John Whitridge Williams (January 26, 1866 – October 21, 1931) was a pioneering obstetrician at

Johns Hopkins Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1889, Johns Hopkins Hospital and its school of medicine are considered to be the foundin ...

. Williams was also an acclaimed author, as he was able to contribute 137 publications regarding his findings.

Early life

John Whitridge Williams was born in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

on January 26, 1866. He received his A.B. from the

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

in 1886. He received his M.D. from the

University of Maryland School of Medicine The University of Maryland School of Medicine (abbreviated UMSOM), located in Baltimore City, Maryland, U.S., is the medical school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is affiliated with the University of Maryland Medical Center and ...

in 1888. He then studied bacteriology and pathology at universities in Berlin, Vienna, Leipzig, Prague and Paris from 1888 to 1895. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

in 1915. He later returned to Heidelberg for a year of research and visited

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

in 1912.

Career

After serving under Dr. Howard A. Kelly, he was appointed as chief of Obstetrics at the

. In 1889 he returned to Baltimore to be an assistant to Howard Kelly at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. From 1909 to 1923, Williams served as dean of the

Johns Hopkins University Medical School The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSOM) is the medical school of Johns Hopkins University, a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Established in 1893 following the construction of the Johns Hopkins Hospital, the ...

. In 1923, Williams resigned to resume research in obstetrics and direct a women's clinic at the hospital. In 1931, Williams was active in efforts to repeal the federal law forbidding sending birth control information through the mail. IN 1913, Williams was president of the American Gynecological Society. In 1913, Williams headed the American Society of the Study and Prevention of Infant Mortality.

Personal life

Williams married Margaretta S. Brown, daughter of General Stewart Brown, in 1892. They had three daughters, Mrs. F Brayton Wood, Mrs. Eveleth W. Bridgeman and Mrs. Emory Niles. He later married Mrs. C. DeW. Thebald Pennington in April 1930. Williams lived at 107 East Chase Street in Baltimore. He died on October 21, 1931, at Johns Hopkins Hospital from complications following an abdominal surgery performed by his colleague J. M. T. Finney. He was buried at

Green Mount Cemetery Green Mount Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Established on March 15, 1838, and dedicated on July 13, 1839, it is noted for the large number of historical figures interred in its grounds as well as ma ...

in Baltimore.

Legacy

J. Whitridge Williams was the author of the first five editions of the ''Williams Obstetrics'' textbook.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, John Whitridge 1866 births 1931 deaths American obstetricians Johns Hopkins Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital physicians Johns Hopkins University alumni University of Maryland School of Medicine alumni University of Pittsburgh alumni Physicians from Baltimore