1
By the end of the nineteenth century, women were entering, qualified and registered to work as physicians. Dr. Elizabeth Secord (1841-1916), daughter of Daniel Smith of Blissville, was the first duly qualified and registered practicing woman physician in New Brunswick and one of the first in Canada. While teaching in Norton, she met and married John Secord. Left a widow in early middle age, she went to Keokuk College, Michigan where she received her Medical Degree in 1881. Afterwards, she trained at Women's College Hospital and then registered in New Brunswick in 1883. She took post graduate training in Dublin Lying-In Hospital and received her License in Midwifery in 1885.2
Dr. Elizabeth C. Secord1841-1916
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:"My Hartt": The Site for the Descendants of Isaac and Elizabeth (Hutchinson) Hart
http://www.myhartt.com/
3
Dr. Oscar Morehouse, Jr. (1907-1980) succeeded his father (1857-1935) as a country physician in the Keswick Valley. He delivered the entire 1954 class of Keswick Memorial High School.4
Dr. Oscar Morehouse, Jr.1907-1980
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:Provincial Archives of New Brunswick: P133-7
5
Dr. G. Everett Chalmers (1905-1993) was a politician and physician in Fredericton. One colleague described him as 'The Boss Gibson of the Fredericton Medical Community.' He was a forceful and sometimes controversial figure who played an important part in the life of the city. Chalmers was born in Bathurst, studied at the University of New Brunswick (BA) and McGill (MD) and began a general practice in Fredericton in 1936. As time passed, he was recognized as a gifted surgeon. He was a leader in the creation of the Fredericton Medical Clinic in 1938, the Fredericton Cancer Clinic in 1952, the Polio Hospital in 1955, and the new regional hospital in 1976. Throughout his career, he was actively involved in the selection and recruitment of medical specialists for the city. In public life, Chalmers served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick from 1963 to 1978.6
Dr. G.E. Chalmers and Violet Burchill1941-1945
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:Provincial Archives of New Brunswick Gillian Liebenberg Polio Years 1941-1954 collection: P384-9
7
Dr. Bob Chalmers (1913-2003), brother of Dr. Everett Chalmers, was born in Gibson, New Brunswick and was an obstetrician and gynaecologist practising in Fredericton. He served as a member of the Royal Canadian Army Forces Medical Corps during World War II and was a member of the Royal Canadian Legion for many years.8
Dr. Anna (Miller) Loane was a family doctor and medical missionary. She was one of three women physicians in Fredericton in 1953.9
Dr. Anna (Miller) Loane1930-1960
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:Provincial Archives of New Brunswick: P394-1
10
Dr. John C. Likely1919-1999
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:Image courtesy of Carol Likely
11
Dr. John C. Likely was a native of Saint John. He studied at Mount Allison (BSc) and McGill (MD), and set up a medical practice in Woodstock. He returned to Montreal in 1948 to undertake speciliat studies in ear, nose, eyes and throat. In 1950, he came to Fredericton and set up practice with Dr. Ross Wright. He was one of the earliest specialists in the city. He retired in 1988. Dr. Likely was an accomplished musician. As a young man he had been admitted to the Julliard School of Music in New York and remained a passionate performer of the clarinet and the saxophone throughout his life.12
In 1941, the Victoria Public Hospital was overwhelmed with polio cases, and a physiotherapist was needed to assess cases and provide treatment throughout the province. Kathleen Walker (Macpherson) arrived in Fredericton in the Fall of 1941 to help out with the epidemic. She was a British trained physiotherapist who had been working previously in Montreal and upon her arrival in New Brunswick, became the first physiotherapist employed by the Provincial government's department of Health. She, along with Drs. Bell and G. E. Chalmers were mainly responsible for the establishment of a polio clinic in Fredericton.Kathleen travelled all around New Brunswick by herself and later with another physiotherapist, Audrey Coleman to provide relief to polio patients and assess the extent of patients requiring hospitalized services. In her memoir, Kathleen Walker wrote about some of her experiences traveling around New Brunswick in winter.
13
Dr. Joseph Alexander M. Bell (1894-1959) was a native of Ontario and completed his Medical Degree at McGill University in 1918. He opened up a practice in Newcastle, N.B. and in 1938, moved to Fredericton. He was an advocate for better polio services and was director of the polio clinic from 1953 until 1955.14
Dr. Joseph Alexander M. Bell1941-1954
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Credits:Provincial Archives of New Brunswick Gillian Liebenberg Polio Years 1941-1954 collection: P384-91
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