Jonathan Letterman
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Letterman was an American
surgeon
credited as being the originator of the modern methods for medical organization in armies. Dr. Letterman is known today as the "Father of Battlefield Medicine." His system enabled thousands of wounded men to be recovered and treated during the American Civil War
.
, the son of a well-known surgeon. He graduated from Jefferson College
in 1845 and Jefferson Medical College in 1849. That same year he was given the position of assistant surgeon in the Army Medical Department.
Letterman served in Florida
during military campaigns against the Seminole
Indians until 1853. He then spent a year in Fort Ripley, Minnesota. He was then ordered to Fort Defiance
in New Mexico Territory
to aid the campaign against the Apache
. He was transferred to Fort Monroe
in Virginia
. From 1860 to 1861 he was engaged in California
against the Ute
s.
His younger brother, William Henry Letterman
, co-founded the Phi Kappa Psi
fraternity with Charles Page Thomas Moore
in Canonsburg after tending to sick classmates in the Fall of 1850. After graduation from Jefferson College, William followed his brother into Jefferson Medical College.
At the start of the Civil War, Letterman was assigned to the Army of the Potomac
. He was named medical director of the Department of West Virginia in May 1862. A month later he was appointed, with the rank of major, as the medical director of the Army of the Potomac itself. Letterman immediately set to reorganizing the Medical Service of the fledgling army, having obtained from army commander Maj. Gen.
George B. McClellan
the charter to do whatever was necessary to improve the system. The army reeled from inefficient treatment of casualties in the Seven Days Battles
in June, but by the time of the Battle of Antietam
in September, Letterman had devised a system of forward first aid stations at the regimental level, where principles of triage
were first instituted. He established mobile field hospital
s to be located at division and corps headquarters. This was all connected by an efficient ambulance corps
, established by Letterman in August 1862, under the control of medical staff instead of the Quartermaster Department. Letterman also arranged an efficient system for the distribution of medical supplies.
Letterman proved the efficiency of his system at the Battle of Fredericksburg
, in which the Army of the Potomac suffered 12,000 casualties. After this show of proficiency, his system was adopted by other Union armies and was eventually officially established as the medical procedure
for the entirety of the United States' armies by an Act of Congress
in March 1864. The greatest casualties for his army were suffered at the three-day Battle of Gettysburg
in July 1863. To deal with more than 14,000 Union
wounded, along with 6,800 Confederate
wounded who were left behind, a vast medical encampment was created northeast of Gettysburg off the York Pike on the George Wolf farm, named "Camp Letterman."
After a brief period of serving as Inspector of Hospitals in the Department of the Susquehanna
, Letterman resigned from the army in December 1864 and relocated to San Francisco, California
, where he served as elected coroner
from 1867 to 1872. He published his memoirs, Medical Recollections of the Army of the Potomac, in 1866.
was named Letterman Army Hospital
in his honor. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery
. The inscription on the private memorial that was erected for him reads:
His wife was buried at his side. Her inscription reads: "Blessed are the dead that died in the Lord."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
credited as being the originator of the modern methods for medical organization in armies. Dr. Letterman is known today as the "Father of Battlefield Medicine." His system enabled thousands of wounded men to be recovered and treated during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Early life
Letterman was born in Canonsburg, PennsylvaniaCanonsburg, Pennsylvania
Canonsburg is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, southwest of Pittsburgh. Canonsburg was laid out by Colonel John Canon in 1789 and incorporated in 1802....
, the son of a well-known surgeon. He graduated from Jefferson College
Washington & Jefferson College
Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh...
in 1845 and Jefferson Medical College in 1849. That same year he was given the position of assistant surgeon in the Army Medical Department.
Letterman served in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
during military campaigns against the Seminole
Seminole
The Seminole are a Native American people originally of Florida, who now reside primarily in that state and Oklahoma. The Seminole nation emerged in a process of ethnogenesis out of groups of Native Americans, most significantly Creeks from what is now Georgia and Alabama, who settled in Florida in...
Indians until 1853. He then spent a year in Fort Ripley, Minnesota. He was then ordered to Fort Defiance
Fort Defiance, Arizona
Fort Defiance is a census-designated place in Apache County, Arizona, United States. The population was 4,061 at the 2000 census.- History :...
in New Mexico Territory
New Mexico Territory
thumb|right|240px|Proposed boundaries for State of New Mexico, 1850The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of...
to aid the campaign against the Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
. He was transferred to Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. From 1860 to 1861 he was engaged in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
against the Ute
Ute Tribe
The Ute are an American Indian people now living primarily in Utah and Colorado. There are three Ute tribal reservations: Uintah-Ouray in northeastern Utah ; Southern Ute in Colorado ; and Ute Mountain which primarily lies in Colorado, but extends to Utah and New Mexico . The name of the state of...
s.
His younger brother, William Henry Letterman
William Henry Letterman
William Henry "Willie" Letterman was born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. He was the co-founder of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity in 1852 at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.-Education:...
, co-founded the Phi Kappa Psi
Phi Kappa Psi
Phi Kappa Psi is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania on February 19, 1852. There are over a hundred chapters and colonies at accredited four year colleges and universities throughout the United States. More than 112,000 men have been...
fraternity with Charles Page Thomas Moore
Charles Page Thomas Moore
Charles Page Thomas Moore was a co-founder of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity in 1852 at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. He was born in Virginia in a portion of the state along the Ohio River now located in West Virginia...
in Canonsburg after tending to sick classmates in the Fall of 1850. After graduation from Jefferson College, William followed his brother into Jefferson Medical College.
Civil War
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
. He was named medical director of the Department of West Virginia in May 1862. A month later he was appointed, with the rank of major, as the medical director of the Army of the Potomac itself. Letterman immediately set to reorganizing the Medical Service of the fledgling army, having obtained from army commander Maj. Gen.
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
the charter to do whatever was necessary to improve the system. The army reeled from inefficient treatment of casualties in the Seven Days Battles
Seven Days Battles
The Seven Days Battles was a series of six major battles over the seven days from June 25 to July 1, 1862, near Richmond, Virginia during the American Civil War. Confederate General Robert E. Lee drove the invading Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan, away from...
in June, but by the time of the Battle of Antietam
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with about 23,000...
in September, Letterman had devised a system of forward first aid stations at the regimental level, where principles of triage
Triage
Triage or ) is the process of determining the priority of patients' treatments based on the severity of their condition. This rations patient treatment efficiently when resources are insufficient for all to be treated immediately. The term comes from the French verb trier, meaning to separate,...
were first instituted. He established mobile field hospital
Field hospital
A field hospital is a large mobile medical unit that temporarily takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent hospital facilities...
s to be located at division and corps headquarters. This was all connected by an efficient ambulance corps
U.S. Ambulance Corps
The U.S. Ambulance Corps was a unit of the Union Army during the American Civil War. The Ambulance Corps was initially formed as a unit only within the Army of the Potomac, due to the effort of several Army officials, notably Dr. Jonathan Letterman, medical director of the Army of the Potomac, and...
, established by Letterman in August 1862, under the control of medical staff instead of the Quartermaster Department. Letterman also arranged an efficient system for the distribution of medical supplies.
Letterman proved the efficiency of his system at the Battle of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside...
, in which the Army of the Potomac suffered 12,000 casualties. After this show of proficiency, his system was adopted by other Union armies and was eventually officially established as the medical procedure
Medical procedure
A medical procedure is a course of action intended to achieve a result in the care of persons with health problems.A medical procedure with the intention of determining, measuring or diagnosing a patient condition or parameter is also called a medical test...
for the entirety of the United States' armies by an Act of Congress
Act of Congress
An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by government with a legislature named "Congress," such as the United States Congress or the Congress of the Philippines....
in March 1864. The greatest casualties for his army were suffered at the three-day Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
in July 1863. To deal with more than 14,000 Union
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
wounded, along with 6,800 Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
wounded who were left behind, a vast medical encampment was created northeast of Gettysburg off the York Pike on the George Wolf farm, named "Camp Letterman."
After a brief period of serving as Inspector of Hospitals in the Department of the Susquehanna
Department of the Susquehanna
The Department of the Susquehanna was a military department created by the United States War Department during the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War...
, Letterman resigned from the army in December 1864 and relocated to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, where he served as elected coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
from 1867 to 1872. He published his memoirs, Medical Recollections of the Army of the Potomac, in 1866.
Death and legacy
After the death of his wife, Mary Digges Lee Letterman, he became severely depressed. He then came down with several illnesses and eventually died in San Francisco. He was only 47 years old. On November 13, 1911, the Army hospital at the PresidioPresidio of San Francisco
The Presidio of San Francisco is a park on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area...
was named Letterman Army Hospital
Letterman Army Hospital
The Letterman Army Hospital was located on the Presidio of San Francisco and was established around 1898.- History :The hospital, built in 1898 and named in 1911 for Jonathan Letterman, was featured in every US foreign conflict in the 20th century and remained in service until the army base was...
in his honor. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
. The inscription on the private memorial that was erected for him reads:
His wife was buried at his side. Her inscription reads: "Blessed are the dead that died in the Lord."