Harvey Williams Cushing MD DSM CB (1869 - 1939)

Born 8 Apr 1869 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Katherine Stone (Crowell) Cushing — married 10 Jun 1902 in Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States

Descendants

Died 7 Oct 1939 at age 70 in New Haven, New Haven, Connecticut, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Dave Cushing [send private message]

Biography

Harvey Cushing MD DSM CB is Notable.

Colonel Harvey Cushing MD DSM CB served in the United States Army in World War I
Service started: 5 May 1917
Unit(s): US Army Base Hospital No. 5; AEF Medical Corps
Service ended: 9 Apr 1919

Harvey Cushing MD DSM CB was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal.

Harvey Cushing MD DSM CB was awarded the Companion of the Order of the Bath (Military).

Harvey Cushing, MD (1869-1939) was the founder of neurosurgery as a surgical specialty. It was Cushing who developed the painstaking procedures and instrumentation so that entering the brain for removal of tumors would be not only feasible but effective. A generation of neurosurgeons trained with Cushing, who is still revered in the field of neurosurgery. In addition, Cushing was a celebrated clinical researcher, an accomplished artist, a fine writer, a passionate collector of books, a medical historian and bibliographer, and the chief founder of the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library.^[1] He wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of physician Sir William Osler.^[2]

Early Life and Training

Harvey Williams Cushing, the youngest of ten children of Henry Kirke Cushing (1827-1910) & Betsey Maria (Williams) Cushing (1828-1903), was born on 8 Apr 1869 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio.^[3] Cushing's older brother, Edward Fitch "Ned" Cushing (1862-1911), father, and paternal grandfather were prominent Cleveland physicians; his great-grandfather was a physician in Massachusetts. Cushing's mother helped raise her younger half-brother, Edward Porter Williams (1843-1903), who went on to co-found the Sherwin-Williams Company. He grew up in a comfortable home at 786 Prospect Street in Cleveland (which no longer stands).

Harvey's studies included:^[4]

• 1887-1891: Bachelor of Arts, Yale University
• 1891-1895: Master of Arts and Doctor of Medicine, Harvard University
• 1895-1896: House Officer/Intern, Massachusetts General Hospital
• 1896-1900: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore Maryland
  • 1896-1897: Assistant Resident Surgeon
  • 1897-1900: Resident Surgeon
  • 1897-1898: Instructor in Surgery
  • 1898-1899: Assistant in Surgery
  • 1899-1900: Associate in Surgery
• 1900-1901: Studied under future Nobel Prize winners Emil Kocher in Switzerland and Sir Charles Sherrington in Liverpool, England

Marriage and Children

Harvey (age 33), son of H. K. Cushing & Bessie M. Williams, married Katherine Stone (Crowell) Cushing (1870-1949) on 10 Jun 1902 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States.^[5] They would have three daughters and two sons together:

• William Harvey Cushing (1903-1926)
• Mary Benedict (Cushing) Astor Fosburgh (1906-1978)
• Betsey (Cushing) Roosevelt Whitney (1908-1998)
• Henry Kirke Cushing (1910-1983)
• Barbara (Cushing) Mortimer Paley (1915-1978)

Harvey and Katherine's three daughters were known as the socially prominent "Cushing Sisters." Daughter Betsey married James Roosevelt, son of President Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Professional Life

Cushing is generally described as the father of modern neurological surgery and earned a worldwide reputation in the medical field:^[4]

• 1901-1912: Johns Hopkins Hospital and Medical School
  • 1902-1912: Associate in Surgery
  • 1903-1912: Associate Professor of Surgery
• 1912-1939: Harvard University Medical School
  • 1912-1932: Moseley Professor of Surgery
  • 1932-1939: Professor Emeritus
• Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Boston Massachusetts
  • 1912-1932: first Surgeon-in-Chief
  • 1932-1939: Surgeon-in-Chief Emeritus
• Yale University
  • 1933-1937: Sterling Professor of Neurology
  • 1937-1939: Professor Emeritus
  • 1937-1939: Director of Studies in the History of Medicine
  • 1933-1939: Associate Fellow, Trumbull College
• New Haven Hospital, New Haven Connecticut
  • 1933-1939: Consulting Neurologist

WW I Military Service

Cushing first served voluntarily in France in 1916, before America had entered WWI. In 1917, he joined the US Army as a Major, Army Medical Corps; he was discharged as a colonel.^[6]

• Cushing volunteered to head a Harvard medical unit to operate a French military hospital called the Ambulance Américaine housed in the Lycée Pasteur. This military hospital was run on a three-monthly rotation by units from various medical schools, with Harvard leading from April to June 1916.
• Shortly after the USA entered WWI, Cushing was commissioned as a major in the U.S. Army Medical Corps on May 5, 1917. He returned to France as surgical head of US Army Base Hospital No. 5 (organized by Harvard). He was also called to lead the surgical unit in a French military hospital outside of Paris, where he experimented with electromagnets to extract metallic shrapnel fragments lodged within the brain.
• On June 6, 1918, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and assigned as senior consultant in neurological surgery for the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe.
• Although stricken by Spanish flu in early October, he was promoted to colonel (O-6) on 23 Oct 1918.
• Cushing returned to the United States in February 1919 and was discharged on 9 April 1919. The British Empire made Colonel Cushing a Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (Military Division) in 1919, and the U.S. Government awarded him the Distinguished Service Medal in 1923.

Awards and Honors - Partial List

• 1914: Elected to the Academy of Arts and Sciences^[7]
• 1919: Companion of the Bath (Military) - Great Britain^[4]
• 1923: Awarded the Distinguished Service Medal by the U.S. Army^[4]
• 1926 Pulitzer prize for his two-volume biography, The Life of Sir William Osler (London: Oxford University Press, 1925)^[2]
• 1930 Lister Medal; Royal College of Surgeons, London, England^[8]
• 1933 Henry Jacob Bigelow Medal for Contributions to the Advancement of Surgery in the world; by The Boston Surgical Society^[9]

Death and Legacy

Harvey died on 7 Oct 1939 in New Haven, Connecticut. He was buried in Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States.^[10]

The Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library is the primary library of the Yale School of Medicine, Yale School of Nursing, and Yale-New Haven Hospital.^[11] It was built in 1941, then renovated and enlarged in 1990 with funds from Harvey's daughter, Betsey (Cushing) Roosevelt Whitney (1908-1998).

The Cushing Brain Tumor Registry is an archival collection of over 2,200 case studies which includes human brain specimens, tumor specimens, microscopic slides, notes, journal excerpts and over 15,000 photographic negatives dating from the late 1800s to 1936. The collection began in 1902 when Dr. Harvey Cushing discovered one of his specimens was misplaced by the Johns Hopkins Pathology department. To avoid future misplacements, Cushing decided it was safest to retain the specimens himself. The registry documents the history of neurological medicine from its beginning.^[12]

Census Details

In the 1870 census {H W Cushing} (age 1) was in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States.^[13]

In the 1880 census Harvey (age 11), At School, was the son of Henry K. Cushing in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States.^[14]

In the 1900 census Harvey (age 31; born Apr 1869) was a single staff officer at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland, United States. {Partial list of household members}^[15]

In the 1920 census Harvey (age 47) was the married head of household in Brookline, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States.^[16]

In the 1930 census Harvey (age 61) was the married head of household in Brookline, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States.^[17]

Research Notes

• Please don't remove the list of household members from each Census - although they might be better served with some different profile organization.
• Insert photograph from WikiData into profile
• Insert 1908 portrait from WikiTree into profile
• Need primary source for military history (instead of biography)
• Need to add military service and perhaps award stickers; any others?
• Add additional legacy items
• Perhaps add publications section, and list of biographies of Cushing?^[4]
• Bishop's great biography of Cushing is available at the Internet Archive. Should the online link be included here?^[18]

Sources

1. ↑ "Harvey Cushing: A Journey Through His Life" - Yale University Library Online Exhibition
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} The 1926 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Biography: https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/harvey-cushing
3. ↑ Birth: "Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003"
   citing Digital film/folder number: 004016933_002_M9DZ-NK4; FHL microfilm: 877901; Image number: 145; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: C04009-8
   FamilySearch Record: X6SQ-FN5 (accessed 3 January 2024)
   FamilySearch Image: 33SQ-GRYW-SS9M
   Harvey Cushing born on 8 Apr 1869, son of Henry K. Cushing & Betsey M, in Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4} "A bibliography of the writings of Harvey Cushing: prepared on the occasion of his seventieth birthday April 8, 1939", Harvey Cushing Society, 1939; revised 1993;
5. ↑ Marriage: "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016"
   citing Digital film/folder number: 004016948_001_M9DC-NF4; FHL microfilm: 877936; Image number: 88; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: M02326-7
   FamilySearch Record: XDL9-MLX (accessed 3 January 2024)
   FamilySearch Image: 939K-BG98-WK
   Harvey W Cushing (33) marriage to 0 (31) on 10 Jun 1902 in Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States.
6. ↑ Michael Bliss. (2007). "Harvey Cushing: A Life in Surgery". Oxford University Press. 591 pages
7. ↑ American Academy of Arts and Sciences: https://www.amacad.org/person/harvey-williams-cushing
8. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lister_Medal
9. ↑ List of Bigelow Medal recipients
10. ↑ Burial: "Find A Grave Index"
    citing record ID 5372, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com
    FamilySearch Record: QVJ1-1JRR (accessed 3 January 2024)
    Find A Grave: Memorial #5372
    Harvey Williams Cushing burial (died on 7 Oct 1939) in 1939 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States of America. Born on 8 Apr 1869.
11. ↑ https://library.medicine.yale.edu/about/mission
12. ↑ The Cushing Center: https://library.medicine.yale.edu/cushingcenter/about
13. ↑ 1870 Census: "United States Census, 1870"
    citing Page: 77; Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: M593; Line: 26; Digital film/folder number: 004277716; FHL microfilm: 000552687; Image number: 82; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: N01609-1
    FamilySearch Record: M6KK-K9C (accessed 3 January 2024)
    FamilySearch Image: S3HT-DZWS-NQZ
    U W Cushing (1) in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States. Born in Ohio.
14. ↑ 1880 Census: "United States Census, 1880"
    citing Volume: 1; Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: T9; Affiliate Line Number: 00043; Digital film/folder number: 005161806; FHL microfilm: 1255006; Image number: 25; Sheet number: 10; Sheet letter: C
    FamilySearch Record: MZ1Y-NWT (accessed 3 January 2024)
    FamilySearch Image: 33SQ-GYB8-8HQ
    Harvey W Cushing (11), single son, At School, in household of Henry K. Cushing (52) in Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, United States. Born in Ohio, United States.
15. ↑ 1900 Census: "United States Census, 1900"
    citing Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: T623; Line: 82; Digital film/folder number: 004119781; FHL microfilm: 1240611; Image number: 338; Sheet number: 1; Sheet letter: A; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: N00825-9
    FamilySearch Record: M3K8-JR3 (accessed 3 January 2024)
    FamilySearch Image: S3HT-6LD7-BHB
    Harvey W Cushing (31), single staff officer, in household of Henry M Hurd (57) at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Born in Ohio.
16. ↑ 1920 Census: "United States Census, 1920"
    citing Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: T625; Line: 72; Digital film/folder number: 004966098; FHL microfilm: 1820721; Image number: 1080; Sheet number: 3; Sheet letter: B; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: N01871-0
    FamilySearch Record: MX1G-2ND (accessed 3 January 2024)
    FamilySearch Image: 33SQ-GR6G-WQ3
    Harvey W Cushing (47), married head of household in Brookline, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States. Born in Ohio.
17. ↑ 1930 Census: "United States Census, 1930"
    citing Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: T626; Line: 100; Digital film/folder number: 004951114; FHL microfilm: 2340668; Image number: 799; Sheet number: 12; Sheet letter: B; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: N03855-8
    FamilySearch Record: XQ5S-GXY (accessed 3 January 2024)
    FamilySearch Image: 33SQ-GRHD-WJ5
    Harvey Cushing (61), married head of household in Brookline, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States. Born in Ohio.
18. ↑ Michael Bliss. (2007). "Harvey Cushing: A Life in Surgery". Oxford University Press. 591 pages

See also:

• Wikipedia, Harvey Cushing
• Wikipedia, Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library
• Wikipedia, SS Harvey Cushing
• Wikidata: Item Q380038
• Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Harvey Williams Cushing". Encyclopedia Britannica, 3 Oct. 2023
• "The Man Behind the Brain: Harvey Cushing's Legacy" - Medscape article
• "Cushing - A brief history of Harvey Cushing" - Brainbook YouTube video, 7:58