Edward Angle (1855-1930)
credited as the father of modern orthodontists. He classified different abnormalities of teeth and jaws and developed treatments to fix them.
Steve Arlin (1945)
College world series most outstanding player for Ohio State University. He played Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians.
Edgar Buchanan (1903-1979)
American actor mostly know as Uncle Joe Carson from the Petticoat Junction, Green Acres,and The Beverly Hillbillies television sitcoms. He practiced dentistry until pursuing film at the age of 36. His father and wife were both dentists.
Barney Clark (1921-1983)
retired Seattle dentist that was the first human recipient of the Jarvik 7 heart at the University of Utah. When he and his wife realized that his heart condition had no chance of survival without medical attention, decided to have the heart implant for the benefit of future advancements in medical technology. He survived 112 days.
Paul Lemaire d’Augerville
French dentist who pioneered scuba diving equipment in 1820 by constructing a copper cylinder built into a backpack with a counter-lung. It was also connected to an inflatable life jacket. It was successfully used down to depths of 20 meters for up to an hour.
Pierre Fauchard (1678-1761)
French physician considered to be the father of modern dentistry. He suggested that dental decay resulted from the consumption of sugar. And that if left untreated, it would result in infections or tumors in the gums. He introduced dental fillings as treatments and pioneered replacing teeth with prosthetics made from bone or ivory.
George Grant (1846-1910)
the first African American professor of Harvard and the inventor of the wooden golf tee. He also invented the oblate palate – a prosthetic device aiding patients with cleft palate.
Isaac Greenwood (1730-1803)
first native-born American dentist. Father of John Greenwood.
John Greenwood (1760-1819)
George Washington’s dentist and designed his famous dentures made from hippopotamus tusks . He is credited for the invention of the first known “dental foot engine.” He served in the Revolutionary war at the age of 14 yrs.
John Henry “Doc” Holiday (1851-1887)
studied dentistry at the Pennsylvania College of Dentistry and practiced in Georgia and then Texas. He acquired a taste for gambling and a friendship with Wyatt Earp. He also became an exceptional marksman. He is most famous for the gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, AZ.
Les Horvath (1921-1995)
winner of the Heisman Trophy as quarterback and halfback from Ohio State University. He graduated from dental school in 1945 and practiced dentistry after playing for the Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns.
Jim Lonborg (1942)
MLB pitcher for 15 years known as “Gentleman Jim”. In 1967, he helped lead the Boston Red Sox to the World Series with a 22 win season making 246 strikeouts. He also received the Cy Young Award that year. The Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame induced him in 2002.
Mahlon Loomis (1826-1886)
a Washington D.C. dentist credited with a wireless telegraph patent.
William Lowell (1863-1954)
a New Jersey dentist who commercialized the modern wooden golf tee. His “Reddy Tee” noted for it’s red color differed from previous tees because of its concave head to hold the ball. He patented his design and signed a deal with the A.G. Spalding Company. The company changed the material to celluloid.
William Morrison (1860-1926)
known for his invention of the first cotton candy machine. He unveiled it at the World’s Fair in 1904 giving him the nickname “Fairy Floss”.
William Morton (1819-1868)
pioneered the use of ether as an anesthetic which turned into a lifelong obsession to be credited as the father of anesthesia. Although he gave the first public demonstration of the use of ether, he was never honored with the title. A replica of his device he used for anesthesia is shown below.
Friedrich “Fritz” Pfeffer (1889-1944)
German dentist who hid with Anne Frank. His pseudonym in the Diary of Anne Frank was Albert Dussel. He died in the Neuengamme concentration camp.
Paul Revere (1735-1818)
most famous for his midnight ride before the battles of Lexington and Concord. He was skilled as a silversmith and was known to place ads in a Boston newspaper offering services as a dentist. A good friend and patriot colonel, Dr Joseph Warren, was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill. His body was placed in a mass grave until unearthed by family members 10 months later. Revere was able to identify the decomposed body by a wire in dental bridge he made for his patient. Revere is known to be the first person to use dental forensics.
Hugo Sanchez (1958)
striker for the Mexican National Soccer Team playing in 3 World Cups. He also played for Real Madrid gaining multiple championships and personal trophies. One of his best goals is displayed here:
Albert P. Southwick (1926-1898)
dentist from Buffalo, New York who invented the electric chair as a form of execution. After noticing a drunk man who quickly died after touching a live electric generator, he concluded that electricity would be an alternative form to executions. The first execution by electric chair was August 6, 1890 on William Kemmler who was convicted of murdering his mistress.
Lucy Hobbs Taylor (1833-1910)
first American female dentist. She was originally denied entrance into the Ohio College of Dental Surgery in Cincinnati. She studied privately with a professor and moved to Iowa. After 3 years, she gained professional recognition and allowed to enter school in 1865. After practicing for 21 years, she became active in campaigning for women’s rights.
Thomas Welch (1825-1903)
founder of the Welch’s Grape Juice Company. He is credited for the inventing of a pasteurization process to prevent the fermentation of grape juice. His purpose was to develop a non-alcoholic wine to be used for the at the sacrament in local churches.
Horace Wells (1815-1848)
pioneered the use of anesthesia in dentistry most notably nitrous oxide. His first attempt was an extraction on a traveling circus member who stated he felt nothing. He attempted to prove his discovery to a local hospital where his attempt failed because it was administered improperly. After his humiliation, he later successfully removed one of his own teeth, pain free, using the inhalant. He eventually became addicted to numerous analgesics most notably chloroform and went insane. One event included rushing into the street and throwing sulfuric acid onto the clothing of two prostitutes. He was sent to prison where his addictions wore off. After realizing what he did under the effects of chloroform, he asked to retrieve his shaving kit. He grabbed his razor, inhaled an analgesic dose of chloroform, and committed suicide by slicing his femoral artery.
Byron McKeeby (1867 – 1950)
Iowa dentist best know for his inclusion as the male model in the painting American Gothic of the rural American midwest by Grant Wood.
