Content area
Full Text
J OHN BLAIR DEAVER was born near Buck, Pennsylvania, in Lancaster County on July 25, 1855, to Dr. Joshua Montgomery Deaver and Elizabeth Clair Moore. The elder Deaver was a reputable country physician, educated at the University of Maryland, who fathered three physicians and a college president. John Blair Deaver (Fig. 1) went to boarding school at West Nottingham Academy inMaryland.After boarding school he taught in Lancaster County country schools to raise funds to attend the nation's first medical school, the University of Pennsylvania. On receiving his M.D. degree in 1878, Dr. Deaver completed 1-year internships at both Germantown Hospital and Philadelphia Children's Hospital, after which he embarked into clinical practice. Alongside his brother, Dr. Harry Clay Deaver, he made home visits to patients to perform surgeries as well asmanaged a busy 16th Street and Vine Street Philadelphia office.1, 2
After gaining a reputation in the Philadelphia region in clinical practice, Dr. Deaver joined the faculty of his Alma Mater, practicing from 1881 to 1899. Despite his lectures being highly popular, Dr. Deaver later left the University of Pennsylvania in 1899 as a result of a bitter rivalry with fellow surgeon, J. William White, after Dr. White was given charge of surgical education.2 However, Dr. Deaver accumulated surgical accolades and gained most of his recognition...