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Autograph manuscript of an unpublished address delivered by Samuel Bard at the commencement of the College of Physicians and Surgeons. It is undated but must be from the period 1811-1821 when Bard served as President of the College.
History and Biography
Bard, son of the prominent physician John Bard, was educated at King’s College (later Columbia) and received his medical degree from the University of Edinburgh in 1765. In 1767 he was one of the six New York City physicians who persuaded King’s College to establish a medical school, now the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S), the second oldest in the United States. Bard served as its dean and professor of medicine until its closure in 1776 due to the War for Independence. After the newly renamed Columbia College revived the medical school in 1791, he served it first as dean and later as president until his death in 1821. Bard Hall, the VP&S residence hall, is named for him.
Organization
Autograph manuscript of an unpublished address delivered by Samuel Bard at the commencement of the College of Physicians and Surgeons. It is undated but must be from the period 1811-1821 when Bard served as President of the College. Besides his 1819 commencement address, which was later published, the minutes of the College Trustees record him giving the addresses at the 1816 and 1817 commencements.
In his address, Bard enumerates the qualities that make for a successful physician and devotes much of his talk to recounting the life of Herman Boerhaave, the late 17th - early 18th century Dutch physician and university professor, whom Bard believes is a worthy model for the graduates to emulate.
Subject Headings and Related Records
Administrative Information
Purchase from James Cummins, bookseller, New York City, 2019 (accession #2019.006).