Robley Dunglison (4 January 1798 – 1 April 1869) was an English-American physician, medical educator and author who served as the first full-time professor of medicine in the United States at the newly founded
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
from 1824 to 1833. He authored multiple medical textbooks and is considered the "Father of American Physiology" after the publication of his landmark textbook ''Human Physiology'' in 1832. He was the personal physician to
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...
,
James Madison
James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for h ...
and
James Monroe
James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American statesman, lawyer, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. A member of the Democratic-Republican Party, Monroe was ...
. He consulted in the treatment of
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
and was in attendance at Jefferson's death.
He served as chair of materia medica, therapeutics, hygiene and medical jurisprudence at the
University of Maryland School of Medicine from 1833 to 1836 and chair of the Institutes of Medicine and Medical Jurisprudence at
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 un ...
from 1836 to 1868. He assisted
William Beaumont in some of his experiments on gastric digestion and published the first description of
Huntington's disease
Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is a neurodegenerative disease that is mostly inherited. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental abilities. A general lack of coordination and an uns ...
in his textbook ''The Practice of Medicine'' in 1842.
Early life and education
Dunglison was born in
Keswick, Cumbria
Keswick ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Allerdale Borough in Cumbria, England. Historically, until 1974, it was part of Cumberland. It lies within the Lake District National Park, Keswick is just north of Derwentwater and is f ...
, England to William and Elizabeth (Robley) Dunglison. His father was a textile manufacturer but died at the age of 35. His great-uncle was a Governor of
British Tobago and it was planned for Robley to become a West Indies planter but the uncle died and the plans to move to the West Indies were abandoned. He began the study of medicine locally in 1814 and moved to London to complete his studies. He attended lectures at the University of Edinburgh and the Ecole de Medecine in Paris.
[ In 1819, he received diplomas from the ]Royal College of Surgeons
The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations ...
and the Society of Apothecaries
The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies (with over 1,600 members in 2012) and ranks 58th in their order of precedence.
The society is a m ...
and began the practice of medicine. He obtained his M. D. from the University of Erlangen
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, Germany, in 1823. He received his degree remotely by submitting a thesis (De Neuralgia) and a fee since the M.D. degree was not offered in London at the time.
Career
Dunglison initially focused on obstetrics
Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a sur ...
and accepted an appointment as physician-accoucheur at the Eastern Dispensary in London. He was a member of the London Medical Society
The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom.
It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanth ...
and the Hunterian Society
The Hunterian Society, founded in 1819 in honour of the Scottish surgeon John Hunter (1728–1793), is a society of physicians and dentists based in London.
Established by Dr William Cooke, a general practitioner, and Thomas Armiger, a surgeo ...
.
In 1824, Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...
and the Board of Visitors of the University of Virginia commissioned Francis Walker Gilmer to find professors in England for the new University. Gilmer offered the anatomy and medicine professorship to Dunglison. The agreement with the University of Virginia was that beyond medical consultation with Jefferson and select others, he would not practice medicine. This made him the first full-time professor of medicine in the United States. He received an M.D. degree in 1825 from Yale College
Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
.
Dunglinson was known to own slaves while at the University of Virginia and purchased some of the slaves previously owned by Thomas Jefferson.
Dunglison was the personal physician to Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and James Monroe and was called into consultation for the treatment of Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
. He was a frequent visitor to Jefferson at Monticello
Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
and was in attendance during his illness and death in 1826.[
While at the University of Virginia, Dunglison published his landmark textbook ''Human Physiology'' (1832), which established his reputation as the “Father of American Physiology.” ]
He took an active role in the scientific experiments on gastric digestion conducted by William Beaumont. Dunglison performed some of the experiments on gastric juice, outlined additional chemical experiments to be conducted and designed further experiments for Beaumont to conduct. He would have also published the work but deferred to Beaumont to publish the work himself.
In 1832, Dunglison was elected to the American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
and served in multiple leadership roles.[ In 1833, he accepted a position as chair of materia medica, therapeutics, hygiene and medical jurisprudence at the ]University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of ...
and moved to Baltimore. In 1836, the Chair of the Institutes of Medicine and Medical Jurisprudence[ was created for him at the ]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 un ...
in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
, and Dunglison served in that role until 1868. He also served as dean of faculty from 1854 to 1868. He retired in 1868 due to poor health but continued to serve as professor emeritus
''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
.
In 1837, he established a monthly publication, the ''American Medical Library and Intelligencer''. He co-edited the journal along with Granville Sharp Pattison
Granville Sharp Pattison (1791–1851) was a Scottish anatomist. Professor of Anatomy at London University, after losing two British positions, he emigrated permanently to the United States to be a professor at New York University.
Life
The y ...
until 1842 when the journal was discontinued. In 1838, Dunglison became a naturalized U.S. citizen.[
In 1840, Dunglison was appointed by Jefferson Medical College as a representative to the National Medical Convention for the revision of the ]United States Pharmacopeia
The ''United States Pharmacopeia'' (''USP'') is a pharmacopeia (compendium of drug information) for the United States published annually by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention (usually also called the USP), a nonprofit organization that ...
. He was also personal physician to Peter Stephen Du Ponceau
Peter Stephen Du Ponceau (born Pierre-Étienne du Ponceau, June 3, 1760 – April 1, 1844) was a French-American linguist, philosopher, and jurist. After emigrating to the colonies in 1777, he served in the American Revolutionary War. Afterward ...
toward the end of his life.
Dunglison successfully campaigned for the creation of an asylum for Philadelphia's mentally ill residents. In 1844, he became an officer at the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind (later known as Overbrook School for the Blind
The Overbrook School for the Blind in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was established in 1832. Its present site, in the city's Overbrook neighborhood, was acquired in 1890. Along with the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, the Western Pennsylvania Sch ...
). He co-developed a form of raised type to allow the blind to read. He served as president of The Musical Fund Society The Musical Fund Society is one of the oldest musical societies in the United States founded in February 1820 by Benjamin Carr, Raynor Taylor, George Schetky George Schetky (June 1, 1776 – 1831) was an American composer. Schetky was a violoncell ...
and was a member of the Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a science museum and the center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memori ...
. He worked as an attending physician at Philadelphia General Hospital.[
He received an honorary LL.D. degree from Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania in 1852.]
First description of Huntington's disease
One of Dunglison's recently graduated students at Jefferson Medical College, Charles Oscar Waters, provided his professor with a description of the "magrums" (a folk name for what is now called Huntington's disease
Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is a neurodegenerative disease that is mostly inherited. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental abilities. A general lack of coordination and an uns ...
), which Waters observed was prevalent in Westchester County, New York
Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...
.
Although he had never seen a case, Dunglison included a description of the disease in his 1842 textbook ''The Practice of Medicine''. Waters's account of the disease was one of the first to note that the disease is hereditary, "within the third generation at farthest."
Another of Dunglison's students at Jefferson, Charles R. Gorman, wrote his thesis on the magrums as well.
Family
Dunglinson married Harriette Leadam on 4 October 1824. Together they had seven children including:
*Harriette Elizabeth (1825 – 1841)
*John Robley (1829 – 1896), newspaper editor, politician
*a son, born in November 1827, died of bronchitis at 11 months
*William Leadam (1832 – 1891), merchant
*Richard James (1834 – 1901) -- Physician and editor of the first American edition of ''Gray's Anatomy
''Gray's Anatomy'' is a reference book of human anatomy written by Henry Gray, illustrated by Henry Vandyke Carter, and first published in London in 1858. It has gone through multiple revised editions and the current edition, the 42nd (Octo ...
'' in 1859
*Thomas Randolph (1837-1920), physician, died at Rosny-sous-Bois, France
*Emma Mary (1840-1916), married John Browne, Capt. in British Army, died in Charlton, London
Death and legacy
He died on April 1, 1869 and was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery.[ A dormitory at the University of Virginia was named in his honor.]
Bibliography
*
Commentaries on Diseases of the Stomach and Bowels of Children
', G.B. Whittaker, London, 1824
*
Human Physiology
', 1832
*''A New Dictionary of Medical Science and Literature''. The 1st (1833), The 2nd (1839), 3rd (1842), and 5th (1845) editions added "Medical Lexicon" to the title page.
*''The Medical Student; or, Aids to the Study of Medicine'', 1837
*
New Remedies: The Method of Preparing and Administering Them; Their Effects on the Healthy and Diseased Economy, &c.
', Lea & Blanchard, Philadelphia, 1841
*
The Practice of Medicine; or, A Treatise on Special Pathology and Therapeutics
', Lea & Blanchard, Philadelphia, 1842
*
Medical Lexicon: A Dictionary of Medical Science
', Blanchard and Lea, Philadelphia, 1857
Citations
Sources
* Dorsey, John M., ed. (1960)
The Jefferson-Dunglison Letters
'. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
*
*
External links
Letter From Thomas Jefferson to Robley Dunglison
Manuscripts and Archives - Robley Dunglinson, 1798-1869, A brief biography by Joby Topper
- Claude Moore Health Sciences Library Repository, University of Virginia
Manuscripts and Archives - Robley Dunglison, includes photos, circa 1980s
- Claude Moore Health Sciences Library Repository, University of Virginia
Thomas Sully Portrait of Dr. Robley Dunglison
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunglison, Robley
1798 births
1869 deaths
19th-century American physicians
19th-century English medical doctors
American physiologists
American slave owners
Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia)
English obstetricians
Jefferson Medical College faculty
Medical journal editors
Members of the American Philosophical Society
Naturalized citizens of the United States
People from Cumbria
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg alumni
University of Maryland School of Medicine faculty
University of Virginia School of Medicine faculty
Yale College alumni