaugural 22 students. In 1911, fueled by a need to improve medical education standards in Arkansas, the university's medical department merged with a competing Little Rock medical school, the College of Physicians and Surgeons, which had been founded in 1906. (This college should not be confused with the original College of Physicians and Surgeons, which was simply an association of physicians.) With the merger came a fundamental change in the department's organization. The university began having a more direct role in educating budding physicians, while the department was able to begin receiving state appropriations.
Physical Description
Document, 8.5" x 11"
Geographical Area
Little Rock, Pulaski County (Ark.)
Language
English
Identifier
MS.000155
Resource Type
Text
Collection
Pulaski County medical organizations minutes, MS.000155
Publisher
Arkansas State Archives
Contributing Entity
Arkansas State Archives
Recommended Citation
Pulaski County medical organizations minutes, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rights
Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov.
Disciplines
United States History
