Dr. Daniel Hale Williams

Dr. Daniel Hale Williams (1856-1931) was a heart surgeon.

Daniel Hale Williams grew up in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. When Daniel was nine, his father died of tuberculosis, and his mother decided to move the family to Baltimore so they could live with relatives. In Baltimore, Daniel spent 3 years as an apprentice to a shoemaker. By age 17, he was also a successful barber. He was able to attend high school and, later, an academy, from which he graduated when he was 21. Several years later, he began his medical studies under Dr. Henry Palmer at the Chicago Medical School, where he graduated with his M.D. in 1883.

"Dr. Dan," as his patients frequently called him, was among the very first black surgeons in the United States, and he was the first successful open-heart surgeon anywhere in the world. After earning his degree, Dr. Dan began his medical practice with appointments at the South Side Dispensary, the City Railway Company, and the Protestant Orphan Asylum, while also teaching an anatomy class at Northwestern University's Medical School.

Reverend Louis Reynolds approached Dr. Williams, asking for his help when his sister was denied admittance into nursing school based upon her race. This led Dr. Williams to contribute heavily to the founding of Provident Hospital in Chicago, which accepted patients of any ethnicity. Opening on May 4, 1891, Provident Hospital also became one of few places where black doctors and nurses could be trained to become professionals.

On September 6, 1893, Dr. Williams faced his biggest challenge. A young man, James Cornish, who was stabbed in the chest with a knife, was brought to the hospital. Dr. Dan realized Mr. Cornish's heart was bleeding and that he had to open his young patient's chest in order to save his life. Dr. Williams carefully repaired a damaged blood vessel with special equipment to stop the bleeding. After a few weeks of recovery, Mr. Cornish was able to walk out of the hospital. This was the first successful open heart surgery.

From 1894 until 1898, Dr. Williams held a position in Washington D.C. at Freedman's Hospital, where he established an internship program for physicians and guided improvements that helped to reduce the hospital mortality rate. In 1895, he contributed to the organization of the National Medical Association, the only national group at that time open to black physicians. In 1898, he married a school teacher from Washington D.C., Alice Johnson, and together they went back to Provident Hospital in Chicago. In 1913, Dr. Williams became the only African-American serving as one of the 100 charter members of the American College of Surgeons. The hospital continued to provide services for African Americans until 1987, when it was closed because of financial difficulties. Provident is now operated as a part of Cook County Hospital.

For further information on Dr. Daniel H. Williams and other scientists, below are some additional resources that may be helpful.

• Hanson, S. L. (1996). Lost Talent: Women in the Sciences. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
• Morse, M. (1995). Women Changing Science. New York: Insight Books.
• Greenspan, K. (1996). The Timetables of Women's History. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Yount, L. (1999). A to Z of Women in Science and Math. New York: Facts on File.
• Bernstein, L., Winkler, A., Zierdt-Warshaw, L. (1996). Multicultural Women of Science. Maywood, NJ: The Peoples Publishing Group, Inc.
• Bernstein, L., Winkler, A., Zierdt-Warshaw, L. (1998). African and African American Women of Science. Maywood, NJ: The Peoples Publishing Group, Inc.
• Bernstein, L., Winkler, A., Zierdt-Warshaw, L. (1998). Latino Women of Science. Maywood, NJ: The Peoples Publishing Group, Inc.
• Grun, B. (1991). Timetables of History. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Hellemans, A., & Bunch, B. (1991). The Timetables of Science. New York: Simon & Schuster.

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