North Central West Virginia
Tea Party
Follow us
  • Home
  • Monthly Meeting
  • Blog
  • Membership
  • Events
  • Contact Us
  • Contact Elected Officals
  • Meeting Minutes

Founders Keepers: Dr. Benjamin Rush

6/25/2013

0 Comments

 
By Tim Fullerton

His father died when Ben 6 years old.  Young Benjamin was sent to a boarding school in Maryland.  Then to Princeton.  Graduated after ONE YEAR! (at the age of 15!)

Studied medicine in Philadelphia for 6 years.  Then to Edinburgh , Scotland.  Received his MD after 2 years.

He returned to Philadelphia to practice medicine, elected professor of chemistry in the college of Philadelphia.

A strong advocate of, “bleeding,” for nearly any malady even though most doctors of the day had dismissed the practice.  In 1793, a yellow fever epidemic nearly wiped out Philadelphia.  In addition to bleeding, he prescribed calomel and jalap, after reading about them in a book given to him by Benjamin Franklin.  He had great success.  More, he did not keep this knowledge to himself but shared with doctors, even pharmacists.  Proving that no good deed goes unpunished, the medical establishment attacked him and his methods.

He didn't see independence from England as did most of the Declaration's signers.  Instead of commerce, or military might, he considered first and foremost the freedom to experiment.  To learn.  To share knowledge.

He tended to the wounded during the war.  But in a dispute with another physician, he resigned after one year.  He also spent the war trying to get George Washington fired as commander in chief!  Rush later, expressed regret for his actions against Washington. In a letter to John Adams in 1812, Rush wrote, "He [Washington] was the highly favored instrument whose patriotism and name contributed greatly to the establishment of the independence of the United States.

He attended the constitutional convention.  He called the federal government a, “masterpiece of human wisdom.”

Appointed by President John Adams to the post of treasurer for the U.S. mint.

He was the principal agent in founding Dickinson College, in Carlisle, PA. For some years, he was president of the society for the abolition of slavery, and, also, of the Philadelphia Medical Society. He was a founder of the Philadelphia Bible Society, and one of its vice presidents.  Ben was also a vice president of the American Philosophical Society.

Dr. Rush purchased a slave in 1776. He still owned this slave when he joined the Pennsylvania Abolition Society in 1784. (Go figure)

Rush may be more famous today as the man who helped reconcile the friendship of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams by encouraging the two former Presidents to resume writing to each other.  He wrote to Adams: “Some talked, some wrote, and some fought to promote and establish it, but you and Mr. Jefferson thought for us all. I never take a retrospect of the years 1775 and 1776 without associating your opinions and speeches and conversations with all the great political, moral, and intellectual achievements of the Congress of those memorable years.“

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009

    Categories

    All
    9/12
    Aarp
    Abortion
    Accountability
    Bailouts
    Banks
    Bible
    Budget
    Cap And Trade
    Career Politicians
    Cars
    China
    Choice
    Conspiracy
    Constitution
    Coops
    Debt
    Deception
    Dictator
    Education
    Election 2012
    Elections
    End Of Life Issues
    Entitlements
    Founders: Keepers
    Freedom
    Get Involved
    Get Invovled
    Global21
    Global Warming
    Health Care
    Home School
    Inflation
    Jobs
    Limited Govermnet
    Limited Government
    Martial Law
    Media
    Moral
    National Emergency
    New World Order
    Obama
    Pacs
    Presidential Executive Order
    Production
    Public Option
    Right To Petition
    Rockefeller
    School
    Sovereignty
    Spending
    Spin
    Tax
    Tea Party
    Town Hall
    Un
    Unions
    Voting
    Vouchers

    RSS Feed


Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.