(jol DEN |\NNIVERSARY
Of THI.
Pennsylvania .
ASSOCloſion ...
“Denial Surgeons
DECEMBER 16th, 1645 . . . . . . . . .
DECEMBER 16PH, 1595

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FIFTIETH AN NIVERSARY
OF THE ORGANIZATION
OF THE
|Nennsylvania Elssociation of . . .
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CELEBRATED
PY A. EANO UET
AT THE
DEcEMBER 16TH COntinental ibotel, |\biladelphia
1895
At a meeting of the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Sur-
geons, held in May, 1895, Dr. W. H. Trueman called attention to the
near approach of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the society, and thought
that so important an event should be properly celebrated. The 16th
of next December would not only be the Fiftieth Anniversary of the
organization of this society, but would also be the Fiftieth Anniver-
sary of the first successful effort to organize the dental profession of
Pennsylvania in the interests of dental education. “If the society
survived until the 16th of December of this year, it will have been in
existence that many years. His feelings in this respect were not
prompted only by his affection for, and his interest and pride in the
old society—although he nourished these—but because the formation
of the society led to the establishment of Dental Colleges, Dental
Associations, and Dental Education in this city.”
Farther discussion on this subject led to the appointment of a com-
mittee of three, Drs. Trueman, Chupein and Roberts, whose duties
were to enlist the interests of the other dental societies of the city,
to secure united action in celebrating this event.
It was agreed to let the matter rest until the Fall of the year, when
all the societies of the city would renew their monthly meetings.
Dr. Chupein laid this subject before the “Odontological Society"
2
at their meeting in October, and they approving the object, appointed
Drs. Faught, Boice and Broomell a committee to act for it; while
through the efforts of Dr. Trueman with the “Academy of Stoma.
tology,” Drs. Robt. Huey, James Truman and Henry C. Register were
appointed from this society.
The first conference committee meeting was held at the residence of
Dr. Wm. H. Trueman, 900 Spruce Street, October 28th, 1895, where
the matter was discussed. Dr. Trueman gave an abridged account of
the formation of the society, and referred to the men who attended
the meeting at which the society was organized, nearly all of whom
have passed away. This narrative proved so interesting to those
present that Dr. Huey moved Dr. Trueman prepare an historical
synopsis of this matter to be read at the celebration. It was further
determined to celebrate the event by a “Banquet.”
At a subsequent meeting of the committee held on the 5th of Novem-
ber, at the rooms of the “Academy of Stomatology,” Prof James
Truman was requested to preside over the meeting and at the
Banquet.
At this meeting final arrangements were made. It was decided to
hold the Banquet at the Continental Hotel, this building occupying
the site of the old Philadelphia Museum, where the meeting was held
at which the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Surgeons was
organized and ushered into existence. At this meeting Dr. J. D.
Thomas was added to the committee because of his efficiency on other
occasions of a similar nature, as was also Dr. C. F. Bonsall, the presi-
dent of the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Surgeons. After the
appointment of the various sub-committees, to whom full power was
given to act, the meeting adjourned.
Shortly after this adjournment Dr. Thomas, Chairman of the
Invitation Committee sent out the following circular:
PHILADELPHIA, November, 1895.
DEAR DOCTOR:
Fifty years ago the first effort was made to organize the
Dentists in Philadelphia, by forming a Society, having for its object
the advancement of Dental Education.
3
You are cordially invited to attend a Meeting and
Banquet, to celebrate the Golden Anniversary of that event, to be
held at the Continental Hotel, Ninth and Chestnut Streets, on Mon-
day, December 16th, 1895, at 7.00 P.M. Banquet at 7.30 P.M.
Kindly inform us by December 10th, if we may expect
the pleasure of your company.
Seats for the Banquet will be $4.00 per plate, which
amount please send to Dr. J. D. Thomas, 912 Walnut Street, Phila-
delphia, by December 13th, in order that a place may be reserved for
you.
COMMITTEES.
Pennsylvania Association of Dental Surgeons :
DR. W.M. H. TRUEMAN, DR. T. F. CHUPEIN,
DR. HOWARD E. ROBERTS.
Odontological Society :
DR. L. ASBILEY FAUGHT, DR. ALONZO BOſCF,
DR. I. N. BROOMELL.
Academy of Stomatology :
DR. JAMES TRUMAN, DR. R. HUEY,
DR. HENRY C. REGISTER.
Special Committee on Invitations:
DR. L. ASHLEY FAUGHT, DR. HOWARD E. ROBERTS,
DR. J. D. THOMAS, Chairman,
912 Walnut Street.
To this call about sixty responses were received.
On the evening of the Banquet the guests were admitted by invita-
tion cards, of which the following is a copy:
4.
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THE FOLLOWING MENU WAS PRE PARED FOR THE BANQUET :
1845. 1895. <}{ NVENCI. jº-
(g ontin ental #Hotel,
ath & Cºhestnut $1s., 33 fuiſa & eſp fuia, BLUE POINTS.
33 crewn ber 16 tit. Celery.
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of Organized fort for the ‘ Promotion of STRIPED BASS, a la Creme.
D E. N T A L E D U C A T | O N. Olives. Potatoes Julienne.
IN SAUTERNE
FILET OF BEEF, Larded, Puree Mushrooms.
PHILADELPHIA, Potatoes au Gratin. } Cream Spinach.
A ND THE ORGANIZATION OF THE
ſ & tº to PUNCH POMMARD.
ſ’ennsy {\}0}^{0, ſlºociation of -
| - ENGLISH SNIPE.
Øenia Świgeons Lettuce.
CLARET
which ſed to this end, on this spot, December Glaces. Fruit, Cakes.
16th, in the year 1845. cAFé NotR. CIGIARS
5
On the evening appointed, December 16th, a goodly company,
comprising nearly all the dentists closely identified with society work
in Philadelphia and its immediate neighborhood, several from New
Jersey, Delaware and New York, among them a fair sprinkling of
patriarchs—men who were full of active energy half a century ago—
gathered in parlor C of the Continental Hotel to revive once more
kindly remembrances of the past. It was indeed a typical reunion
of professional brothers, a practical illustration of the wonderful
change wrought by the good work done near that spot half a cen-
tury ago. There was but one regret—not one of those who took part
in the organization of the first dental society in Pennsylvania was
present. From three we had kindly messages, the infirmities of age
forbidding their presence, and a wide ocean separated us from the
fourth. The others, so far as we have been able to trace them, have
all passed over and joined the ever-increasing company in the great
beyond. Dr. Spencer Roberts, of Philadelphia, and Dr. Jesse C. Green,
of West Chester, who have been members of the Pennsylvania Asso-
ciation over forty years, and active in professional life more than half
a century, were present, connecting links between the present and the
past, and gave interesting reminiscences of their early experience,
vividly contrasting dentistry and dentists as they first knew them,
and as they now are.
Great credit is due to the Committee on Invitations, Dr. J. D.
Thomas, chairman, ably assisted by Drs. Faught and Howard E.
Roberts, and to the Committee of Arrangements, Drs. Huey and Broo-
mell, who so well planned the entertainment, that the reception, the
banquet, and the speaking passed off as pleasantly and as smoothly as
a well-rehearsed play.
After the good things had been disposed of, Prof. James Truman,
who presided, called the assembly to order, and in well chosen words
referred to the movement we were then celebrating, which had
resulted in so much good to the dentists of Philadelphia. He spoke
of the men prominent in that movement, many of whom he had per-
sonally known and admired for their sterling worth and earnest devo-
tion to the best interests of the profession they honored. He eulo-
gized especially Dr. John Dehaven White, “a born leader of men,”
who was, perhaps, the first to urge upon the profession the import-
ance of increased educational facilities. Earnestly and persistently
did he labor, until he gathered around him others who, like himself,
desired to see the profession raised to a higher plane. He inspired
them with a measure of his own enthusiasm and energy, and has
6
lived to see, as the result of his labors so long ago, three active dental
societies and three prosperous dental colleges, having in their com.
bined classes nearly twelve hundred students. He spoke feelingly of
his long and active life, now in all probability nearing its close,” and
regretted that he could not be there to tell, as he so well could, of
those early struggles, and of the men who shoulder to shoulder so
willingly worked with him.
He referred to Dr. Plantou, the first President of the Society,
Drs. Stephen T. Beale, Eli Parry, Robert Arthur, Williams and Rein-
stein, the other officers of the Association, every one of them repre-
sentative men, men who would honor any profession or calling.
They are to us examples; let us follow their footsteps, let us accept
the responsibilities they have laid upon us and see to it that we each
one do our part to continue the work they so well began.
He spoke of the vast strides the profession had made in the last
fifty years; of its literature, yearly increasing in value and useful-
ness; of its many colleges scattered all over the land; the attention
given by so many of its members to scientific study, all hopeful signs
of continued healthy growth; and closing, called upon Dr. William H.
Trueman for a history of the first Dental Society in Pennsylvania,
and of the events which led to the organization of the first Dental
College in Philadelphia.
HISTORIC ADDRESS, BY WILLIAM H. TRUEMAN, D.D.S.
We have met to-night, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, to celebrate
the golden anniversary of the first successful effort to organize the
dentists of Philadelphia into a society, having for its object the ad-
vancement of dental education.f Just fifty years ago, namely, on the
16th of December, 1845, that society, The Pennsylvania Association
of Dental Surgeons, met for the first time as an organized body in
the lecture room of the Philadelphia Museum, a building that occu-
pied almost the exact spot where we are now assembled. Inasmuch as
it was part of that great educational impulse, which, starting at Balti-
more in 1839, rapidly spread through the United States, crossed the
broad ocean, and soon made itself felt wherever dentistry is appreci-
ated, the world over, it merits more than a passing notice. Were it
nothing more than the formation of a dental society, while the fact
*Dr. White died on the 25th of December, 1895.
+ American Journal of Dental Science, Vol. vi., March 1846, page 208.
7
that that society there and then founded at once became an important
factor in contributing to professional progress, and has for fifty long
years had a continuous useful existence, when so many that preced-
ed it, and so many that followed it, have fallen by the wayside, would
of itself be a notable event; it would, however, fall far short of the
important event we are celebrating to-night. The Pennsylvania
Association of Dental Surgeons, unlike most, if not all other dental
societies, was organized for a specific purpose.” It was the outcome
of an earnest desire of the progressive dentists of Philadelphia to
establish in Philadelphia a Dental College; a Dental College having a
strong State Dental Society at its back, would, they were impressed,
be more in touch with the profession, and its possible usefulness
thereby increased.
It may be news to many of the present generation to be told that
the first dental college at Baltimore failed to receive, from the dental
profession, when it most needed it, that cordial support it had a
right to expect.f It may be news also to know, that the progres-
sive element of the dental profession was, at that time, by no means a
unit as to the wisdom of organizing dental colleges. It is, however,
a well attested fact. That there was need of better facilities for
acquiring a dental education was conceded by all; but, whether it
were better to follow the method that had, in France, for nearly two .
centuries produced such excellent results, and which had for forty
years seemed to have met the needs of the profession in England ;
that of confining the college instruction to theory only, and provid-
* Waledictory Address to the first graduates of the Philadelphia College of
Dental Surgery. By Dr. J. D. White, February 28th, 1853. Dental News Letter,
Vol. VI, April, 1853, page 129.
f American Journal of Dental Science, Vol. I. (New Series), April, 1851,
page 398.
f American Journal of Dental Science, Vol. I. (New Series), April 1851,
page 395. An article against Dental Colleges by Dr. E. B. Gardette, and com-
ments thereon by the editor strongly in their favor ; gives a very fair expose of the
arguments, pro and con, of this controversy. Dr. E. B. Gardette was the leader
in Philadelphia of those opposed to dental colleges. On failing to carry his point
he ceased thereafter to take any part in professional matters. We may note
in this connection, that a series of resolutions offered by Dr. Elisha Townsend, at
a meeting of the American Society of Dental Surgeons, held at Newport, Rhode
Island, August 3d, 1852, advocating and endorsing dental colleges, was, after
discussion, laid upon the table. American Journal of Dental Science, Vol. III.
(New Series), October 1852, page 159. .
8
ing for dental students a chair or lectureship, upon dental surgery ;
relegating the practical part to the office and work-room of the pri-
vate preceptor ; or, providing an exclusive dental school, in which
dental surgery should in all branches dominate, including of the col.
lateral branches of medicine only such and so far as the needs of a
dental practitioner usually require, was a hotly disputed question,
and so remained for many years. In Philadelphia, the division seri-
ously hampered progress.
When it was determined that Philadelphia, long recognized as an
important educational center, and the acknowledged center in this
country at least, of the commercial interests of the dental profession,
should take another forward step in the advancement of professional
interests, this question was seriously considered by the leaders of
that movement. They were at first minded to adopt, could they find
an established medical school of good repute willing to afford the
accommodation they considered imperative, a plan that in recent
years has met with favor: that of making the dental school a sort of
annex to the medical. Had they required no more than mere lec-
tureships for the dental department, the matter would quickly have
been settled ; this several acceptable schools offered to provide.
They required, however, much more than this. At that time no med-
ical school of repute in Philadelphia was willing to grant the accom-
modation needful for clinics and laboratory ; while the the idea of
students operating for patients was too radical a departure from the
accepted methods of medical instructions to be for a moment thought
of. The dentists were asking entirely too much. “You ask, for
the accommodation of a mere handful of dental students, more room
than we find ample for our large classes. It will not pay,” was the
final answer. I well remember, in this connection, the hot indignation
with which Professor Buckingham repeated to me twenty years or
more after the event, a sarcastic remark made by Prof. Mutter, at the
close of a conference upon that subject; “Well, Gentlemen,” he said,
“I suppose after you get this thing in working order you will ask us
to put a barbers' pole in front of the college.” The real trouble
was, but very few, in or out of the profession, had the slightest idea
that in fifty years Philadelphia would be called upon to accommodate
yearly nearly a thousand dental students. If there were any that
even dreamed of it, rest assured, gentlemen, they were among the
men whose good work we are celebrating to-night. They fully appre-
ciated the needs of the dental student in this matter, and while lay-
ing the foundation of the proposed school determined to compromise
9
nothing which in their judgment was essential to a thorough dental
education. They set the pace which each following dental school in
Philadelphia has zealously maintained. -
For several years these matters were talked over at little social
gatherings, prominent at which were Dr. John Dehaven White, Elisha
Townsend, E. B. Gardette, Samuel L. Mintzer, Lewis Roper, Robert
Arthur (who although then a resident of Baltimore, took a keen in-
terest in the doings of his Philadelphia brethren,) and others, who
had an earnest desire to cultivate and inspire among the dentists of
| Philadelphia a healthy professional sentiment.
Matters had so far progressed by October, 1845, that at a meet-
ing of dentists, resident in Philadelphia, it was determined to call a
convention of all the dentists in the State, interested in educational
matters, for the purpose of forming a State Dental Society. In
response to that call, the convention met in the lecture room of the
Philadelphia Museum on the morning of the 15th of December, 1845,
Dr. Ely Parry, of Lancaster, presiding. The attendance, we are
told, was large, and the interest manifested very encouraging. Dur-
ing the day the organization was perfected, and the next morning,
just fifty years ago, December 16th, 1845, the Pennsylvania Associa-
tion of Dental Surgeons held its first meeting, with the following
officers:—President, Dr. Gustavus A. Plantou; First Vice-President,
Dr. Stephen T. Beale; Recording Secretary, Dr. C. C. Williams;
Corresponding Secretary, Dr. Robert Arthur; Treasurer, Dr. F.
Reinstein.
Of the original members of the Society, so far as we have been
able to ascertain, Dr. J. D. White, Dr. Samuel L. Mintzer, Dr. Stephen
T. Beale, and Dr. Thomas W. Evans, now of Paris, alone survive.
During the fifty years that have passed, the Society has had on its
membership roll, all told, nearly two hundred members, with an aver-
age membership of about fifty. Referring to the Pennsylvania Asso-
ciation of Dental Surgeons, the History of Oral and Dental Science
in America, published in 1876, has this to say: *
“This was the first organization which did not, almost immediately
upon its formation, express its reprobation of amalgam ; in fact, its
whole constitution and by-laws breathes a spirit of tolerance and
primal regard for the science over any outside issues, which is in some
contrast to its predecessors in existence, excepting, perhaps, the Mis-
sissippi Valley. -
“This association has never obtruded its merits and position on
*History of Dental and Oral Science in America, Philadelphia, 1876, page 153.
IO
the profession, but has, nevertheless, always kept in the front rank
of scientific progress. It has probably done more real work, quietly
and without ostentation, than any other dental society; for, from its
organization until 1864, its meetings were quarterly, since that time
have been monthly, a record which no other similar organization in
dentistry can exhibit.” -
The two dental societies here singled out have developed remark-
able staying powers. They are the only two dental societies in the
world that, so far, have lived long enough to have a Golden Anniver-
sary.* I earnestly commend these suggestive remarks to the thought-
ful attention of all interested in dental societies.
The Society fully organized, renewed efforts were made to estab-
lish the college. In this, however, unlooked-for opposition was
encountered, so that it was not until October 29th, 1852, that the
long-wished for, long-hoped-for Dental College was opened by Dr.
Elisha Townsend delivering the introductory lecture.f
This was the fourth dental college, so far as we know, in the world,
The first, the Baltimore Dental College, at Baltimore; the second.
the Ohio Dental College, at Cincinnati; the third, the New York
Dental College, at Syracuse, New York.
And now, for a few minutes, gentlemen, permit me to review very
briefly the history of our profession, in so far as it may be of interest
to us in connection with this event.
Since the pall of the dark ages was lifted, dental surgery has
received two great educational impulses. The first resulted from the
life work of that wonderful man, Ambrose Paré, whose reforms in
surgical practice, and more especially his successful efforts in estab-
lishing schools for instruction, which eventually raised general sur-
gery to the dignity of a profession, earned for him the well merited
title of the Father of Modern Surgery (1). Dental Surgery in 1525,
about the time when Ambrose Paré entered upon his life work, com-
pared with the dental surgery of the present, was far in advance of
the general surgery of that day compared to the general Surgery of
this. It had a literature that was, judging from the few fragments
that have been spared to us, fully abreast of the general sciences of
*The Mississippi Valley Association of Dental Surgeons was organized Aug.
13, 1844. See History of Dental and Oral Science in America, page 152.
+ Dental News Letter, Vol. VI., January, 1853, page 76.
1. Revival of Medicine, Encyclopedia Britannica (American edition) Wol. XV.,
page 808. Also see Ambrose Paré, Biographic Universelle, Ancienne et Moderne.
(Michand) Leipzig, 1854, Tome Trente Deuxieme, page 125. Nouvelle Biographic
Generale. Mm. Firmin Didot Freres, Paris, 1862, Vol. 39, page 191.
I I
the times. It was the good fortune of Ambrose Paré, and it has
been to the world's advantage, that he entered active life in the
domain, and during the reign of Francis the First, an enlightened
monarch whose laudable ambition it was to make Paris, his capital,
an educational center. While surgery was his specialty, he gave to
dentistry a helping hand, and so well did he plan, and so firmly did
he impress upon his countrymen the importance of providing educa-
tional facilities for these two important professions, that after he
died in 1590, slowly but surely the good work went on, and about
1700, in France, both surgery and dentistry occupied among the
liberally learned professions a position of equality, fully acknowl-
edged, appreciated and unchallenged. This was the first impulse.
(2). From this time on, in France, our profession made rapid prog-
ress, so that in 1778, when, by his adroit statesmanship, a distin-
guished citizen of Philadelphia secured for the struggling colonies
an offensive and defensive alliance with France, dentistry in that
country had reached a higher development than anywhere
else on the face of the globe. It was then that Joseph LeMaire, a
dentist in practice in Paris, like many another of his countrymen,
left his home and his business, and as an officer under Count Roch-
ambeau, manfully assisted in making a justifiable rebellion, a success-
ful revolution. That same event brought to our shores another
Frenchman, James Gardette, a naval surgeon on his first cruise, who
as part of his preparation for that post, as required by the French
government in 1777, studied dentistry under Mons. Le Roy de la
Faudiniere, a distinguished dentist of Paris. During the winter of
1781-82, when the French and American armies were in winter quar-
ters, side by side, near Providence, Rhode Island, we may, by a little
stretch of the imagination assume that the first dental school in
America held its first session. Joseph LeMaire was the teacher ;
his senior pupil, James Gardette, who had acquired a distaste for the
Sea and had resolved to make America his home, and in the junior
class we find Major Josiah Flagg, a youth of about eighteen years,
the first of a name well known in the annals of dentistry in America
as leaders in more than one notable advance.
The war ended, Joseph LeMaire came to Philadelphia, and began
2. Essay on the Structure and Formation of the Teeth in Man, etc., by Rob-
ert Blake, M.D., Dublin, 1801, page v. American Society of Dental Surgeons,
reprint of the same, Baltimore, 1848, page x. A Practical Guide to Operations on
the Teeth, etc., James Snell, London, 1831, or Philadelphia, 1832, page 50.
Fitches' Dental Surgery, New York, 1829, page 17; Philadelphia, 1835, page 16.
I 2
dental practice, accompanied by Josiah Flagg, who remained under
his instructions until he had mastered the art, when he returned to
his home in Boston, and entered upon his professional career. In a
little while, James Gardette also came to Philadelphia, began prac-
tice as a dentist, and for forty-five years, by his skill, his readiness
to assist and help his professional brethren, and his gentlemanly de-
portment, upheld the dignity of the profession he loved. After a
few years LeMaire returned to Paris,' resumed practice, and as a
writer and practitioner he honored his profession. I take it, gentle-
men, the impress that these two well educated and skillful men made
upon the profession when in its infancy in the United States, has
had much to do in making dentistry in America what it is, and has
had much to do also in giving to dentistry in Philadelphia the high
standing it has ever maintained. -
We celebrate to-night, not the first effort to organize the dentists
of Philadelphia in the interests of professional progress, but the first
successful effort.
In 1817, Horace Hayden tried earnestly to bring about that which
later accomplished so much. In Philadelphia, James Gardette, Ed-
ward Hudson, and perhaps a few others were in hearty accord ; but
finding throughout the country so little encouragement, reluctantly,
discouraged and heartsick, he relinquished the seemingly hopeless
task. Again, a few years later, Dr. Spooner travelled through the
country on much the same errand. He was especially interested in
adapting the ceramic art to dental uses, and endeavored to hasten
progress in this direction by enlisting the co-operation of his breth-
ren, rightly suggesting that by a general interchange of experience
much good could be done. He too, was a pioneer, who casting his
bread upon the waters, sadly saw it sink from view—not lost. No 1
Hayden and Spooner were sowing the seed that sprang up in 1839
and produced so bountiful a harvest.
At this date we can hardly appreciate the difficulties they had
to contend with. Except to a comparatively few, that dentists
practising in the same community could be anything else than bus.
iness rivals was a new doctrine, difficult to understand, and slowly
accepted. The invitation to come together and discuss common
interests was looked upon with suspicion; while the project to found
a school for the purpose of teaching the mysteries of the science,
mysteries that had been so long looked upon as part of their stock
in trade, and as such jealously guarded, seemed madness. Of this,
Dr. Robert Arthur, in an address delivered before the Pennsylvania
I 3
Association of Dental Surgeons, January 20th, 1845, thus speaks :
“Who that was present at the opening of the Convention called for the
purpose of organizing this association, could have failed to observe
the great coolness which prevailed at the meeting, but which gradu-
ally passed away, and, as liberal sentiments began to be poured forth,
finding a ready response from men whom we had been almost
disposed to look upon as narrow-minded and regardless of anything
but their own selfish interests, but who, we found, were looking up as
steadily and earnestly as ourselves to the elevation of the profession
and increase of its usefulness, was replaced by a cheering warmth and
a delightful feeling.” -
When we first met, we were all, or nearly all, strangers to each
other, but we soon grew familiar, and in faces which were unknown
before, we now see familiar features and feel that many of these ac-
quaintances may soon become friends. *
These words of Dr. Robert Arthur suggest the keynote to that
great educational impulse received by the profession in 1839-40. It
was not the birth of a new science; it was not the donning of a new
or more honorable mantle. It was a breaking down of that exclu-
siveness with which the great body of dentists had individually sur-
rounded themselves. It was an acceptance and acknowledg- .
ment of professional brotherhood ; ceasing to be competitors and
becoming compeers ; neighbors, yet not rivals. From this came the
association, the periodicals, the colleges. It was a grand movement,
and glorious has been the result the world over. It was the second
and crowning educational impulse. It is the fiftieth anniversary of the
advent of that movement in our midst, that we are celebrating to-night.
How typical of the change wrought, this gathering together in pleasant
harmony of the dental societies and the dental colleges of Philadel-
phia, at this festive board, to honor the memory of those who fifty
years ago did for us so much, and did it so well.
At the conclusion of Dr. W. H. Trueman's historical sketch, Prof.
C. N. Peirce, at the call of the Chairman, spoke as follows :
ADDRESS OF DR. PEIRCE OF THE PENNSYLVANIA College of
DENTAL SURGERY.
The Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery was the outgrowth of
the Philadelphia College of Dental Surgery, which was chartered in
1850, and held its first session in the Fall of 1852, occupying rooms in
* Opeuing address delivered before the Pennsylvania Association of Dental
Surgeons, January 20th, 1846, by Robert Arthur, D. D. S. American Journal of
Dental Sciences, Vol. VI., March 1846, page 195.
I4
the third, fourth and fifth stories of the building at No. 528 Arch St.,
now occupied by Bullock & Crenshaw, but at that time occupied and
owned by the firm of Jones, White & McCurdy, now the S. S. White
Dental Manufacturing Company, at Twelfth and Chestnut Streets.
The Philadelphia College of Dental Surgery completed four ses-
sions, graduating in these four years sixty-three (63) students.
Owing to the action of the trustees of this institution in conferring
honorary degrees without the recommendation or consent of the fac.
ulty, the latter resigned, and the college, as a teaching institution,
ceased to exist.
The charter of the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery was
then obtained by the retiring faculty on April 3d, 1856, and the Hon.
Henry C. Carey was elected President of the Board of Corporators
of the new institution. At the first meeting of the Board of Corpora-
tors, held on the 6th of April, 1856, the following were elected mem-
bers of the faculty: }
Elisha Townsend, D.D.S., M.D., Professor of Operative Dentistry
and special Pathology; Ely Parry, D.D.S., M.D., Professor of Chem-
istry, Materia and Therapeutics; Robert Arthur, D.D.S., M.D., Pro-
fessor of Principles and Practice of Dental Surgery; J. F. R. Flagg,
D.D.S., M.D., Professor of Anatomy and Physiology; T. L. Buck-
ingham, D.D.S., M.D., Professor of Mechanical Dentistry.
The College thus organized remained in the same building, 528
Arch Street, until 1863, when, owing to various reasons, such as
divergency of opinion regarding who should be Dean, and the most
fitting occupant of the chair of Principles and Practice of Dental
Surgery, a change became necessary. This chair had several years
previously been vacated by Prof. Arthur, and subsequently filled by
Dr. J. L. Suesserott, who had at this time tendered his resignation,
again making a vacancy, the filling of which by Dr. Geo. T. Barker,
produced much animosity in a member of the faculty, which resulted
in the establishment of the Philadelphia Dental College. At this
time the publisher of the Dental Cosmos refused to issue, as hereto.
fore, the announcement of or to advertise the Pennsylvania College
of Dental Surgery in that journal, but gave its influence and sympa-
thy to the new institution. It was this action which led to the
establishment of the Dental Times, a quarterly journal edited and
published by the faculty of the Pennsylvania College of Dental Sur-
gery from July, 1863, to April, 1873. These events caused the
removal of the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery from its old
quarters to the southeast corner of Tenth and Arch Streets. Of its
I 5
new quarters the College occupied the second, third and fourth floors,
and remained in this building until the close of the session of 1877
and 1878 when again the faculty was disruptured by the establishment
of the dental department of the University of Pennsylvania, this
new venture withdrawing from the old institution its professors of
Operative Dentistry, Mechanical Dentistry and General Pathology.
At this time the faculty was reorganized by the introduction into it
of Dr. C. N. Peirce, its former Dean, Dr. Wilbur F. Litch and Dr.
H. C. Chapman filling the places made vacant by the resignation of
the previous incumbents, and a much larger building was secured
on the northwest corner of Twelfth and Filbert Streets. In this
building the second, third, fourth and fifth stories were occupied,
thus more than doubling the space previously occupied for educational
purposes. --
From this date, the spring of 1878, the career of the college has
been one of unprecedented and continued prosperity, every year
recording an increase in the number of students and some important
extension to the college curriculum. The number of students grad-
ually increased until the entire class is numbered by hundreds, three
hundred and thirty-five matriculates being the number for the session
Of 1895-96.
The radical changes in the length of term and the number of terms
were met by larger classes until the faculty was again forced to look
for better accommodations. The property at the northeast corner of
Eleventh and Clinton Streets was purchased and thereon was erected
a building in every way adapted to the purposes of a Dental College.
This commodious building was occupied in the spring of 1893, at the
close of the regular session of 1892-93.
The three full years passed in the new location have been of such
success and advantage to the school that the wisdom of the faculty in
making this change has been fully sustained. The increase in the size
of the class, the improvements in the methods of teaching, the addi-
tions to the comforts of the students, faculty and auxiliary instruct-
ors, all attest the good judgment displayed in the selection of loca-
tion, as well as in the arrangement of the building and the equipment
of the several rooms.
This institution, from the time of its organization in 1856 to the
close of the present session, 1896, will have conferred the degree of
D.D.S. upon nineteen hundred and twenty-five students; of these,
sixty-five have been women.
While the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery was practically
I 6
the third in the order of organization in this country, its singleness
of purpose in dental education has stamped it as a leading institution,
and one whose consistent and unsullied record can be regarded with
just pride by its graduates.
The faculty, since completing its building, recognizing that the
Board of Corporators are the legal and permanent representatives of
the College, have, under equitable arrangements, transferred the prop-
erty to them, so that it is now, and will be for all future time, held in
trust as an institution for the education of students in dentistry and
the advancement of dental science. -
The following comprise the Board of Corporators, the faculty, and
auxiliary instructors at this date :
CoRPORATORS:
I. MINIs HAys, M.D., President; Joseph PETTIT, M.D., D.D.S.,
Secretary; GEORGE R. MoREHOUSE, M.D., Treasurer; J. D. WHITE,
M.D., D.D. S.; T. MoRRIS PEROT, Esq.; JoBN H. BRINTON, M.D.;
WILLIAM W. KEEN, M.D.; WILLIAM H. TRUEMAN, D. D.S.; EMLEN
HUTCHINSON, Esq.; Hon. SAMUEL GUSTINE THOMPSON; W. ATLEE BUR-
PEE, Esq.; Joseph M. WILSON, Esq.; N. B. CRENSHAW, Esq.; CHAs.
F. BONSALL, D.D.S.
FACULTY AND AUXILIARY INSTRUCTORS.
J. Ewing MEARS, A.M., M.D., Professor of Anatomy and Surgery;
C. N. PEIRCE, D.D.S., Professor of Dental Physiology, Dental Path-
ology and Operative Dentistry; WILBUR F. LITCH, M.D., D.D.S., Pro-
fessor of Prosthetic Dentistry, Materia Medica and Therapeutics;
HENRY LEFFMANN, M.D., D.D.S., Professor of Chemistry and Metal-
lurgy; ALBERT D. BRUBAKER, M.D., D.D.S., Professor of Physiology
and General Pathology; PERCIVAL E. LoDER, M.D., D.D.S., Dem.
onstrator of Anatomy; GEO. W. WARREN, D.D.S., Chief of the Clinics
and Demonstrator of Operative Dentistry ; I. NoRMAN BROOMELL,
D.D.S., Chief of Prosthetic Department; Edward F. WAYNE, D.D.S.,
Demonstrator of Chemistry; FREDERICK R. BRUNET, D.D.S., Demon-
strator of Prosthetic Dentistry; RUPERT BEALE, D.D.S., Demonstrator
of Prosthetic Dentistry; WILLIAM B. WARREN, D.D.S., Demonstrator of
Operative Dentistry; R. WALTER STARR, D.D.S., Instructor in Crown
and Bridge Work; CHARLEs S. HEARN, M.D., Instructor in Histology
and Microscopy; W. K. THORPE, D.D.S., Demonstrator of Operative
Dentistry; MARTHA ALLAIRE TERRY, D.D.S., Demonstrator of Opera-
tive Dentistry; E. Roland HEARN, D.D.S., Demonstrator of Opera-
tive Dentistry; LUTHER G. TERRY, D.D. S., Demonstrator of Opera-
17
tive Dentistry; Louis B&ITTON, D.D.S., Demonstrator of Operative
Dentistry; E. A. KRETSCBMAN, Instructor in Modeling; GEORGE
YoUNG, E. A. THELLER, W. G. LoweRY, Clinical Assistants, Session
1894. 95.
CLINICAL INSTRUCTORS.
Dr. J. N. FARRAR, Dr. W. G. A. Bonwill, Dr. A. L. NorthRUP,
Dr. C. S. STOCKTon, Dr. CHAs. F. Bonsall, Dr. C. E. FRANCIS, I)r.
E. C. BAxTER, Dr. JoHN B. Wood, Dr. A. H. BRockway, Dr. C. PAL-
MER, Dr. T. F. CauperN, Dr. W. R. MILLARD, Dr. W. H. TRUEMAN,
Dr. R. HollBNBACK, Dr. J. G. TEMPLETON, Dr. A. B. ABELL.
At the conclusion of Prof. Peirce's remarks, Prof. S. H. Guilford,
of the Philadelphia Dental College was introduced, and gave a history
of the institution with which he is connected :
MR. CHAIRMAN AND FELLOW-MEMBERS OF OUR COMMON
PROFESSION :— •
The first institution established in Pennsylvania for the imparting
of knowledge in the science and art of dentistry, was organized
in 1852 under the title of the Philadelphia College of Dental
Surgery.
After a useful but short life of four years, it yielded to the throes
of internal dissention and ceased to exist. *
From its funeral pyre arose the Pennsylvania College of Dental
Surgery, four members of whose faculty had held positions in the
parent institution.
In the Fall of 1862, Dr. John H. McQuillen holding the chair of
Operative Dentistry and Physiology in the Pennsylvania College, be-
ing displeased with a certain act of the officials of the institution,
retired from the faculty. In 1863, with the assistance of other mem-
bers of the profession in the city and state, and after the expendi-
ture of much effort and the overcoming of great opposition (for
characters were not as readily obtained in those days as now,) he
succeeded in obtaining from the legislature of Pennsylvania a char-
ter for a new institution under the name of the Philadelphia Dental
College.
After the securing of a competent faculty and Board of Trustees,
the new institution opened its first term in November of the same
year. Its faculty consisted of :
Dr. J. H. McQuillen, Professor of Anatomy, Physiology and
Hygiene.
Dr. J. Foster Flagg, Professor Institutes of Dentistry.
I 8
Dr. C. A. Kingsbury, Professor Dental Physiology and Operative
Dentistry. -
Dr. Thos. Wardell, Professor Mechanical Dentistry and Metal-
lurgy.
Dr. Henry Morton, A. M., Professor Chemistry.
Dr. McQuillen was elected Dean and held that office continuously
until his death. In 1865, Professors Kingsbury and Morton resigned
and were succeeded by Dr. Geo. W. Ellis and Albert R. Leeds, A. M.
In 1866 Prof. Ellis resigned and Prof. Kingsbury resumed his former
chair. In 1867 Prof. Wardle resigned and Dr. D. D. Smith was
elected to succeed him.
The same year two new chairs were created, one of Principles
and Practice of Surgery and the other of Anatomy. Dr. James E.
Garretson was chosen incumbent of the former and Dr. Harrison
Allen of the latter. 1
In the following year, 1868, Professors Garretson and Leeds re-
signed and Dr. S. B. Howell was elected to succeed Prof. Leeds.
In 1869 Prof. Kingsbury resigned his chair and was made Emeri-
tus Professor and Dr. T. C. Stellwagon was chosen as his successor.
In 1870 Prof. Flagg resigned and his chair was divided among the
others.
Thus far, some change had taken place in the personnel of the
faculty each year but one. During the succeeding eight years no
change occurred, but in 1878 Prof. Garretson resumed his chair of
Anatomy and Surgery, and Dr. Henry I. Dorr was made Adjunct
Professor of Practical Dentistry.
In 1879 the chair of Dental Pathology and Therapeutics was estab-
lished and Prof. Flagg was chosen to fill it. Owing to the lamented
death of Prof. McQuillen during this year, some changes in the
chairs were made necessary. Prof. Stellwagon succeeded Prof.
McQuillen in the chair of Physiology, and his former chair
of Operative Dentistry was united to that of Mechanical Dentistry.
At the same time a new chair of Clinical Dentistry was established
and Prof. H. I. Dorr chosen to fill it.
In 1881 Prof. Smith resigned and Dr. S. H. Guilford was elected
incumbent of the chair of Operative and Prosthetic Dentistry.
In 1889 Prof. Dorr's chair was changed to that of Practical Den.
tistry, Anaesthesia and Anaesthetics.
From then until the death of Prof. Garretson in the present year
(covering a period of fourteen years) no changes occurred, but since
his death Dr. H. C. Boenning has been elected to the chair of Anatomy
I9
and Surgery and Dr. M. H. Cryer has been chosen Adjunct Professor
of Oral Surgery.
Few changes have occurred in the Deanship of the institution.
Prof. McQuillen held the position from the establishment of the
school until the time of his death. He was succeeded by Prof.
Smith who held the office for two years and he in turn by Prof. Gar-
retson who continued in the oſſice until it was made vacant by his
death.
Of the original Board of Trustees, all are dead save two and they
are no longer members. The first incumbent of the Presidency of
the Board, was Rev. Richard Newton, D. D. At his death he was
succeeded by Ex-Gov. Jas. Pollock and he in turn by Ex-Gov. Jas.
A. Beaver, the present President. -
At the time of the inauguration of the Philadelphia Dental College
there were but three other dental schools in existence ; one in Cin-
cinnati, one in Baltimore and the third in this city, while in all com-
bined there were less than 100 students in attendance. To-day we
have three dental colleges in this city with a combined annual attend-
ance of at least 1,000 students.
In the entire United States we have at this time nearly fifty insti.
tutions in which dentistry is regularly taught, with a total yearly
attendance (as given in 1893–4) of four thousand one hundred and
thirty-six pupils.
Probably one thousand graduates will issue from the dental schools
in the United States at the close of the present term.
In the thirty-two years of its existence, the Philadelphia Dental
College has graduated no less than 1567 students. Along with other
schools it has advanced from a two years' course of four months each
to a three years' course of five months, with supplemental spring and
fall courses covering four months more. From an annual curriculum
that required but thirty-four lectures from each professor it has
developed into one in which more than one hundred didactic lectures
are given annually by the incumbent of each chair. In addition to
this the clinical facilities have been greatly enlarged year by year,
giving to the student opportunities for the attainment of a degree of
manual dexterity undreamed of thirty years ago. One of the most
prominent advances of recent years has been the establishment of
technic courses in the Freshmen and Junior years, cultivating not
only the hand but the eye and brain, as well as adding immensely to
the symmetrical development of the pupil.
The Philadelphia Dental College was the first institution to include
2O
in its curriculum, a course in Oral Surgery and the first also to estab.
lish a hospital for the treatment of diseases of the oral cavity. The
late Prof. Garretson was the first to make a special study of such
diseases and to constitute their consideration a part of the dental
curriculum. With him the trained hand of the dentist, in conjunction
with the medically educated mind, made possible operations never
before attempted. His volume of Oral Surgery, the best work of his
better years, remains as a monument to his matchless industry and
skill and a safe guide to those who may follow in his special line of
practice. -
The Philadelphia Dental College in its many years of existence has
lost but three of its professors through death, but of those who have
thus been removed, two were conspicuous lights, with reputations
that were world-wide. Both were men of indomnitable energy, wise
judgment, greatness of heart and nobleness of character. Each was
a master in the art of teaching and each at the time of his death was
not only the Dean of the school but the most distinguished member
of the faculty. In these cases at least, the old adage “death loves a
shining mark,” was verified. Dr. McQuillen was the founder of the
school. He labored unceasingly for its proper establishment and then
through all the remaining years of his life faithfully devoted himself
to its development. Night and day, year in and and year out, giving
liberally both of his time and money; ceaselessly, restlessly, he
labored for its success. Practice, comfort, health and finally life were
sacrificed in order that the school which he loved might become a
temple of knowledge worthy of the respect of all men.
Dr. Garretson was as ambitious as his predecessor for the advance-
ment of the institution with which he was connected and for the true
elevation of the profession which he loved. Lofty in his aims he
brought to his work a mind of rare culture joined to a zeal that seemed
to know no bounds. He was a man among men, capable of inspiring
in others the confidence he felt in himself, and by his counsel and acts
and teachings stimulating those under his care to the attainment of
all that is noblest and best in life. This brief record would be
incomplete without some reference to the third one of the professors
of our school, called hence by death. *
Prof. C. Kingsbury ably seconded the efforts of Prof. McQuillen in
the establishment of the Philadelphia Dental College, and was a mem-
ber of its first faculty. He served the institution actively for six
years and then continued in the honorary position of emeritus until his
death, in September, 1891. He proved himself a competent and
2 I
faithful teacher, and his love for the institution and devotion to its
interests were manifested in a multitude of ways. -
His simplicity of heart, his generous nature, his lovable character,
are remembered by all of us. No one ever excelled him in loyalty to
his profession and no one strove more earnestly and faithfully to
place it upon the highest plane to which it might aspire. In his
death denistry lost one of her most ardent devotees and the profes-
sion a true friend and brother. To these three men, each in his way
adding lustre to the profession of his choice, the institution which I
represent to-night would do honor. The memory of them is a rich
heritage to us all, one I trust which will broaden and increase as the
years go on, stimulating us to the putting forth of our best efforts
toward the advancement of that calling to which we each bear loving
allegiance. -
The Chairman now called on Prof. Edwin T. Darby, of the Dental
Department of the University of Pennsylvania, who responded in the
following remarks:
When I came to Philadelphia, thirty years ago, the Pennsylvania
Association of Dental Surgeons was about half grown, and it seemed
to me at that time that it was also about half dead. The membership
was composed largely of the faculty and friends of the Pennsylvania
College of Dental Surgery. It had a new rival in the Odontographic
Society, which had then just come into being. The meetings of the
older Society were held in the lecture room of the Pennsylvania Col-
lege of Dental Surgery, while those of the Odontographic Society
were held in a lecture room of the Philadelphia Dental College. As
there was much jealousy between the two Colleges, the Societies were
not as friendly as they might have been. But time, that great healer
of human asperity, brought about a more friendly feeling between the
two Societies, and the members of one gained courage sufficient to
attend the meetings of the other. The old Society has outlived its
rival, and we are here this evening to celebrate its Fiftieth Anniver-
sary. That it has been a power for good no one can doubt after hear-
ing all of the good things which have been said of it to-night.
But, Mr. Chairman, I was asked to say something about the
history of the Dental Department of the University of Pennsylvania,
and I most gladly respond to that request. I may be pardoned for
saying that I know a good deal about its history, for I have been a
member of its faculty from the very beginning. The University of
Pennsylvania was not the first to add a dental department to its lists
22
Harvard and Ann Arbor each had dental departments before the
trustees of the University of Pennsylvania decided to establish one.
Its department of Medicine, the oldest in the country was eminentl y
prosperous. It also had a department of Law, why should it not
have a successful department of Dentistry 7 Its establishment had
been contemplated for several years before it was done. In 1878 the
dental faculty was elected and a building erected for the accommoda.
tion of the new department. Professor Essig and myself were elected
to the chairs of practical dentistry, while the other chairs were filled
by the faculty from the Medical department. With two other well
established dental schools in the city, the task of building up another
seemed formidable, but we felt that we were well supported by the
trustees who had inaugurated the enterprise. Our class the first year
was small, numbering, if my memory serves me correctly, only
about sixty students. With each year the classes increased in size,
until the present, when our students number upwards of three hun-
dred. I think it has been proven that the trustees were correct in
their estimate of the need of snch a department in their institution.
Of the reputation of that department you are all familiar. Of
its character it does not become me to speak; but I may be
allowed to say that those of us who have been identified with it from
its foundation are not ashamed of its history, and I trust as the years
go by we shall not be less proud of the work which it is accomplish-
ing. -
At the conclusion of Prof. Darby's address, Dr. C. F. Bonsall, Presi-
dent of the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Surgeons was called
on and spoke as follows:
As the President of the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Sur-
geons, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, I take great pleasure in welcom-
ing you to our Golden Anniversary. While appreciating as I do that
we to-night have met to commemorate a movement of greater moment
than the mere organization of a Dental Society, I recognize that the
organization of our society was the first visible result of that effort,
and its founders are the men in whose honor we have met to night.
Golden Anniversaries of Dental Societies are so infrequent, we feel
that it is an honor to have reached the half century line, especially so
when we look back over the years that have passed. During the
whole period of its existence, the Pennsylvania Association of
Dental Surgeons has been constantly progressive. It has ever en-
couraged and assisted its members in original scientific work, and
this work has been pre-eminently of a practical and helpful character.
23
Looking over the record, we note, that the energy of its members has
been constantly directed to problems concerning our daily work,
papers read at its meetings, and the discussions have all had the same
practical tendency. As a result, it has gathered within its halls the
progressive, the studious, the representative men of the profession in
Philadelphia. This is shown by the fact that the editorial chairs of
our dental journals have found worthy occupants among our mem-
bers, and the names of a large majority of the dental professors of the
three Dental Colleges of Philadelphia are now, or have been, on our
membership roll. The multiplicity of dental societies in our midst,
their strong men having been largely taken from our ranks, has
reduced our numbers, but not one jot the “esprit de corps'' we have
inherited from the noble men, our founders. We hope to live on, to
work on, and most earnestly do we hope that our successors
may greet your successors—that a future president of the Pennsyl-
vania Association of Dental Surgeons may welcome the representa-
tive dentists of Philadelphia, as near as may be on this historic spot,
fifty years hence, to a celebration that shall worthily mark a full
century’s growth.
The Chairman now introdućed Dr. Spencer Roberts, the oldest
member of the Association present, who responded briefly:
MB. CHAIRMAN AND GENTLEMEN :—
I do not intend to make a speech, never having cultivated the art.
I can say this much however ; it has given me great pleasure to be
with you this evening to listen to what has been done in the past,
and contemplate the wonderful advances made in the art of dentistry.
I thank you for the courtesy shown me.
Professor W. F. Leitch, Editor of “The American System of
Dentistry,” was then called on by the Chairman and entertained the
company with the following remarks :
In listening as I have with absorbing interest to the history of this
organization and to the reminiscences connected therewith, I have
been impressed with the thought that as all social organizations are
made up of members drawn together by some common bond of com-
radeship, some special tie either of taste, of interest or vocation, such
organized body takes its individuality from the dominant quali-
ties of those who form it and each may be regarded as a composite of
its members, as a composite which represents character. Character
to the social organization is what the soil is to the seed, it determines
development, growth, fruitage.
24
Many of those who organized this association I knew personally,
and knowing them can realize how much of force and earnestness and
zeal and fidelity and energy there was back of the movement in which
their hearts were enlisted, to which they gave so much of the best
effort of their lives. There was character back of this organization
and that is why it has lived and why once formed it became a social
factor as well as an educational power.
As a social factor how much it must have accomplished in quieting
antagonism, harmonizing misunderstandings, and overcoming preju-
dices. The younger generation of dentists can hardly realize to
what extent jealousy and mistrust obtained among those who had
few if any opportunities of meeting upon common ground, of gaug-
ing the worth and merit each of the other. It is difficult to estimate
the value of such organizations in unifying professional sentiment,
the first and essential step to true professional advancement.
There is to-day in Philadelphia in addition to several dental socie-
ties, three large educational institutions, while, throughout the land
similar organizations have multiplied.
What the achievements of the last half century have been we all
know ; still greater results may be looked for in the new century so
soon to open. To-night we turn our retrospective gaze on the fifty
years of honor and usefulness through which the Pennsylvania Asso-
ciation of Dental Surgeons has lived. In honor and usefulness may
she still live, when a century hence the breath of that new cycle
shall fan the brows of men who, following us, shall then meet to do
her honor. *
The chairman now called upon Dr. Jesse C. Green, of West Chester,
who has been a member of the Society more than forty years, and
whose keen interest in dental education and all that pertains to pro-
fessional advancement has been evidenced by his long and faithful
service as Secretary of the Pennsylvania State Board of Dental
Examiners.
Dr. Green in reply said: The invitation to the banquet is in error
when it states that the movement we have here met to commemorate
was by the dentists of Philadelphia. My recollection is that it
embraced the entire State, and on looking the matter up I find in the
December number of Stocktons' Dental Intelligencer, 1845, an edit-
orial note in part as follows:—“ Pennsylvania Association of Dental
Surgeons. A meeting is to be held in this city on the fifteenth of the
present month by a number of dentists residing here and in other
parts of the State for the purpose of organizing a society. We hope
25
that it will be well attended and that none will be admitted to mem-
bership but such as are really worthy, etc.”
The call for the convention, which ended in the organization of this
society was addressed to the dentists resident in Pennsylvania.
When the convention met in this city December 15th, 1845, as was to
be expected, Philadelphia was more fully represented than other parts
of the State. There was, however, among the organizers of the Associa-
tion, besides these, a sufficient number to entitle it to be considered a
movement for the advancement of dental education by the dentists of
the State of Pennsylvania. Outside the city of Philadelphia it had
among the dentists of the State many earnest advocates—men who
felt the need of some such effort to put the profession upon a higher
educational plane, and who put their shoulders to the wheel, and
pushed manfully to bring about the marvelous change wrought
within the fifty years which have so quickly passed.
Those who can look back to 1845 and compare the profession as it
was then with what it is now will see there has been a marvelous
change.
We are apt to cite the sehools, the journals, the societies, as the
results of that educational movement : so they are. They have been
great helps to our professional progress, but, let me remind you, they
are only evidences of a greater and more marvelous change—a change
that made these possible.
Those of the present generation cannot realize what the profession
was fifty or more years ago, when persons commenced practice with
so slight a knowledge of their duties as might be obtained after a
three months’ training in the private office and laboratory of some
dentist, whose information had been obtained in a similar manner, for
a fee of about $200 and a pledge to secrecy. Others commenced
without even that preparation, not knowing how to prepare a metal
cast. We cannot now realize the difficulties a dentist, anxious
to advance in professional knowledge, had then to contend with.
Dentists were not then as they are now, anxious to share with
their brethren any new idea, or new method, or to call attention to a
* This journal, “Stockton’s Dental Intelligence,” was published the first year
folio, four pages, and three years as an octavo, part of the time monthly and part
bi-monthly, by S. W. Stockton, whose dental depot was then at Third and Chest-
nut Sts., Philadelphia. It commenced September 1st, 1843, and ended November,
1848, making four volumes. In its day it was a useful journal. The first volume
contained a series of articles by J. F. Caldwell, Surgeon Dentist of Philadelphia,
on “The Structure and Diseases of the Teeth,” on “Extraction,” and on “Antra
Highmorrianum, the Causes of their Disease and Remedial Treatment.”
26
new remedy which they had found useful. They did not invite each
other to their offices, or exhibit, that they might be freely copied,
new instruments or new appliances. Not at all ; the office and the
laboratory was labelled to all dentists, “No admittance.” New
ideas, if communicated at all, were to be paid for. Every dentist
looked upon every other dentist as a business rival, and it was
thought perfectly right and proper to adopt any and every means to
get and keep patients. Here and there, it is true, might be found
some who possessed a true professional spirit, and looked upon
the trade methods as we do now, but they were few and far between,
and that is why the early dental Societies had such a hard struggle,
and why so many, after a few years of feeble existence. ceased to
exist. It was the good fortune of the Pennsylvania Association of
Dental Surgeons to begin its career after the reform, if I may so call
it, had somewhat progressed ; to have its birthplace where the profes.
sional atmosphere was more healthy, and above all, to have for its
sponsors and founders so large a proportion of strong, earnest, ener
getic men. It is to their efforts and to the efforts of others like
them that you, young men, are now indebted for the many privileges
you enjoy. What a help ! The thorough college training, the mutual
interchange of thought in the societies and the journals, and above all
the kindly, brotherly feeling that so thoroughly pervades the profes-
sion everywhere. These are the outgrowth of the educational move.
ment commenced a little over fifty years ago.
Young men, let me urge you to make the most of these privileges,
The future of the dental profession is committed to your care, see to
it that its onward and upward march shall be steady and unfaltering.
The evening's entertainment was concluded by a well-rendered and
much-appreciated musical vocal selection by Dr. J. D. Thomas.