Most dentists are only well known to the patients whose oral health they maintain. But through the years, there have been a number of famous men who were accomplished in the dental arts.
Here are a few:
1. John Henry "Doc" Holliday. Primarily remembered for his connection to Wyatt Earp and the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Doc Holliday was a gambler, a gunfighter and a dentist. Holliday left his home in Georgia when he was 19 to study dentistry in Philadelphia. He obtained his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery, and then opened a dental office in Atlanta with another dentist. Soon after, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and moved to Dallas, Tex., where he opened a dental practice – but he discovered that gambling was a more lucrative vocation. The rest is, literally, history.
2. Norman W. Kingsley. Often called “The Father of Orthodontics,” Kingsley was a dentist, an artist, writer and sculptor who did pioneering work studying the cleft palate. His 1880 work “Treatise on Oral Deformities” was enormously influential on the field of dentistry.
3. J. N. Farrar. Also referred to as “The Father of Orthodontics,” his two-volume work, “A Treatise on the Irregularities of the Teeth and Their Corrections,” became a standard reference text for many years, in part because of the generous illustrations. Farrar was an expert at designing dental appliances, and he’s credited with first suggested the use of mild force at intervals to move teeth.
4. Sir James Crichton-Browne. Actually a renowned British psychiatrist, Crichton-Browne is famous for his contribution to oral health. A passionate believer in the need to ensure dental care for children, he advocated the use of fluorine in the diets of pregnant women and children almost a half-century before modern research confirmed fluorine’s value in preventing cavities.
5. Edward Angle. During his lifetime, Angle was able to truly change the profession of dentistry. At the Angle School of Orthodontics, he was able to write extensively about different kinds of mouth abnormalities and create devices to correct them. Many of his treatment systems are still used today.
6. Pierre Fauchard. An important French physician Fauchard is credited as “The Father of Modern Dentistry" (nor orthodontics, as that title was already taken – twice). His 1728 book “The Surgeon Dentist” describes basic oral anatomy and function, signs and symptoms of oral pathology, operative methods for removing decay and restoring teeth, periodontal disease (pyorrhea), orthodontics, replacement of missing teeth, and tooth transplantation. His book is regarded as the first complete scientific description of dentistry.
7. Green Vardiman Black. A colorful name led to a colorful life as a dentist. Black became a professor of Oral Pathology at the Missouri Dental College, and while there, he created more than one hundred scientific papers on the subject of dentistry. He managed to standardize many operative procedures during his lifetime.
8. Harvey J. Burkhart. Primarily known for his diplomacy, Burkhart served as the first president of the American Dental Association in 1899. He held several other honorable positions, and during his lifetime, he pioneered many preventative procedures for patients.
9. Thomas Curtis. The first African-American dentist in Alabama, Curtis was the model of an excellent dentist. He made great strides toward ensuring equality in dental care for all.
10. Chapin Harris. Harris is one of the major reasons dentists have journals to study new techniques today. In 1839, he created the American Journal of Dental Science. He served as chief editor and publisher until his death.
Dentists may not be what you'd call well known in a world filled with celebrities, but among other dentists, names like these are revered.
|