Cephas Little Bard (April 7, 1843 – April 20, 1902) was a medical doctor and pioneer in

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for "Saint Bonaventure"), is a city in and the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States. It is a coastal city located northwest of Los Angeles. The population was 110,763 at the ...

, United States. After medical studies in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

and service in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, Bard moved to Ventura in 1868 and practiced medicine there for more than 30 years. He was also a collector of historical artifacts, a founder of the Ventura County Pioneers, and the leading force behind the construction of the

Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital, now known as The Elizabeth Bard Memorial Building, is a historic building in downtown Ventura, California. Built in 1901, it is a Mission Revival architecture, Mission Revival structure featuring covered terraces ...

Early years

Bard was born in 1843 in

Chambersburg, Pennsylvania Chambersburg is a borough in and the county seat of Franklin County, Pennsylvania, Franklin County, in the South Central Pennsylvania, South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Gre ...

. He attended the Chambersburg Academy and then studied medicine at the office of Dr. A. H. Senseny. In August 1862, during the

, Bard joined the Union Army, serving with Company A of the 126th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers. He fought at the

Second Battle of Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...

and at the Battles of Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville. During the latter part of the war, Bard attended

Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. The university is ...

in Philadelphia. He became an assistant surgeon with the Pennsylvania Volunteers and served at the front until the war's end. After the war, Bard returned to Chambersburg and began practicing medicine.

Medical practice in Ventura

In 1868, Bard moved to

, where he was the first American physician. He also served as the Ventura County Coroner, the Ventura County Physician and Surgeon, and president of the Ventura County Medical Society. He also served one term as president of the California State Medical Society. In 1871, Bard married Clara Gerberding of San Francisco. They had two children, Mary Blanche and Albert Marius.

Ventura County Pioneers

Bard was also a collector of historical artifacts. He served the

Chumash people The Chumash are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the central and southern coastal regions of California, in portions of what is now Kern County, California, Kern, San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis O ...

as well as the Spanish and American residents of the county, and he sometimes received curios and historic trinkets in payment for his medical services. As his historic collection became known, others in the county also donated their artifacts to him. His collection became the initial nucleus of the Ventura Pioneer Museum, now the Museum of Ventura County. Bard was also the founder and president of the Ventura County Pioneers, later the Ventura Historical Society.

Bard Hospital and death

It was Bard's ambition to build a modern hospital in Ventura. For years, he studied and planned every detail of the building. Between 1900 and 1901, Bard built the

, a memorial to his mother, with financial backing from his brother,

Thomas R. Bard Thomas Robert Bard (December 8, 1841March 5, 1915) was an American political leader in California who assisted in the organization of Ventura County and represented the state in the United States Senate from 1900 to 1905 as a Republican. He is k ...

. The hospital opened on January 1, 1901.Reaves, Cephas Little Bard, p. 49. In the fall of 1901, Bard fell seriously ill with colon cancer. When the Bard Hospital opened, Bard was its first patient. He spent his final months as a patient and died there on April 20, 1902. Having already been the first person admitted to the hospital, he was also the first to die there. Flags were lowered to half-staff throughout Ventura County, and bells were tolled, following his death. Bard's remains were incinerated at Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles in accordance with his wishes, following a funeral ceremony in Ventura. In April 1903, the Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital unveiled a bronze bust of Bard and placed an urn containing Bard's ashes in the hospital as part of the ceremony. The bust is now on permanent display in the vestibule of the Museum of Ventura County.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bard, Cephas L. 1843 births 1902 deaths People from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania People from Ventura, California People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War Union army surgeons Physicians from Philadelphia Physicians from California Jefferson Medical College alumni