| Description Of Item | Oil on canvas, 76 x 62 cm
Born in Philadelphia, the son of a merchant who emigrated from Wales, John Morgan (1735–1789) graduated in Arts at the College of Philadelphia (now the University of Pennsylvania) and then spent six years apprenticed to a Dr Redman. He became surgeon to the Pennsylvania troops during the war between the French and British.
He graduated a MD in Edinburgh in 1763. His thesis on the formation of pus was widely acclaimed. He was the first colonial to be elected a Fellow of this College. Following two years studying in Paris and Italy he returned to Philadelphia. He was briefly, in 1775, medical director of the American Army but thereafter dedicated himself to his duties as professor and physician at Pennsylvania Hospital and was one of the founding members of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia in 1787. Morgan has been given the title of 'Father of American Medicine'.
Artist: Vincent Desiderio |