Cache Valley medical literature collection, 1882-1937

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Parkinson, William B. (William Brigham), 1852-1920
Title
Cache Valley medical literature collection
Dates
1882-1937 (inclusive)
Quantity
8 books and 2 ledgers, (1 linear ft. )
Collection Number
UUS_COLL MSS 286
Summary
This collection consists of 10 ledgers and books related to the practice of medicine and nursing in Logan and Richmond, Utah, around the beginning of the twentieth-century (1882-1937). This collection is organized in relation to the doctor/nurse who used or wrote a particular book or ledger. The materials from this collection are connected with four identified people: Dr. William B. Parkinson, Ella C. H. Cardon Hoopes, Dr. Herbert A. Adamson, and Dr. John Murphy.
Repository
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives Division
Special Collections & Archives
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
Logan, UT
84322-3000
Telephone: 4357978248
Fax: 4357972880
scweb@usu.edu
Access Restrictions
Restrictions

Open to public research.

Languages
English.
Sponsor
Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant, 2007-2008

Historical NoteReturn to Top

William Brigham Parkinson was born on April 4, 1852 in Bradford, England. Three years later his parents, John and Mary (Woffenden) Parkinson left England for the United States. Two years later, when William was only five-years-old, his mother died while giving birth to a child. Sometime thereafter, William's father remarried, and the family attempted to cross the plains. Sadly, in the process of traveling, William's father died near Malheur River, Oregon in 1862. At age ten, William was left in the care of a physically abusive stepmother, which caused him to run away from home. Shortly thereafter he was adopted by John W. Chapman of Helena, Montana. It was while living with Chapman that William received a basic education. At the age of 16, William left Montana to work for the Union Pacific Railroad in Morgan, Utah. In 1873, at age 21, he married Elizabeth Bull of Morgan. Two years later he also married Clarissa Taggart of Salt Lake City. In 1877 he left the United States for England and served a three-year mission for Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Upon returning in 1880, William studied medicine under Dr. F. S. Kohler, and latter received his degree in medicine from Rush Medical College, Chicago. In 1885 William came to Cache Valley, and in 1892 he set up shop in Logan. He opened his own clinic/hospital and specialized in eye, ear, nose, and throat maladies. During this time, he married two more women, Edith Benson (1886) of Whitney, Idaho, and Margaret Sloan (1890), an English emigrant. Over the course of William's life, he and his wives had many children. William regularly traveled to Berlin and London for additional medical training. In 1896, William began teaching a class on the practice of medicine and was allowed to certify and endorse nurses, among them Ella C. H. Cardon.. William later became a member of American Medical Association and the Utah State Medical Society. William practiced medicine in Logan until his death on November 9, 1920.

Sources for information on Dr. W. B. Parkinson;

The Herald Journal, Nov 10 & 15, 1920.

State of Utah, History of Utah Since Statehood, S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago; Salt Lake City, 1920 (located at USU Special Collections, 979.2 W259 V. 4)

Ella Clarinda Hinckley was born in Salt Lake City, Utah on September 17, 1867. Ella was the sixth of eleven children born of Arza Erastus Hinckley and Temperance Ricks. Ella then obtained her education at the Brigham Young Academy in Provo, and later at the Brigham Young College in Logan. Ella also volunteered her time by serving as an early temple worker in the Logan Temple. It was their that on June 24, 1886 in Logan, Utah, and at the age of 19, that Ella married a 44-year-old businessman and politician named Thomas Bartholomew Cardon, and became his 2nd wife. (Like Ella's father, Thomas also practiced polygamy, taking three wives over the course of his life.) On October 6, 1886, just over three months after their marriage, Thomas was arrested for unlawful cohabitation, yet he was never convicted of any crime. Together they had five children; Ella Vida (1890), Raymond (1892), Grace (1893), Cara (1896), and Thomasa (1898). Thomas and Ella were married for twelve years until in February of 1898, Thomas died at the age of 56. Ella was 31 years old and pregnant with their last daughter Thomasa, at the time of his death.

At some point during this part of her life Ella became a nurse and also served as subscription teacher in a school at Rexburg, Idaho. She obtained her nursing degree from Dr. William B. Parkinson's Hospital. On the inside cover of the lecture-notes book (book 3), she states that she took courses on medical instruction from a Dr. William B. Parkinson from 1896-1901. Her notes are very detailed and informative about treating wounds, illnesses, and delivering children. Ella also states that she "took Red Cross Nursing in the First World War. 1918. Service Star Officer." Some of the notes in her books give hints about her daily activities, but much remains unknown about her personal life.

Ella remained a widow until she married a widower and former sheriff named Daniel Lewis Hoopes in Logan, Utah on November 11, 1906. Daniel was 18 years older than Ella and had ten surviving children from his previous marriage. In 1907, at age 40 Ella gave birth to their first child, Warner. In 1910, they had their second and final child, naming her Florence. They were married for nineteen years until Daniel died a the age of 76 in April of 1925. Ella Clarinda Hinckley Cardon Hoopes lived to the age of 86 years old, until her death in Logan, on May 30, 1954.

Sources for information on Ella C. Hinckley;

The Herald Journal, June 1, 1954

Herbert Alexander Adamson was born on October 12, 1870 in Ottawa, Ontario to John and Mary (Derbeshire) Adamson. As a youth Herbert was well educated, and later received his medical degree in 1893. In 1893 he moved to Richmond, Utah, and became the town's second doctor. Shortly after moving to Utah, he was elected to be the President of the State Medical Association. On December 21, 1896 he married a local Richmond woman named Marlietta Lewis. Together they had two children; Herbert Jr. and Bonnie. Over the course of his time living in Richmond, Herbert grew quite fond of the town. He became actively involved in the town's political affairs, and worked to promote such things as Richmond's first town library. When World War I started Herbert wanted to be enlist, but was turned down. In response, he freely treated the families of soldiers who were away during the war. He later became a contract doctor for Utah-Idaho Central Railroad employees in Richmond, as well as the doctor for the employees of the Amalgamated Sugar Company in Lewiston, Utah. He lived and practiced medicine until his death in Richmond on November 17, 1932.

Sources for information on Dr. H. A. Adamson

Bair, Amos S., History of Richmond, Utah, Richmond Bicentennial Committee, 1976 (located at USU Special Collections, 979.27 B161)

The Deseret News, Nov 20, 1932

The Salt Lake Tribune, Nov 18, 1932

Currently, no information is available on Dr. John Murphy.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

This collection consists of 10 ledgers and books related to the practice of medicine and nursing in Logan and Richmond, Utah, around the beginning of the twentieth-century (1882-1937). This collection is organized in relation to the doctor/nurse who used or wrote a particular book or ledger. The materials from this collection are connected with four identified people: Dr. William B. Parkinson, Ella C. H. Cardon Hoopes, Dr. Herbert A. Adamson, and Dr. John Murphy.

Books 1-6 relate to Dr. W. Parkinson and Ella C. H. Cardon Hoopes. Book 1 contains handwritten notes taken by Ella at a series of lectures she attended that were given by Dr. Parkinson in Logan between 1896 to 1901. Books 1-3 all contain personal inscriptions on the inside-cover made by Ella Cardon or her daughter, that give information about Ella and Dr. Parkinson. Books 2-5 are published works relating to nursing and mid-wifery. Book 6 it bears the inscription "This book belonged to an English woman who came to Utah," and contains medical recipes for treating medical problems and illnesses. This book is believed to be connected with Dr. Parkinson and Ella Cardon.

Books 7-9 are connected to Dr. Adamson. Book 7 is a handwritten book/ledger entitled Materia Medica, and contains information regarding treatments and remedies for diseases. A handwritten inscription on the inside cover states that it was a gift to Dr. Adamson. Books 8 & 9 contain handwritten notes and clippings. These two ledgers were Dr. Adamson's personal notebooks.

Book 10 is connected to Dr. Murphy. The first page of this ledger lists "John Murphy's Clinic, Murphy, 1916." The ledger records the daily activities in the clinic. The subjects in this ledger range from treating illnesses, child birth, to repairing broken bones.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

Copyright

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Utah State University Libraries, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Permission to publish material from the Cache Valley medical literature collection must be obtained from the Special Collections Manuscript Curator and/or the Special Collections Department Head.

Preferred Citation

Cache Valley medical literature collection, 1882-1937. (COLL MSS 286). Utah State University. Special Collections and Archives Department.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Numerical.

Acquisition Information

Books 7-10 of this collection were donated on April 17, 1988 by Jeanne Adamson Watson, the granddaughter of Dr. Herbert A. Adamson.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Description Dates
Book 1: Ella H. Cardon lecture-notes book
(handwritten notes on medical lectures given by Dr. Parkinson from 1896 to 1901, and a personal-historical inscription by Ella located on the inside cover page`)
1896-1901
Book 2: Meadows, Alfred, A Manual Of Midwifery, 4th Edition, G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York
(personal inscription written by Ella's daughter on the inside cover page about Ella's connection with Dr. Parkinson)
1882
Book 3: Shipp, Ellis Reynolds, Life Lines, Skelton Publishing Company, Salt Lake City
(personal inscription by Ella located on the inside cover page)
1910
Book 4: J. H. Kellogg, Ladies Guide in Health and Disease, Modern Medicine Publishing Co., New York City 1897
Book 5: Philip, Robert Kemp, "Enquire Within Upon Everything," The Domestic World; A Practical Guide, Hodder & Stoughton Publications, London 1889
Book 6: Medical recipe book
(handwritten, filled with recipes and mixtures that produce medical remedies, believed to be connected with Dr. Parkinson and E. Cardon)
undated
Book 7: Materia Medica
(handwritten book, inscription on inside cover stating book is a gift to Dr. Adamson)
undated
Book 8: International Pocket Medical Formulary
(filled with handwritten notes and paper inserts, some inserts are dated pre-1900, believed to be Dr. Adamson's personal notebooks)
undated
Book 9: Ledger
(filled with handwritten notes and paper inserts, some inserts are dated pre-1900, believed to be Dr. Adamson's personal notebooks)
undated
Book 10: Record, "John Murphy's Clinic, Murphy"
(log book of how wounds and illnesses were treated in the clinic)
1916

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Medical care--Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)--History.
  • Medicine--Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)--History.
  • Nursing--Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)--History.
  • Physicians--Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)--History.

Personal Names

  • Adamson, Herbert A. (Herbert Alexander), 1870-1932. (contributor)
  • Adamson, Herbert A. (Herbert Alexander), 1870-1932.
  • Hinckley, Ella Clarinda, 1867-1954. (contributor)
  • Hinckley, Ella Clarinda, 1867-1954.
  • Murphy, John, Dr. (contributor)
  • Murphy, John, Dr.
  • Parkinson, William B. (William Brigham), 1852-1920.

Geographical Names

  • Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)--History.