Page:American Medical Biographies - Kelly, Burrage.djvu/674

NAME KELSEY 652 KEMPSTER Kelsey, Charles Boyd (1850-1917) Charles Boyd Kelsey, pioneer rectal special- ist in the United States, was born at Farming- ton, Connecticut, November 19, 1850, son of the Reverend Charles and Eliza Boyd Kelsey. His father was a clergyman of strong charac- ter — a rugged type of dissenter, always ready to back up his opinion with a good fighting de- fense. This character descended to his devoted son. A fine product of the American public school system, he followed it to its highest classes, graduating from the Free Academy, now the College of the City of New York, in 1870, and in 1873 received his medical degree from the' College of Physicians and Surgeons. He was house-surgeon at St. Luke's Hospital 1873- 1876; assistant demonstrator of anatomy in the College of Physicians and Surgeons 1874- 1879. Kelsey was professor of diseases of the rectum in the University of Vermont, Burling- ton, 1889-1890, and from 1890 occupied the chair of professor of pelvic and abdominal surgery in the New York Post-graduate School and Hospital, of which institution he was also a director. His ability in his special field of rectal surgery was widely recognized. He was the pioneer in rectal surgery in America, as was AUingham in England, and his writings filled a needed place in literature, being always graphic, hicid, brief and well illustrated, while in the lecture room he had the power of holding his hearers from his first word to his last. He was the author of the follovv'ing text books : "Diseases of the Rectum and Anus," "Ofifice Treatment of Hemorrhoids and Fistu- lae;" and his most important book, "Surgery of the Rectum," an octavo of 420 pages, which reached its sixth edition in 1902. In April, 1876, he married Carolyn Terry, of Rochester, New Y'ork. Dr. Kelsey died at his home in New York, August 4, 1917. The qualities that made Dr. Kelsey a strong character and such a valued member of his profession, were his indomi- table will, clear vision of truth and his ex- traordinary fighting quality which asserted it- self at every turn in his life when decision for right action was to be made and supported. His denunciation of the fripperies of medical practice were so outspoken that he sometimes alarmed timid souls, but his advice to stu- dents was clear and practical and he was always ready when any wrong needed right- ing or personal friendship needed an ally. Robert Abbe. Kempster, Walter (1841-1918) Walter Kempster was born in London, Eng- land, May 25, 1841. He was the youngest son of Christopher Kempster and Charlotte Treble Kempster. Christopher Kempster came to the United States and settled in Syracuse, New York, when Walter was seven years old. He was a man interested in reforms and was asso- ciated with Gerrit Smith and William Lloyd Garrison in the Abolitionist movement. He was also active in the early years of the Young Men's Christian Association and interested in prison reform. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Walter Kempster was scarcely twenty. He enlisted as a private in the 12th New York Volunteers; he was in camp on the White House grounds, Washington, and remembers a visit of Lincoln to the camp, at which time Lincoln spoke to him, remarking upon his youthful appearance. Private Kempster, having already interested himself in the reading and study of medicine, was soon detailed for hospital duty. He was appointed hospital steward in April, 1862. He assisted in organizing the Patterson Park Hos- pital at Baltimore. This hospital had at times over 1200 soldiers under its care. In January, 1863, after engagements near Fredericksburg, Virginia, he was commissioned first lieutenant and was present at Gettysburg and in the en- gagements of General Lee's retreat. He suf- fered an injury at Mine Run, which led to his resignation and he then continued his medical studies and graduated at Long Island College Medical School in June, 1864. From this time until the close of the war he was acting assis- tant surgeon U. S. A. Dr. Kempster acted as assistant superintend- ent of the New York State AsyUim for Idiots in 1866-7 and in the latter year he received an appointment as assistant physician at the State Hospital at Utica. This institution, one of the first and most famous state asylums under the direction of Dr. John P. Gray (q.v.), pos- sessed the first laboratory for study of brain pathology established in the United States, and Dr. Kempster gave much time to the study of macroscopic and microscopic anatomy of the brain. He also acted as assistant editor of the American Journal of Insanity. In col- laboration with Dr. Gray, he developed the photography and projection of slides upon a screen showing microscopic appearances of the brain. In 1873 Dr. Kempster was appointed super- intendent of the Northern State Hospital at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where he served fourteen