A Witness to Medical HistoryBy Lynn Shea (Submitted via Email) Tuesday, September 27,
2005 Our ancestor, George
“Station” Carpenter, son of John Carpenter and grandson of George
Zimmerman, happened to be in Danville, Kentucky, on an eventful
day--Christmas of 1809. Forty-seven-year-old Mrs. Jane Todd Crawford
arrived with her family from Green County. She was seeking help from
Dr. Ephraim McDowell for what appeared to be an overdue pregnancy. After an examination in
his home on Second Street, Dr. McDowell diagnosed the woman’s
problem as a rapidly growing ovarian tumor that would soon end her
life, if left untreated. Abdominal surgery had not been previously
attempted, so in order to save the woman’s life, he agreed to do
the surgery. The good doctor carefully explained the danger of the
procedure and did not downplay the considerable pain she would suffer
during the surgery. In 1809, no one had ever heard about germs,
antiseptics and certainly not about antibiotics. In fact, anesthesia
was unheard of at the time. Despite the alarm of her family, Mrs.
Crawford bravely asked the doctor to proceed. Our George was a
family friend of the McDowells and was allowed to crowd into the
upstairs bedroom where the surgery took place, along with members of
Mrs. Crawford’s family. Think of the excitement, worsened, of
course, by the threats of vengeance made by the family of the patient
against the heroic physician! Dr. McDowell removed an ovarian tumor that weighed 22 ½ pounds. Five days later, the patient was able to get out of bed. Not only did she survive, but she made a complete recovery and lived another 31 years! George Carpenter was a witness to one of the most remarkable events in early medical history. Dr. Ephraim McDowell
became the most famous physician and surgeon on the Kentucky
frontier. His home on Second Street in Danville is now a museum and
is open to the public. In 1864, two statues from Kentucky were placed in Washington, D. C., in the National Statuary Hall at its founding. These statues are the likenesses of Henry Clay, “The Great Compromiser” and Dr. Ephraim McDowell, the “Father of Abdominal Surgery”. Copyright 2005, Lynn Shea
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