Monument: First Public Demonstration of Ether Anesthesia
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Ether Bunny
N 42° 08.043 W 071° 58.172
19T E 254576 N 4668928
Memorial to WTG Morton located in his boyhood home of Charlton, Massachusetts. Plaque celebrates his public demonstration of ether anesthesia in 1846 at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Waymark Code: WM6KYK
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 06/17/2009
Views: 7
William Thomas Green Morton (August 9, 1819 – July 15, 1868) provided the first public demonstration of ether for surgical anesthesia at the Massachusetts General Hospital on October 16, 1846. Morton, a dentist, had previously used ether in his practice with success. Boston surgeon Henry Bigelow arranged for Morton to provide anesthesia for an operation by Dr. John Collins Warren, the first dean of Harvard Medical School. Dr. Warren was able to painlessly remove a neck tumor from Edward Gilbert Abbott. The significance of this impressed Dr. Warren who stated "Gentlemen, this is no humbug." The preserved amphitheater where the demonstration occurred is now known as the Ether Dome.
Charlton, Massachusetts, was the boyhood home of WTG Morton.
FIRST - Classification Variable: Item or Event
Date of FIRST: 10/16/1846
More Information - Web URL: [Web Link]
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