James Taggart Priestley II (April 7, 1903 – February 9, 1979) was a senior surgeon at the Mayo Clinic and a pioneer of pancreatectomy.

Biography

At the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, he graduated with a B.A. in 1923, and an M.D. in 1926. From 1926 to 1928 he was a medical intern in surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. As a fellow in surgery at the Mayo Medical School (now known as the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine), he earned an M.Sc. in experimental surgery in 1931, followed by a Ph.D. in surgery in 1932. At the

Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...

, he became a staff member in 1933 and the head of a section of surgery in 1934, retaining the post for then next 34 years. During World War II, he served as an officer in the Medical Corps of the U.S. Army. Priestley was awarded the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious a ...

and the

oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a spec ...

for his services during the war. At the Mayo Clinic he was appointed senior surgeon in 1963 and retired in 1968. He wrote surgical reports with his colleagues, including Edward Starr Judd (1878–1935), Waltman Walters (1895–1988), Howard Kramer Gray (1910–1955), and John M. Waugh (1905–1962). Priestley was a coauthor of several surgical textbooks, including ''Cancer of the Stomach'' (1964, W. B. Saunders). For one year from 1953 to 1954, Priestley was the president of the Central Surgical Association, which was founded in 1941. In April 1965 the Mayo Clinic Surgical Society in Honor of James T. Priestley was formed by his former residents and fellows at Mayo Clinic. In 1967 he was appointed an honorary Fellow of the

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgery, surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wa ...

. In 1930 James T. Priestley, a descendant of

Joseph Priestley Joseph Priestley (; 24 March 1733 – 6 February 1804) was an English chemist, Unitarian, Natural philosophy, natural philosopher, English Separatist, separatist theologian, Linguist, grammarian, multi-subject educator and Classical libera ...

, married Klea Kirkman Palica (1907–2000). Upon his death from a heart attack while on vacation, he was survived by his widow, three daughters, a son, and twelve grandchildren. James Taggart Priestley was named after his paternal grandfather and named his own son James Taggart Priestley III.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Priestley, James Taggart 1903 births 1979 deaths 20th-century American surgeons Physicians of the Mayo Clinic University of Pennsylvania alumni United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army Medical Corps officers