PACKARD
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PACKARD
Packard, John Hooker (1832-1907).
John Hooker Packard was born August 15, 1832, at Philadelphia, Penn- sylvania, a son of Frederick A. and Elizabeth Dwight Hooker. He graduated from the department of arts, University of Pennsylvania in 1850, and in the same university, from the department of medicine in 1853. He had for preceptor in medicine Joseph Leidy, the eminent anatomist, to whose teaching he undoubt- edly owed his fondness for and skill in anatomical pursuits. After graduation he went abroad and continued his medical studies in Paris.
In 1855 he was resident physician to the Pennsylvania Hospital for eighteen months. He then began private practice and for many years was very active as a teacher, especially in anatomy, surgery and obstetrics. As time went on, how- ever, he limited his work almost entirely to the practice of surgery. During the Civil War he was appointed acting assist- ant surgeon, United States Army, serving as attending surgeon to the Christian Street and the Satterlee United States Army General Hospitals in Philadelphia, and as consultant to the Haddington Hos- pital, and to the hospital at Beverly, New Jersey. During the progress of the battle of Gettysburg, he received orders to report at the scene of action and although quite ill at the time, from what subsequently developed into a very severe case of typhoid, he obeyed at once. For three days and nights he labored inces- santly and then being utterly unable to continue at work, was sent back to Phila- delphia suffering from a nearly fatal attack of the fever.
From 1863 to 1884 he was one of the visiting physicians to the Episcopal Hospital of Philadelphia, in 1884 visit- ing surgeon to the Pennsylvania Hospital, which position he held until his retire-
ment from active work in 1896. Pie was
also surgeon to St. Joseph's Hospital of
Philadelphia.
Dr. Packard was a member of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, and vice-president from 1885-1888. He was the first Mutter lecturer in that institu- tion from 1864—1866, his lectures being on "Inflammation." He was one of the founders of the Pathological and Obstet- rical Societies of Philadelphia, and twice president of each. He was also one of the original members of the American Surgical Association.
Among his noticeable operations were two successful hip-joint amputations and a successful ligation of the internal iliac artery. In 1872 he published the first notice of the primary anesthesia from ether, and in 1880, an article in the " New York Medical Record" of May 22, on the value of an oblique incision in the skin in lessening the disfigurement of scars, which is still frequently referred to.
In 1886, in a paper read before the Medico-Legal Society of New York, he suggested the use of a lethal chamber for the infliction of the death penalty, death to be caused by the abstraction of oxygen from the atmosphere and the introduction of carbonic acid gas.
Dr. Packard was a profoundly religious man, an Episcopalian. Although he rarely talked upon religious subjects, his belief was a vital part of his existence and colored all the important actions of his life. He had very considerable artistic ability and much of his work was illus- trated with his own pencil. In 1896 he infected himself in the course of an operation. Following the severe illness which ensued upon this accident, he retired from all active medical work. His culture, geniality and sense of humor endeared him to many friends, both con- temporaries and also many of a much
