John Davidson Godman

Background

John Davidson Godman was born on December 20, 1794, at Annapolis, Maryland. He was the son of Capt. Samuel Godman, a Revolutionary officer, and Anna (Henderson) Godman.

His mother died before he was two years old, and his father before he was five. After the death of his mother, he was cared for by an aunt who died when he was about six years old. He then lived with a sister in Baltimore, Maryland.

Education

In the winter of 1811-12, John served as an apprentice to a Baltimore printer, and during this apprenticeship, he developed the first symptoms of tuberculosis, the disease which eventually caused his death.

In 1814, at the time the British fleet was in the Chesapeake Bay, John joined the flotilla commanded by Joshua Barney and was present at the bombardment of Fort McHenry. He began the study of medicine in 1815 with Dr. William N. Luckey in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania; later, he completed his studies under the direction of Dr. John B. Davidge of Baltimore and graduated from the University of Maryland in March 1818.

During his student days, he served as a demonstrator in anatomy and for a time gave the lectures in anatomy. After graduation, he began the practice of medicine in New Holland, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, but after a few months removed to a small village near Baltimore. He made this move because he expected to be appointed a professor of anatomy in the University of Maryland.

Career

Failing to receive the appointment, Godman went to Philadelphia determined to establish himself as a lecturer in anatomy and physiology.

He at once began to attract attention, and soon Dr. Daniel Drake invited him to come to Cincinnati as professor of surgery in the Medical College of Ohio. He left for Cincinnati on October 6, 1821.

Disgusted with the intrigue and bickering which arose in the faculty, Godman resigned his position at the end of the first term. He did not leave Cincinnati immediately, however, but remained to edit the first issues of the Western Quarterly Reporter of Medical, Surgical and Natural Science, which made its initial appearance in March 1822.

In October 1822, he returned to Philadelphia and the following year became the second to assume charge of the Philadelphia School of Anatomy. In 1825, he was on the editorial board of the Philadelphia Journal of the Medical and Physical Sciences.

Two years later, largely through his influence, the name of the journal was changed to the American Journal of the Medical Sciences. In 1826, he had been offered the chair of anatomy in Rutgers Medical College in New York City, but before the end of the second session, his tuberculosis had become so active that he was compelled to resign.

After spending the early months of 1828 in the West Indies without benefit, he returned, took a house at Germantown, Pennsylvania, and devoted his remaining days to literary work.

In 1824, Godman published his Anatomical Investigations in which he gave a detailed description of the various fasciae of the human body. His magnum opus was his three-volume American Natural History (1826 - 28). This was the first original treatise on the subject and valuable addition to the scientific literature of the country.

The writing of the natural history section of the Encyclopaedia Americana (1829 - 33) was assigned to him, but he did not live to complete the task. From early youth, he was intensely interested in the study of nature and embraced every opportunity to increase his knowledge.

At the time he lived near Baltimore his home was in that part of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, which is situated between the Patapsco and Severn Rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay.

Here, during his rambles through the woods and along the banks of the rivers and bay, he began those observations which he continued after his removal to Germantown by walks through Turner’s lane and along the banks of the Wissahickon and Frankford creeks.

It was during his last illness when he was too weak to leave his bed, that he published a series of sketches in the Friend, a weekly Philadelphia magazine, in which he described in a charming manner the observations he had made during his various rambles.

These sketches are considered the gem of his literary publications. In 1833, they were issued as a separate publication under the title of Rambles of a Naturalist.

In the year before his death, he had assembled a number of his papers which he published as Addresses Delivered on Various Public Occasions.

Achievements

• Godman contributed to American culture in two ways. His innovative teaching methods and textbooks advanced anatomical education in the United States, while his writings on American natural history provided a firm scientific base on which future naturalists could build.

Works

More photos

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  • Lafayette in America in 1824 and 1825: Or Journal of a Voyage to the United States, Vol. 2 (Classic Reprint)

    (Eastern District of Pennsylvania, to wit: Be it remembere...)

  • American Natural History: Mastology. Pt. I.

    (This book was originally published prior to 1923, and rep...)

  • American Natural History: Part 1.--mastology, Volume 2

    (This book was originally published prior to 1923, and rep...)

  • The Philadelphia Journal of the Medical and Physical Sciences Volume 13

    (This is a reproduction of a classic text optimised for ki...)

  • American Natural History: Part 1.--Mastology Volume 3

    (This is a reproduction of a classic text optimised for ki...)

  • Rambles of a Naturalist

Membership

In 1819, Godman became a member of Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences, and in 1825, the year after he was elected to membership in the Franklin Institute.

Connections

On October 6, 1821, Godman married Angelica Kauffman Peale, a daughter of Rembrandt Peale.

Father:

Samuel Godman

Mother:

Anna (Henderson) Godman

Wife:

Angelica Kauffman Peale