John Charles Peters

Background

He was born on July 6, 1819 in New York City, New York, United States. Apparently he was a studious youth, brought up in a comfortable environment.

Education

His medical studies were pursued in Berlin, Vienna, and Leipzig.

Career

On his return from studies in Europe he was examined by the Comitia Minora of the Medical Society of the County of New York in 1842 and licensed to practise medicine. His associations were such that he soon acquired a large private practice among the élite of New York. In 1844, with a number of others, he founded the New York Pathological Society, the Medical Library and Journal Society.

He took an early interest in homeopathy and ere long identified himself with that school of medicine and proceeded forthwith to make rich contributions to its literature. Many of these, issued between 1853 and 1856 from the press of William Radde. They included discussions of headaches, apoplexy, diseases of women, diseases of the eye, and nervous and mental disorders. Peters was the author of The Science and Art or the Principles and Practice of Medicine (1858 - 59), of which only four parts, of ninety-six pages each, were issued. He also wrote "A Review of Some of the Late Reforms in Pathology and Therapeutics" (1860), reprinted separately the same year with an appendix on the illnesses of Washington Irving; "Elements of a New Materia Medica and Therapeutics, Based upon an Entirely New Collection of Drug-provings and Clinical Experience, " in collaboration with E. E. Marcy and Otto Füllgraff.

From 1855 to 1861 Peters was a joint editor of the North American Journal of Homoeopathy. In 1861 the medical world was astonished by the publication in the issue for August 17 of the American Medical Times, then the most influential medical journal in the United States, of Peters' renunciation of homeopathy. It brought upon Peters most severe criticisms from both sides.

He was president of the New York County Medical Society, 1866-67, and continued his literary activity, devoting himself especially to investigation of infectious diseases, especially cholera and yellow fever. In collaboration with Ely McClellan he contributed "A History of the Travels of Asiatic Cholera" to The Cholera Epidemic of 1873 in the United States (1875), published by the United States Surgeon General's Office.

He died at Williston, North Dakota, United States.

Achievements

• John Charles Peters founded the New York Pathological Society; later he was one of the founders of the Medical Library and Journal Society. This organization in its turn contributed much to the greatness of the New York Academy of Medicine and its library. He was the first, who wrote a sensational article about impossibility of homoeopathy treatment in practice. Besides, he investigated infectious diseases, especially cholera and yellow fever and was a co-author of the famous work "A History of the Travels of Asiatic Cholera".

Works

More photos

• book

  • A Treatise on the Diseases of Females: Disorders of Menstruation

    (Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We h...)

  • A treatise on Asiatic cholera

    (This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. T...)

Views

He believed, that no single system of homoeopathy treatment could be entirely adequate in practice.

He was a firm believer in the filth origin of the acute infections and was therefore prepared to accept very early the theory of the bacterial origin of disease.

Connections

Peters married, May 16, 1849, Georgina, daughter of Andrew Snelling.

Spouse:

Georgina Snelling

father-in-law:

Andrew Snelling

coworker:

Ely McClellan

coworker:

E. E. Marcy

coworker:

Otto Füllgraff