Experiments and Observations on the Gastric Juice and the Physiology of Digestion
Contributed by Patten Free Library
Item 10696
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Description
Title page of an important volume from the William King Library. The library of Maine's first Governor became the core collection that developed into the Patten Free Library in Bath. This single-volume, first-edition work by U.S. Army physician, William Beaumont, is one of the earliest and most significant scientific accounts of experiments and observations on the digestive system and is representative of Gov. King's broad interests.
In 1822 Dr. Beaumont treated a Canadian trapper, Alexis St. Martin, who had been shot in the mid-section at close range. The wound healed, but left an opening to the man's stomach. Starting in 1825, Beaumont studied St. Martin's stomach and digestion, making systematic observations at different stages in the digestive process and analyzing samples of his gastric juices. The results of this study became the foundation of modern knowledge about the stomach and the process of digestion.
Other Information
- Title: Experiments and Observations on the Gastric Juice and the Physiology of Digestion
- Creator: William Beaumont
- Creation Date: 1833
- Subject Date: circa 1822
- Town: Bath
- Local Name: Patten Free Library
- County: Lincoln
- State: ME
- Media: ink on paper, book
- Dimensions (cm): 23 x 14 x 1.8
- Local Code: V-7-77
- Collection: King Library, Patten Free Library
- Object Type: Physical Object
For more information about this item, contact:
Patten Free Library
33 Summer Street, Bath, ME 04530
(207) 443-5141
http://www.patten.lib.me.us/
Cross Reference Searches
LC Subject Headings
Digestion
Medical History
Beaumont, William, 1785-1853
St. Martin, Alexis, 1797?-1880
United States Army -- Surgeons
Medicine -- 15th-18th century
Fur traders -- Canada
Physicians
People
William Beaumont Alexis St. Martin
Other Keywords
Canada , Surgeons , Gunshot wound , Medicine , Gastric juices
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